Sometime in the past several years, you may have seen a flyer for a Mindful Eating class here at the JCC. So here’s a good question: What exactly IS Mindful Eating? And why should you care about it?
Mindful Eating is a little less about WHAT you eat, and a little more about HOW you eat. I stumbled on it in the course of my meditation practice, and believe me, this was something I needed.
Like a lot of people, I had a kind of dysfunctional relationship with food. Sure, I ate a lot of healthy foods – after all, I’m a dietitian! But I was still out of balance with food and with my body. I didn’t eat enough sometimes because I was afraid of gaining weight; then I’d overeat things like donuts and cookies because I was tense or stressed, and of course hungry. I’d end up feeling too full, uncomfortable and guilty. I wasn’t listening to my body and it was making me miserable.
By practicing Mindful Eating, I’ve learned to have a more peaceful, balanced relationship with food and with my body. There are very simple practices anyone can use to slow down while eating, tune in to your body and your natural sense of how much you need to eat, and truly enjoy your food.
There’s nothing really complicated about it. I’ve taught Mindful Eating to kids and to seniors. I’ve had people in my classes who struggle with their weight, and others who don’t have those struggles. Mindful Eating can help you be more calm; it can develop your sense of gratitude and connectedness in life; it can definitely help you if you’re trying to lose weight; I’ve even seen it help people with digestive issues. And it’s enjoyable! People always have fun in my class.
If this sounds good to you, consider signing up for my Mindful Eating workshop on Sunday, November 13, at 10:45 am. Feel free to fill out the form below and we will get right back to you.
Featured image via Adobe Stock
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