Here is today’s mindful eating tip:
Learn to recognize your unique subtle hunger cues and respect your body by heeding those initial signals of hunger. When you are just-right hungry and you choose nourishing food that you crave or simply enjoy, there is greater satisfaction, that “hit-the-spot” feeling.
Skipping meals or allowing yourself to get too hungry will kick in primal eating urges and you will be less likely to be mindful in your food choices. Have you noticed that If you wait to eat until you’re ravenous, you tend to eat faster and often beyond the point of comfortable satiety?
Continuous eating or “grazing” doesn’t allow a sufficient level of hunger to arise. Food is less compelling when you’re not physically hungry.
Whenever you eat, be mindful of your body’s cues that it’s had enough for now. Pause and put your fork down periodically to assess your level of hunger with curiosity. If you pay attention, you will notice the food becomes less appealing with progressive bites and as your body receives the nourishment it desired, until you eventually hit your “last bite threshold”. At that point, you can put down your fork and leave the table comfortably satisfied (not uncomfortably full), knowing you will eat again when your body has processed that meal and is calling for more.
If you have been restricting your intake or eating by someone else’s diet design for a long time (for some of my clients that can be years or even decades), you may have a hard time hearing your body’s subtle hunger and satiety cues until they hit extreme levels. With mindful practice, you CAN become re-attuned.
Your body is YOUR BODY. It is a beautiful physiological masterpiece that naturally monitors and communicates it’s needs. Your job is to listen to, respect, and honor it! Are you in a place that you can trust that?
Ready to improve your relationship with food?
Contact Nicole to learn more about a non-diet approach to nutrition.