The Holidays are here and with it comes an abundance of culinary indulgences. Given the year we’ve had it’s understandable that the idea of ‘treating ourselves’ when it comes to second helpings can be very tempting. Isn’t if funny how we rarely feel like treating ourselves to extra broccoli - but pie….well..that’s a different story. It’s been such a difficult year that an extra piece of pie feels almost necessary. But as we’ve all experienced at some point, that soothing feeling that comes with stress eating doesn’t last long and before you know it you’re back in front of the fridge.

Mindful eating is associated with less weight gain in pregnancy and if you’ve already had your baby mindful eating is associated with a healthy approach to weight loss as there’s no counting calories or restrictive diets.

Mindless Eating

How often do find yourself sitting in front of the TV inhaling your dinner and then find yourself reaching for a snack or second helping not long after. (You might even be thinking about dessert while you’re still eating dinner…the mind loves to wander).  Maybe you spend your lunchtime at work scrolling through social media as you chow down on a sandwich.  Studies suggest that the when we are distracted while eating our brain doesn’t process the memory properly so we tend to head back to the fridge more often, which of course adds up on the scales. In our busy lives we can feel quite time poor and can see mealtimes as a task to be completed rather than a special time in the day to be present and notice our patterns of eating and taste our food.  Compare your usual Friday night meal at home to dinner in a fancy new restaurant …you slow down…you pay attention to the décor, the flavors – there’s a richness to the experience that changes how we eat. 

Eating quickly and ‘mindlessly’ usually means we’re not even chewing our food properly and some studies show that the more frequently we swallow the less heartburn is experienced.  There’s also a hormonal component to heartburn in pregnancy but mindful eating may help you reduce it’s severity. 

Here’s a few tips on getting started, and as with all of these exercises think of them as an experiment, and approach it with curiosity and kindness (guilt is forbidden).  Start with just one snack or if you’re feeling ambitious one meal a week where you make an intentional effort to have a mindful experience of your food.

1. Before you reach into the fridge - stop, take a breath and see if you’re really hungry or if you’re eating out of boredom or stress.

2. Avoid multi-tasking as you’ll miss the cues from your body that you’re getting full so turn off the TV,  phone or laptop while you’re eating meals.

3. Chew slowly and pay attention to the taste, texture, and aromas of the food. Chew more than usual as your body absorbs more nutrients for your changing body and growing baby.

4. As often as possible make your meals last 15-20 minutes (not too difficult during the holidays but harder on a busy Monday).

5. If you find eating slowly is hard to do, put your cutlery down between each bite or put your fork in your non-dominant hand or for a really mindful experience (and maybe a colder meal try eating with chopsticks if you’re not used to using them).

6. As you eat think of all of the people and places involved in bringing this food to your table – the farmer, the people working in the factory, the supermarket staff etc. Mentally thank them for their work (sprinkle that gratitude every chance you get!).

7. If you do overindulge - don’t spend any time beating yourself up. A little self kindness goes a long way with a mindful approach to food. Begin again tomorrow.

   
   Try this approach over the holidays, I’d love to hear your experiences.

   Tracy