Prana Vibe Blog What I've learned in my mindful eating experiment.

What is mindful eating? There are many definitions. Most describe it as devoting all your senses to eating; namely see, smell, taste, touch and hear(snap, crackle, pop). Being grateful for the food and how it arrived to your table. Noticing how you feel before, during and after you eat. Lastly, we give our undivided attention to consuming our food (and beverages). So I decided to give it a test run before rolling it out the our Prana Vibe community and here's what I discovered... 1. I noticed how I wanted to grab the remote, the cell, or a book to read. I was antsy to do something else while eating. It was difficult to resist.2. When I just sat there and ate with no distractions, I noticed the different notes of the food. The squash had a bit of a nutty taste to them. I had to chew the food longer to masticate it properly.3. I got satiated much quicker since I ate slower. I noticed how the food felt in my mouth and swallowing before taking another bite. 4. I took a moment to breathe and thank the food. I appreciated every soul and process involved to get this food to me.5. Eating in social settings was much tougher for me. I found that I ate more because I enjoyed the company and it correlated to a higher intake volume.6. When something upset me, I noticed that I wanted to put something in my mouth right away. It's like I needed validation and wanted to feel good and avoid feeling bad in that very moment.7. When I allowed the bad feelings to just exist with me, then the urge to make poor food choices subsided. It cleared up a great deal when I did get to better food options and enjoyed the small victory.8. I learned that I sometimes ate out of boredom. It kept me entertained, didn't argue with me and is always there. When I chose to just be bored, eventually the urge to grab something to stuff in my face subsided. I learned a lot about myself through this experiment. I have full intention to continue with mindful eating as much as possible. Our awareness around food can transform our mood, how we feel about ourselves and live a more balanced and fruitful life (pun intended). Join us on this journey of conscious food consumption. Please share your thoughts and experiences in the comment section below!