Are you
overweight or underweight? Could you
honestly put your hand on your heart and say that you have complete control of
your eating habits? Most of us are guilty of over-eating whilst on autopilot or
of eating when bored or stressed. Some of us see food as the enemy and become
upset and negative around food.
Wouldn’t it
be great if you could find a way to eat simply when hungry and to make healthy
choices when deciding what to eat, without feeling deprived? Think about the
people you know who meditate regularly. Would you say that the majority of them
are a healthy weight, with a positive attitude to good nutrition? There just
might be something in it. Research has shown that certain types of meditation can
help us to control our emotional eating. There is also evidence that meditation
can be helpful in treating binge eating disorder. So if you’ve
tried every diet known to man and still have weight issues it might be that the
answer lies in using meditation to help you change the way you think about
food.
Noticing what you eat
If you
meditate regularly you are likely to find that your approach to food changes. You
will begin to eat more consciously. Quite a few meditation courses include a
session in which participants are asked to eat a piece of fruit or other food
in a way which encourages full engagement with the experience. You might try
this simple exercise at home. Take a small piece of simple food. Hold it and
spend a few minutes looking at it like you’ve never seen that food before. Notice any “imperfections.” Explore the colour and feel of the food. Gently
squeeze it. Does it make any sound? Now bring the food closer and smell it. How
does it smell? Does the smell change? Finally take one small bite. How does the
food feel on the tongue? What sensations do you experience in your mouth and
the rest of your body? Now slowly bite the food. Close your eyes and experience
the taste and texture of the food. Swallow and then pause to think about how
your body feels before taking the next bite.
Didn’t
eating in that way change your experience of eating? You will most likely have
felt more satisfied with what you ate than you would have if you’d eaten it
without thinking while staring at your computer screen or watching TV. If you
eat more consciously you are likely to eat less than when you eat on autopilot
whilst doing other things. And here’s the good bit: every mouthful of food you
eat will become more delicious and more satisfying. You are likely to feel full
sooner.
Why might meditation help you approach food with the
right attitude?
People who
meditate regularly start to experience a range of positive changes in their
daily lives. Meditators often find themselves starting to exercise better
self-control in their approach to many aspects of their lives, including their
eating habits. One of the most widely reported benefits of meditation is that meditation can
cause changes in the brain which affect the way we perceive stress. These changes are likely to help us control
our emotional eating patterns.
How to get started
So if you’d
like to give meditation a try, a good place to start might be to find some meditations which will give you a taste of how
you might incorporate this wonderful healing practice into your life.