Day 12: Practice Conscious Eating
How do you usually eat your food? Are you aware and present whenever you’re eating, with every single bite you take? Or do you usually chomp down your food, fill your mind with thoughts about work and other stuff in between bites, or even eat while doing (and only while) other activities?
Unfortunately, most people in the modern society today do not eat consciously. Conscious eating means to eat with full attention and awareness of your food, to be cognizant of what you’re putting in your body, and to appreciate and savor your food as you’re eating it. Most people don’t; they take big bites, shove their food down the throat, and think about all kinds of things while they’re eating. Some stuff their meals in the middle of work/TV; so they literally chomp down their food while working away on their laptop, while watching the big colors and words flash on their TV screen, while reading the newspaper on their dining table, while fiddling around with their smartphone. And then there is a large chunk of the society who mix eating with socialization: they only eat when there’s someone with them; they eat while talking; they talk while eating; and while eating they don’t concentrate or stay cognizant of their food, but rather are busy thinking of the next conversational topic and what to respond.
The very bad thing about unconscious eating is that (as I mentioned in How To Stop Emotional Eating, A Crucial Guide, Part 2: Rebuilding a Healthy Relationship with Food) we don’t know we are full until we have eaten way more than we should. When we’re eat unconsciously, “it makes us numb to the sensations in our stomach, which then results in erratic eating habits thereafter, because we confuse emotional eating triggers with hunger cues.”
When you eat consciously, it helps you to (a) be more in tune with your hunger cues, so you don’t overeat, and (b) be more conscious of the role of eating / food in your life, which supports you in building a healthy relationship with food. This is why conscious eating is also my fourth tip to rebuild a healthy relationship with food.
Today, your task is to eat consciously! Here are my tips (from How To Stop Emotional Eating, A Crucial Guide, Part 2: Rebuilding a Healthy Relationship with Food):
- Don’t mix eating with other activities. Before you eat, put everything aside, including your laptop and mobile phone. Concentrate on eating and eating only.
- Know what you’re eating. Examine the ingredients. Look at the nutritional content. Educate yourself on what you’re feeding your body.
- Before you eat, feel the sensation (of hunger) in your stomach.
- Examine the food you are about to eat. Look at the colors. Look at the composition of ingredients. Smell it if you desire.
- Be grateful for this food that you’re about to eat. Think about all the work that went into the creation of this food — the harvesting, the procurement, the delivery, the preparation, the cooking (if the meal was cooked), etc. Be thankful for each and every person who was involved in the creation of this food.
- Now as you eat, do so one bite at a time. With each bite, chew very slowly and deliberately. Relish the taste of food in your mouth. Feel the texture.
- At the same time, be aware of how your stomach feels. Feel the sensation of hunger fade away slowly with each bite. Feel your stomach being filled up as you eat.
- Then, stop when you feel halfway full or you have consumed enough calories for the meal.
Even if you’re eating with friend(s) today, you can still eat consciously. Don’t chew and talk at the same time. Every time you take a bite, focus your attention on your food, and concentrate on chewing, savoring the taste, and digesting the food. When you are done with the bite, put your attention back to your friend(s). Listen to what he/she has to say. Say what you want to say. Do that in turns and you’ll be fine.
Next, Follow Your Plan for Day 12 (Take Pictures Too!)
What tasks have you set for Day 12 of your 14-Day Healthy Living Plan? Do them today!
Take pictures of your healthy meals – breakfast, lunch, dinner, and mid-day snacks if any — and share them in the comments section. 
After all, a picture tells a thousand words, and when you share photos of your healthy meals, it inspires others to eat healthily and gives them ideas on what healthy food they can have too!
After all, a picture tells a thousand words, and when you share photos of your healthy meals, it inspires others to eat healthily and gives them ideas on what healthy food they can have too!
Post your initial comment sharing your results for today’s challenge task, then add on throughout the day as you have your breakfast, lunch, dinner, and/or if you’re doing any workouts. Attach photos of your meals by clicking the image icon on the bottom left of every comment box. As you add on to your comment thread, be sure to click on the reply button directly below your original comment so that you reply to your own thread (as opposed to starting a new thread).
Share Your Results (and Photos!)
Share in the comments section!
- Your experience eating consciously today
- Your progress with your healthy living plan today
- Pictures of your meals
- Pictures of your workout (if any)
Do check out the other participants’ comments too and share a word of encouragement or two. We’re all in this together, so let’s support each other as a group! 
Stay tuned for Day 13′s task tomorrow! Just two days left everyone!!
Just two days left everyone!!
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