Yesterday you rolled up your sleeves and got to work. GREAT job! This week is when all of your hard work is going to pay off. How nice is it not to have to worry about what you’re going to eat for lunch every day this week because it’s already prepared?! It feels good right?? Almost liberating?
Now, I know for many of you it probably felt like it took you FOREVER to get those salads prepped. That’s NORMAL! But each time you do it you will get better…I promise! And pretty soon you will be a meal-prepping whiz and making all of your meals for the week in the same amount of time it took to make your salads. It just takes practice!
Today is going to be the first day you eat your salad for lunch and you may notice a couple of things.
1. It takes you FOREVER to eat your salad!
2. You won’t be able to eat the whole thing.
Again, this is NORMAL! Chances are at lunchtime you’ve become accustomed to eating in a hurry. I know sometimes this isn’t always in your control…we are BUSY especially at work. And depending where you work you might not get a chance to “punch out” and eat. Unfortunately this isn’t good for your health…but you can still focus on making some small changes. And hopefully you’re not eating at work for EVERY meal!
Why should I care about mindful eating?
Mindful (or conscious) eating is simply being AWARE of your relationship to food, your body, and the habits and patterns you’ve formed around eating. The beauty of the SUPER SALAD is that it really forces you to SLOW DOWN when you eat.
We’ve become a nation of GOBBLERS! Food is often gulped, wolfed, pushed and shoved down the hatch while we sit at the computer, watch TV, or drive to work. This gives us little time for tasting, let alone chewing. And chewing is where the magic happens! Nutrients have to somehow get from the food you eat to the trillions of cells in your body.
Chewing at least 25 times initiates the process of digestion. This ensures that nutrients and minerals are released early on in the digestive process. And having enough nutrients in the stomach sends a signal to the brain that you are full! No such signal is sent when you wolf down your food. Clean, wholesome foods that are well chewed will fill you up much sooner and satisfy you for much longer. This solves the problem of wanting to binge, overeat, indulge and eat mindlessly.
TAKE ACTION: Unplug and try to find a sense of calm when eating. You can even go so far as to tell yourself, “I’m about to eat. I will gratefully allow myself to enjoy this moment!”
Here are some other simple tips you can practice for more conscious eating:
- Try to make eating a pleasant experience. Stress disrupts digestion and nutrient absorption. Even though it might be a challenge, you must try to find some sense of CALM when eating. If you notice that the TV, computer, or ever-present smart phone regularly causes you stress or distraction when eating, then turn them off or remove from your presence while you eat. The world will continue to turn even though you’ve chosen to unplug for a bit, and the brief rest from your routine will send you back into the game stronger and more refreshed.
- Take three or four slow, deep breaths to center yourself before starting your meal. Some people pray, or offer thanks for their food. Others reflect on how fortunate they are even to have food. Many professional athletes think about what they want their food to do for them. They enter a conscious agreement with the food/fuel, and instruct the body to use it for what it is most needed. If you don’t have your own premeal ritual, now’s a good time to experiment and create one that works for YOU.
- Pay attention to your body while you’re eating and just be present. Get to know the entire habit of eating, instead of only the quick routine of taste, chew, swallow, repeat. Try putting your utensils down while you’re chewing, rather than constantly stabbing your food and jumping ahead to the next bite on your fork.
This is MINDFUL and CONSCIOUS eating. It will help reduce stress and is a great way to take care of your body and move toward a more healthy lifestyle.
If you can’t eat the entire salad at one sitting…that’s OK. This might be the case either because of time constraints or because you start to feel FULL. No worries! Simply save the rest for a snack later, or even better…eat the rest of your salad as an appetizer BEFORE your dinner. Most people aren’t used to eating all of those greens and veggies at once, and your stomach will (happily) need a few days to adjust. Many times for lunch we inhale food with too many empty calories and not enough nutrients. When it comes to super salads you are giving your body the most efficient fuel possible, and you won’t feel the need to take a nap two hours later. 🙂
YOUR HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT
So how did things go with your super salad today? How did it taste? Were you able to eat the whole thing? Did you get strange looks and comments from co-workers?
I’m curious to hear about your experiences so please don’t be afraid to share them with us today in the Facebook group!
Here’s the link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/657486854452159/permalink/664390023761842/
And at your next meal, see if you can use any (or all) of the tips above to make eating a more pleasurable and mindful experience.
