Mindful eating, intuitive eating, and mindful eating are terms used to describe a way of eating that uses internal cues about hunger, appetite, and fullness to guide our relationship with food. Being in tune and being able to listen to our body allows us to know what and when we need to eat. The focus is on learning to eat in a mindful way that helps our bodies feel and function well. Dieting, restricting, counting calories or fat grams, and targeting weight are NOT components of mindful eating. Conscious eaters eat when they are hungry and stop when they are full. They eat the food they are hungry for. There is no list of “good” and “bad” foods.
In short, mindful eating is the way people who have a healthy relationship with food, who don’t struggle with weight, and who don’t diet, have been eating all along.
When introduced to mindful eating, people often panic. “If there are no rules, I will eat all day.” In the short term, some people do eat more, but eating mindfully is not eating with abandon. Mindful eating is mindful eating, being aware of the present moment; be aware of hunger and satiety; being aware of your appetite and what you are really hungry for. Mindful or intuitive eating involves learning to be aware of the difference between hunger and other eating cues, such as painful emotions, boredom, or tiredness.
The secret:
The secret to success with mindful or intuitive eating is this: You must remember or relearn how to eat mindfully, without shame, guilt, fear, and with careful attention to your body and what it needs and wants. Doing this also requires learning what to do when what your body and mind need and want are no meal. You must learn to listen respectfully to your body and learn to nurture your body and spirit without food when food is not what is needed.
The essentials:
Since 1995, I have worked with people to help them break unhealthy cycles of dieting, restriction, binge eating, and overeating by establishing mindful or mindful eating habits. There are two essential components to creating a lasting habit of mindful eating.
1. A conscious registration practice
The goal of mindful eating is to stop obsessing over food/diet and to stop using food/eating autopilot. To be successful, you will need to create a consistent method of check-in: staying connected to yourself and what you feel and need so that you can respond to these needs and desires and avoid emotional eating. You will need to find a practice that works for you and fits your personality and strengths. If the practice you choose doesn’t suit you, you won’t keep it.
This can be something you do every day when you wake up in the morning or before a meal or when you get home from work. The only requirements are that it be done consistently and that it be something that helps you focus inward, without distractions. It’s often helpful to have some ways to do mindful check-ins at various times of the day.
Examples of possible mindful recordings: mindful meditation, journaling or freewriting, walking or running, prayer or contemplative time.
People often start with writing. It can be helpful to write about whatever is on your mind for fifteen minutes every morning. Especially early on, it’s helpful to keep an emotion/food log, noting how you feel and how hungry you are before you eat. The writing process slows you down and forces you to think, to be attentive, to what you eat.
2. A support system
It is very important to have people (or one person) who support and encourage your belief system about not dieting. Your support system should honor your goals, celebrate your successes, and help you hold yourself accountable for being the person you want to be. Your support system can help you be consistent with your mindful practice. Your followers know that you are no your weight or your clothing size. They are there for you when you doubt yourself or your path and when you run into obstacles or find yourself in a place or feeling where you don’t know what to do. They can help you discover what do when you know you’re not hungry but feel like eating.
People build this support system in a variety of places. Your support may be available in friends you already have. Sometimes, though, the dieting mindset is so ingrained in our families or social circles that it might be helpful to reach out from your current life for support. A group, online message board, or intuitive eating class can be very helpful.
Sometimes people choose to work with someone individually. As a Personal Trainer, I work with individuals to help them successfully break out of a dieting mindset, to develop meaningful mindfulness check strategies that honor and utilize their particular strengths. We work together to get through the scary parts of giving up calorie counting and weighing in. In some situations, a therapist can help you move beyond emotional eating. If you find the emotions behind your food overwhelming or your diet feels out of control, you should consider working with a therapist who specializes in these issues.
Remember: mindful eating is about putting your relationship with food into perspective. When we do that successfully, we discover that it means developing new ways of taking care of ourselves. without resorting to food or diet. It’s a challenge, but the rewards are huge. Developing conscientious registration practices and a strong support system will create a strong foundation for success.