Weight Loss Articles

Savor Your Way to a New You!: Diet and Healthy Eating Tips
By Amy Phillips-Gary

When is the last time you really savored your eating experience?

Do you ever luxuriate in the whole process of nourishing yourself-- body and soul?

Perhaps you don't usually associate the words "luxuriate" or "savor" with eating. Instead, you might think of words like "control," "limit," "fat," "weight-gain" or others with eating. But a shift in approach could make a difference to your attempts to diet and eat healthier.

How many of us mindlessly put food or drink into our mouths as we multi-task or focus our attentions on other things? It may be that we eat simply because this is the time of day that we usually eat.

It is frequently the case that we eat in an attempt to de-stress, quell boredom or hold at bay uncomfortable emotions.

And when we notice that we've gone through a half box of cookies (or more) all on our own, the effects are usually shame and guilt. This habit and mindset doesn't help us lose weight and usually sets us up for further bouts of mindless eating.

It is the rare person who actually eats when his or her body signals hunger. And it is possibly even rarer for a person to savor the act and experience of eating.

Vik Varnado-Wooten who writes the food blog "Vik Eats!" talks about how she savors meals. She exemplifies how to appreciate food and our eating experiences-- and this isn't just limited to the taste of the foods we ingest.

Varnado-Wooten describes how she tunes in to the atmosphere and décor of a restaurant when dining out to see if it "feels right."  She pays attention to how her food (at a restaurant or at home) is presented, how it smells and the combination of flavors she tastes.

This approach to food and eating is in stark contrast to what many of us-- myself included-- tend to do. Sure, when I am eating out at my favorite restaurant, I often stop and glory in the taste, scents and even beautiful presentation of my food. But I seldom, if ever, do this at home.

Make eating your main event.
When you sit down to a meal-- or even a snack-- slow down and offer your full attention to the food and your eating. Comment to those you are dining with on the look, the taste, even the nutritional benefits of your food.

The power of savoring each bite is that you choose to really be present to the act of eating.

And when you are present, you are less likely to eat past the point of being full. You are more apt to listen to your body's cues and know when you are satisfied or ready for something else.

Your eating can more easily be about....eating rather than other things like
boredom or upset feelings.

Even as you pull out your chair and dive in to your food, bring your awareness back to this moment. Take a deep breath and fully notice your surroundings. How does the space in which you will eat feel to you? What pleases you about the smells and sights of the food you are about to take in?

Keep focusing in on your eating-- and on sharing eating if you are with others-- as you take a bite. Chew it thoroughly and see how many flavors you can taste.

Appreciate and celebrate the abundance in your life.
Begin each meal or snack with appreciation. No matter how meager your food choices seem to be, cultivate gratitude for this abundance in your life.

Share appreciation for the many people and the environmental conditions that brought this food to you. You could imagine the farmer tending crops in his or her fields, the gentle rain that made the crops grow and prosper and also the people who literally prepared the food and served it to you-- this might include your own efforts.

Visualize your body becoming more vibrant and nourished from this food. Feel how strong and vitally alive you feel-- particularly when you eat certain foods.

Even if you are digging into a hot fudge sundae, do it with a sense of savoring.

Leave behind the guilt or fear about what this will do to your waistline. Make your treat-eating experiences all about appreciation and celebration instead.

With such an approach, it's more like that you will mindfully choose an array of foods including plenty of vegetables and fruits in addition to occasional banana splits.

You don't have to count a single calorie with this way of eating.  Diet can be about making decisions to delight your senses and nourish yourself rather than holding yourself to lists of what you are not allowed to eat.

You can choose to live more fully in each moment-- including your actions with a fork, knife and spoon.

This means that, when they arise, you process your emotions or address your boredom and dissatisfaction with your life and you keep these separate from food and eating.

Appreciate your beautiful body, where you are right now and all of the abundance you enjoy. Savor life's sweetness and zest!
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Amy Phillips-Gary is a free-lance writer, homeschool mom and personal growth adventurer.

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Susie and Otto Collins are Relationship Coaches and authors of 4 books on relationships and personal growth. To get their FREE weekly newsletter filled with practical tips and ideas for creating more connected, passionate and alive relationships send a blank message to mailto:collins@aweber.com 
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