Food for thought! - Mindful eating

[Emha]

I have this dear ccor-friend (the one with the sunshine avatar) that, on the one hand, told me not to fuzz over weight loss anymore because she thinks I look great and than …… on the other hand, she sends me a Paul McKenna video ‘I can make you thin’.

The Paul McKenna approach really resonated with me so yesterday I started applying his four golden rules:
1. When you are Hungry, Eat!
2. Eat whatever you want.
3. Eat consciously and enjoy every mouthful
4. When you think you are full, stop eating!
(more info on www.paulmckenna.com)

At first these rules seem easy enough but - oh boy! - am I having trouble with rule # 3!

Whenever I eat I’m supposed to eat consciously. I have to put down my knife and fork after every bite and chew every bite at least 20 times.

So this is how my first day went:
Breakfast: I remembered the rule as I had only two spoonfuls left on my plate, LOL.
A banana in between meals; never thought of the rule ;-(
Lunch: Rule, what rule? ;-)
Two cookies with my afternoon tea; the rule entered my mind as I took the last bite of the second cookie.
Diner: I remembered the rule as I put the food on the table but forgot all about it while eating, LOL.
Later in the evening I had a cup of blueberry-yoghurt and I did remember to eat consciously while I took the lid of the package but as I sat down I completely forgot about it.

I thought this was so funny, I giggled at my ‘Alzheimer-light’ after lunch but laughed out loud come dinnertime. It was on my mind all the time in-between meals, but as soon as I had food on my plate it vanished completely!

I'm so looking forward to Cindy's workshop 'Mindful tasting' in February!!!

I’m determined to keep on trying though and so far, on my second day…..I missed out on a conscious breakfast but I have two homemade oatmeal cookies in front of me that I am going to be eating veeeeeeeeeeery consciously, completely in the NOW, and I’m going to enjoy every bite to the fullest!

[Minnehaha]

i'm thinking this is a very good idea. I KNOW i eat unconsciously- usually when i am stressed. Its so silly. Your post made me smile, I could see myself doing that. Sititng down thinking oh yes must rememeber. " minutes later - all gone!!
Keep going !!

[M]

How nice you found yet another thing to torture yourself with!
And I was so very glad to point this resource out to you. Hihihi
I use this technique too (sloppy) and I must say that after "using" it for a while, I really get more concious about when I've had enough. So even if you miss *every* beat, in a while you will see changes.
For me it's nearly impossible to eat this way in the morning and during lunch, because of work, but in the evening I'm aware of my dinner and later when I snack something I do check if I really need to eat something or if it's boredom.
So, dear Emha, good luck on your new venture, you will get there.
Ps.To combat late night snacking I also recommend msn.

[Nikola]

Good luck,

You have to reprogram yourself, your so accustomed to the things you do, that you do them without conscious thought, sometimes that is good, but if you want to change your habit its not of course.

But if you stick to it, I'm positive you will reach your goal,

Love - Niko

[Beth Miller]

Mindfulness in all things is a prescription for mental, physical, and spiritual health - thank you for this reminder to be mindful!!!

[Melissa]

I love that you shared this with us. I have had this kind of experience with alot of things that I try to bring into my life. I laughed out loud thinking about how familiar this is. I'm going to try the mindful eating, not so much to loose weight but to eat healthier foods.

[Emha]

Thank you for all your comments.
I'm slowly getting better at it.
At home I have a post-it (saying remember #3) on the dinnertable and I put a red sticker on the lunchbox that I take to work.

The main thing is that I am very amused by my failed attempts instead of frustrated and upstream.

M, thank you for your tip. I hope it works for you but I would think that it would transform late night snacking into later night snacking, cruising the kitchen inbetween msn and taking the dog for his evening walk, LOL.

I'm glad to say that late night snacking is not my problem.

[M]

Hi Emha,
How's number 3 getting along?
(and number 2?? hihihi nooooo, toooo much info hihihi)
Guess what I bought (inspired by your enthousiasm for the series)
A pedometer!!!!
And he's right: what gets measured, gets done...
In my case it was quite shocking.

[BrendaBee]

love it........i think it comes with practise but boy does putting it into practice take practice, or whatever. thanks for your comment on my fear blog. I think i might take your advice and try some eft. Have you used eft before?

[Cindy]

Yes, eating mindful is important for the digestion and enhances the eating experience, but I feel it does not have to be so strict. Food = joy & love!

Hope to share some love & joy with you in my Mindful Tasting workshop.