Sunday, August 14, 2011

Eat When You're Hungry: Practicing Mindful Eating


Funny story: last week, when I was on my way to Crested Butte, I stopped at the bank to make a quick deposit (first deposit in a long time). After driving up to the ATM, I could not find my debit card. Hmm...Where could it be? I racked my brain for all the possible locations, realizing that I had not seen it since Saturday night. Instantly, I realized my card was still at the bar. Oops! It happens to the best of us. 

Luckily, Absinth House (the bar) happened to be right around the corner from my bank. I drove over, and to my dismay, realized that it didn’t open until 11 am (it was 9:45). As a way to kill time, I went to the public library, and searched for some new books on health and fitness (ironic that this is what I did after I had been “crazy” enough to leave my card at the bar). I found some awesome books that helped me find words to many of the jumbled, random thoughts in my head. 

One particular book has made me think a lot about mindful eating. In fact, it is called Eating Mindfully: How to End Mindless Eating & Enjoy a Balanced Relationship with Food by Susan Albers, psy.d. This book defines mindful and mindless eating, and offers 46 different tips and strategies to help people develop a positive relationship with food. It does NOT advocate dieting. I am going to write about a few main points that I have been incorporating into my daily life. 

The first step to mindful eating: Eat when you’re Hungry. This may seem like an easy strategy. However, when battling the voices in your head, the plans of the day, and all the other factors that influence our eating, eating when you’re hungry can be very, very difficult.

Try this: throughout the day, notice when your stomach growls and feed it as soon as possible (you may need to bring snacks along if you anticipate hunger). When you reunite with this basic bodily function, you will find how often it occurs. Pick a healthy snack or meal, sit down with your food, and enjoy every bite of it. Do not wait until your hunger becomes unbearable, because this often leads to overeating and feelings of guilt. In fact, many health experts recommend eating five to six small meals a day, rather than three “square meals” a day. Here are a few scenarios (with strategies to help) when we tend to ignore our hunger:

Scenario 1: Dinner with Friends or Family
It’s 6:30 pm, and you have dinner reservations at your favorite restaurant at 8:00 pm. You are excited for fondue, but you are STARVING. What do you do? 

Dinner for Tallie's Birthday
Here’s my advice: have a small snack before you dine out. It’s not safe to wait because this may result in bingeing and mindless eating. I like to have a balanced snack of carbs and protein, like a banana with peanut butter, or yogurt with almonds (more snack ideas listed at the end). When you sit down to eat later that evening, you will be able to enjoy the ambience of the restaurant, and the company of friends, rather than eating as fast as possible.


Biking with Kat- Finding a Moment to Enjoy the View

Scenario #2: Battling Negative Thoughts:
Many of us have wanted to lose weight at some point in our lives. For whatever reasons, we are displeased with the way we look and feel. I’ve been there, and it makes eating when you’re hungry very challenging. Under-eating and avoiding food can result in many negative consequences. The first is that often leads to mindless eating later on. The second is that it makes losing weight difficult because your metabolism slows down as a way to preserve the calories that are in your body. In my own experience, I find that negative thoughts and criticisms ultimately lead me to overeat, rather than to lose weight. Remember, your body needs food no matter what. Try and find foods that are satisfying and healthy, and incorporate exercise into your daily routine. Starvation is no good, and it will lead to negative, rather than, positive outcomes. 


I hope these suggestions give you a starting point to begin thinking about mindful eating. I highly recommend this book (Eating Mindfully by Susan Albers), and would advise you to do a little research if this is a topic that interests you. I will likely write about mindful eating again in the future. For now, remember to eat when you’re hungry!

Healthy Snacks/Small Meals to Eat When You’re Hungry:
-       ½ avocado on a toasted English muffin
-       1 string cheese with 3-5 crackers
-       1 apple with peanut butter
-       1 banana with peanut butter
-       Yogurt with fruit and/or almonds
-       Turkey & cheese sandwich with tomatoes and cucumbers
-       Pita chips with hummus
-       Almonds with raisins and chocolate chips
-       1 Lara bar
-       Oatmeal with yogurt and peanut butter
-       1 hard-boiled egg with salt and pepper
-       Celery and carrots dipped in 1 tablespoon of dressing


1 comment:

  1. I suffer the consequence of muffin tops and snug as hell fittings. Daniel

    ReplyDelete