Practicing Presence At The Plate

For the last several months I’ve been studying the concept of mindful eating. Recently, I was a guest blogger for a mindful eating website (www.eatq.com) so I have created a series of articles on my experience with mindful eating tips for you.

How often do we take a lunch break and focus on something else while we are eating? This week’s focus is about staying present at the plate. I have been practicing living in the moment instead of allowing my mind to race ahead of me while I eat a meal.

My boys (ages 9 and 13) and I recently spent a lazy day perusing the store aisles for Christmas ideas (read: Legos and electronics).  We stopped at Qdoba for lunch and sat down just before the lunch crowd started. I really enjoyed focusing on our conversation while practicing everything I have learned about mindful eating. I took time to be grateful for our food, ate slowly and mindfully, noticing each individual taste of my lunch – especially the fresh lime I squeezed over it – YUM-O!

As the restaurant swelled with hungry patrons, I couldn’t help but notice people around us that were eating alone and numbly shoving food in their mouth or sucking on giant soda cups, while scrolling on their phone or reading a book. That would have been me a few months ago. It reminded me of the small, but consistent changes I’ve made as I’ve become more aware of my mindful eating habits.  

Take action this week by slowing down to focus only on your food. Use your senses to smell, taste, feel each bite of food, and savor a quiet moment. Take a single-pointed focus on YOU for better food choices and satisfaction.  Use the time to breathe deeply, be grateful and rest.  Your e-mail, Facebook status and tweets can wait. Enjoy!

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Sara Wolfsen is a Certified Health Coach who specializes in helping people make their own healthy changes by providing private health coaching, nutrition education and wellness classes, and gentle weight-loss guidance and support.  Schedule your complimentary coaching session and learn more online at www.sarawolfsen.com.