Mindful Eating

How aware are you of the food you are eating?

We tend to make poor food choices when we are rushed, busy and stressed. In these situations, ignoring or override our body's natural hunger and fullness cues.

Slowing down paying attention and eating mindfully can be a simple strategy towards your nutrition goals.

No "rules" overthinking or calorie counting required.

For 20 years I worked in the Printing industry running high-speed machines. Long 12-hour shifts, the priority was always the machine had to be running at all times to meet deadlines. AS murphy's law would have it, as soon as you sat down to eat, the machine would stop, you would scoff your food down so to get the machine up and running again as quickly as possible.

I was always hungry even though I was eating good food

I would eat mountains of it. I just put it down to the hours of physical training I was doing or the physical demands of the job making me hungry. No, it was just me inhaling and scoffing my food down, I certainly wasn't losing weight!

I really wasn't aware just how much I was doing this until I opened up my own space to work out of. When you are everything in the business, a full-time athlete. My food choices weren't ideal and I was grabbing food on the run, scoffing food down between clients, training and the demands of the business. Quickly I gaining weight, becoming unhealthy fast. This in itself became problematic.

Next time you are eating, notice

• What are you eating?

• Where are you eating (in front of the TV or on your phone? driving your car, walking the dog)

• Do you actually notice the taste, texture, and smell of your food as you eat it?

Try this yourself and see what happens

1. Sit at a table, with no distractions, no phone, TV etc

2. Look at what you are about to eat, What have you chosen?

3. Take a bit of food, chew slowly, notice the scent, taste, texture & temperature

4. Put your eating implements down and pause

5. Take a few deep breathes, consciously relax your body

6. Check-in with your body, what are you feeling emotionally and physically

7. Take another bite of food.....eat and repeat this

Do this for 1 or 2 weeks and notice any changes.

No matter how much we know, it is only what we can do consistently that actually matter.

Remeber action creates change

Be the Change

Be Your own Brave