Author: manabunnow4zph

Deeper Meaning Behind Mindful Eating

Many people view eating as a time-wasting activity.  The idea is to eat food quickly so you can get on with the business of living your life. Eating takes time away from what you really want to accomplish during the day.  Eating takes time away from earning money, from improving the quality of relationships with family and friends, from earning prizes and accolades and from manifesting our passions.  In other words, eating is viewed as a time-wasting activity that is required because we simply happen to have a body that requires nutrition each and every day. We cannot keep going if we do not feed ourselves. It is all a very practical matter you see.

Does this describe in whole or part your approach to eating? Think about eating from an entirely fresh perspective.  What if the most important and critical action you can take each and every day is to be totally and completely mindful for a mere 30 minutes?  This one action will ensure your body will be brought back into a place of centeredness and balance, a place where neurological symptoms have great difficulty creeping in.

When many people eat, they actually swallow their –

Sorrow or

Guilt or

Anger or

Fear or

Anxiety or

All of the above

Some people swallow their past as they reflect on past experiences that were unpleasant.  Other people anticipate and plan out the future when they eat. Still others like to mix and match. All three of these eating rituals allow us to “space out” when eating. The magic of the present moment is lost. The taste and succulence of each and every bite is missed.

Consider recovery from any neurological condition seriously (and particularly from a condition associated with the diagnosis of Parkinsons Disease). What more critical action can be taken than to focus your full attention on what you are putting into our body and to be mindful of how you ingest each bite of food?

When we take medicines or supplements we are also eating! Do you like to get the business of swallowing medications over and done with? Is it an unpleasant duty to be tolerated? Most people just pop pills and that is the end of it.

I have a mindful ritual to suggest when you take medications or supplements. The ritual takes only 15 seconds. It is analogous to a blessing before you begin eating a meal. The practice has a profound impact on the effectiveness of whatever supplements or medications you might be currently taking. Try it out and you will see what I mean for yourself.

Place the supplement or medication into your hand. Say silently to yourself or out loud:

  1. “May this supplement (or medication) do for my body precisely what my body needs – no more and no less.” 
  1. Pause.
  1. Take a short breath. 
  1. Ingest the supplement or medication. 

In other words you ask that the medication or supplement do for your body precisely what it is that your body needs now, no more – that is, no side-effects – and no less – meaning that is it has precisely the effect that you intend for it to have. This practice insures that you treat your body’s response to taking the supplement or medication with respect.

Be mindful with each and every bite you ingest if it is food. Be mindful when you take medicines and supplements. Be mindful when you drink liquids. Notice when you ingest anything and, at the very same time, do something else like talk on the phone or drive or walk. Catch yourself when you tag an extra activity along with eating.

When you realize you are doubling up and doing more than just eating – stop. Eliminate the other activity. Direct your full attention to eating. Be mindful of every aspect of the food you eat – its color, smell, taste, texture and feel. Be mindful of the liquids you drink – their color, viscosity and taste.

Notice how it feels to enter into that most precious, sacred vessel of yours – the human body.  The body is precious. It is a miracle in the making. Treat it as such.  May you have a magnificent week as you eat each bite of food mindfully.

Robert

© Parkinsons Recovery

Mindful Eating

The mindfulness challenge this week will be admittedly be a horrendous undertaking for most of you if indeed you decide you would like to run with it.  The challenge is simply this; when you eat or when you drink anything, just eat and just drink. Do nothing else at the same time.

What do you typically do when you actually eat something?  Are you walking or driving or watching TV?  Perhaps you are watching a movie or reading, or working on the computer or texting someone. Many people like to eat when they listen to music or play video games.  Do you eat when you exercise?  What do you do typically when you eat?  What do you do in addition to eating besides the simple act of placing food into your body?

For this week the challenge and the invitation is to remove all of those extra activities that you add to the activity of eating and consuming food and liquids.  It goes without saying that many of us like to eat in the company of another person. We love to have conversations with those we love. Please do not eliminate that activity.  But when you do talk with loved ones, stop eating.  In other words, disentangle the two activities.

When you eat, focus your full attention on the food itself –

  • on the chewing
  • on the taste
  • on the sensations in your mouth
  • on the feeling in your stomach  

Treasure each and every bite as if it were your last. Add no other activity as you eat.  This may well add considerable time to how long it takes to finish a meal. If you have to eat and run, you will have to set aside this challenge temporarily.

Try it and see how this alters the entire experience of ingesting nutrition into that most precious, sacred body of yours.

Notice when your body likes the food you eat.

Notice when it does not like the food you eat.

When we notice, we become aware in the moment of precisely what our body needs to heal. If a cow can eat mindfully, so can we!

I have my fingers crossed that this challenge will not become too horrendous for you.  But be warned, it will be difficult. You will likely be surprised at how often you do much more than simply eat. My favorite “add on” activity to eating is thinking. It is so easy to divert our attention from a place away from the most important activity of the day.

Robert

© Parkinsons Recovery