Mindful eating

I recently had dinner with a friend and she asked me if I'd heard of or ever practiced mindful eating. I have read about it, but I don't think I've ever actually practiced it. I think the common practice is to focus on the task at hand and not multi-task like read a magazine or watch tv or just wolfing down your food. What I know it to be is this. Which I definitely would love to put into practice. Maybe not every day but at least sometimes.


What is more practical, I think is this version of mindful eating. Which is what I did yesterday. It was a beautiful day. I made myself a lovely yogurt bowl and took it outside on the patio to eat. Brought the dog out with me. I ate in silence, enjoying the outdoors and how peaceful and fresh it was. After I ate I picked up my dog and gave him a lovely massage while he basked and slept in my arms. It was such a gratifying experience. No matter where you work, what you do, why not take 20 minutes out of our day to eat in peace and just sit and be still. It's very refreshing and if we can't give ourselves that time then we might be doing something wrong. Mind you, I said 20 minutes once a day for lunch. You can blow through breakfast and dinner, but at least give yourself 20 minutes, actually whether it's breakfast, lunch or dinner. Pick one for yourself.

I also like this version of mindful eating from HuffPo. And of course I have to add in that once you master some mindful eating and you are contemplating what you are eating, then I hope that you can be conscious about your food as well. Plant-based, whole foods are best. If you are eating meat, if you don't know where that meat came from, then perhaps consider finding a source where you know the animals have lived a happy life. Only when we collectively seek out sustainable, non-factory farmed meats will the industry shift quicker. We already see a sea change, but it needs to bigger and it needs to happen faster - for the animals, for ourselves and for the environment.