We are online, always connected, and often we eat equally distracted: in front of the PC, scrolling the phone, or swallowing a meal in 5 minutes. This automatic pilot not only leads us to eat much more than our body needs, but it also leaves us with a deep sense of dissatisfaction and often guilt.
The solution is not a restrictive diet, but a change of perspective: mindful eating (conscious nutrition). It’s not about what you eat, but how you eat it. It is a method that teaches you to re -establish dialogue with your body, respecting its signs of hunger and satiety and, surprisingly, to enjoy more than food while consuming less.
Here are the 5 essential pillars to start the path of Mindful Eating today and transform your relationship with food.
Recognize true hunger
The first and most important step is to distinguish physical hunger from emotional hunger. Physical hunger is gradual, it manifests itself with signals such as grumbling or light drop in energy, and accepts any food. Emotional hunger, on the other hand, is sudden, urgently, and asks for a specific food (often sweet or salty, rich in fat).
What to do: before putting something in the mouth, ask yourself: “I’m really hungry, or am I trying to quell a boredom/stress/emotion? “ If hunger is emotional, try to drink a glass of water, make two deep breaths or move for 5 minutes: the impulse will pass.
Set your “food sanctuary”
Eating standing in the kitchen or in front of a screen resets the perception of taste and quantity. For your brain, it is as if that meal had never happened. Mindful eating requires a peaceful and dedicated environment.
What to do: turn off all the screens (TV, tablet, telephone). If you are in the office, removed from the desk. Use a dish you like, set carefully and, if possible, sit alone for the first bite to concentrate totally on the meal. Consider this moment as a sacred pause for you and your body
Use all 5 senses
This is the heart of awareness. Slowing and focusing on details not only increases pleasure, but also gives your stomach the necessary time (about 20 minutes) to send the satiety signal to the brain. For each sense, try to ask you these questions:
| Sense | Request |
| View | What colors and what do you share this food? |
| Smell | What perfumes do they release? Do I recognize the spices? |
| Touch | How do you feel food in your hand or on the fork? (Consistency, temperature) |
| Hearing | Do I feel the crunchy or the noise he does while chew? |
| Taste | Where do I feel the flavor on the language? How does it change from the first to the last bite? |
Slow down and put the fork down
Speed is the number one enemy of satiety. When you eat too quickly, you finish the dish before your body has recorded to be nourished.
What to do: take a single bite at a time. It chews every bite slowly (the goal is not to count, but perceive the consistency that transforms). After swallowing, put the fork or spoon down and wait a few seconds before taking the next bite. Review point 3 while chewing.
Listen to the body: recognize satiety (and stop)
The sense of guilt arises when you overcome the satiety point, coming to the unpleasant sensation of excessive fullness. Mindful eating teaches you to stop at the point of “satisfaction”, that is, when you are no longer hungry, but you are not yet weighed down.
What to do: when you feel that your stomach is relaxing, stop halfway through a minute. Ask yourself: “How well I am on a scale from 1 to 10?”
Remember: leaving food on the plate, when you are satisfied, is not a waste; It is an act of respect towards your body. The real waste is to eat it anyway and feel bad later.
Starting with these 5 steps, even just for a meal a day, will allow you to find pleasure in food, to eat smaller portions of course, and to eliminate, once and for all, the heavy burden of guilt. Try to believe!
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