The Four Foundations of Eating Mindfully
- Mindfulness of the Mind.
- On a scale of 1-10, how aware am I at this moment?
- Am I tasting every bite or am I mindlessly chomping away?
- Observe the taste, texture, smell, and sound of food.
- This helps to pay attention to what you are doing.
- Identify whether you are mindlessly snacking or in touch with every single bite.
- Mindfulness of the Body.
- Listen to your body.
- Do I pay attention when it says stop?
- Or, do I ignore my body’s feedback?
- Identify how your body tells you it’s hungry and full.
- Pay attention to hunger pains, a rumbling stomach, your energy level, movement, body posture and muscle tension.
- If you don’t respond your body could stop giving yor important information about how it is doing.
- Learn to know the difference between emotional hunger (stress eating) and physical hunger.
- Mindfulness of Feelings.
- Mindfulness of feelings is noticing feelings that lead you to
start and stop eating.
- Anxiety, guilt, stress, comfort, boredom and pleasure are just a few.
- It’s important to get in touch with your emotions. If you don’t yet have a handle on your feelings,
- learning to cope with your feelings may be more important than changing the types of foods you eat.
- Mindfulness of Thoughts.
- Be mindful of your thoughts.
- Observe “should” and “should not” thoughts, critical thoughts (I’m so fat!),
- food rules, “good” and “bad” food categories.
- Notice how positive and negative thoughts sway your behavior.
- A thought is just a thought; you don’t have to respond to it.
Source: The Centre for Mindful Eating
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