If you have sworn countless times to yourself from tomorrow (from Monday or from the new year) to switch to eating exclusively healthy food, not to overeat and give up night snacks, however, as many times you "broke down", then experiencing a monstrous guilt, apparently, it's time for you to get acquainted with the practice, which is called "conscious eating". It may not be easy for you at the very beginning. However, having mastered this system, you will be able to solve many problems associated with eating disorders and, in particular, form your own, individual diet of proper nutrition.
What needs to be changed and why: we understand ourselves
The practice of mindful eating, which is gaining more and more popularity, offers its followers a completely new, revolutionary approach to the process of eating food. And maybe followers of this approach to nutrition have already discovered their own way, allowing, without denying themselves their favorite food, to gain ideal weight, improve well-being and get rid of the painful feeling of guilt for every extra bun or candy. Perhaps you think that this is not the case? You are wrong!
Have you paid attention to how you eat? How do you eat breakfast, trying to load yourself with food as fuel, almost by force? How do you dine without tasting the food? How, in between times, while watching a series or your favorite TV show, do you easily cope with a huge portion of cookies (popcorn, chocolate, seeds)? Why do we eat more than we need, and most importantly, not at all what suits us?
The model of eating behavior of a person is formed under the influence of many factors. We learn some habits in childhood (for example, be sure to eat soup with bread). We master other "skills" when, at moments of time pressure (a session at a university or an emergency at work), we swallow the first thing that comes up, practically not distinguishing the taste. And, of course, evening gatherings at the TV or computer, in the "company" of your favorite goodies — After all, you need to relieve the accumulated stress! And the first step on the path to conscious nutrition is not the formation of a healthy diet, but only an analysis of how valuable your eating habits or preferences are for you, how painful it will be to refuse a piece of cake or a sandwich with sausage. But how do we figure out what we really need?
Proper nutrition: learning to feel here and now
So, before moving on to practical recommendations, let's try to give a brief theoretical basis for your absolutely specific actions. Unlike all diets and nutrition systems known to you that suggest (or, on the contrary, prohibit) eating something because it is useful (harmful) for all people in general, the conscious eating system puts forward one single requirement for you. It consists in listening to yourself, trusting your feelings, comprehending what all your receptors tell you when you start eating. We will not rush anywhere, leaving all the fuss of the world for a while to taste the pleasures, even if it is a banal cutlet with buckwheat porridge. At the same time, the process of eating the most ordinary food will turn into a kind of ritual for you, similar to tasting expensive wine. It seems to you, that in your life it is completely unrealistic? But no one is forcing you to do it all the time. Try doing this at least once a week and see how you feel about it.
The main idea behind the practices of mindful eating — help regain the ability to trust your body, which knows better than any nutritionist in the world what it needs. But we, under the influence of a variety of reasons, have lost the natural ability to feel many of the signals that he sends to us.
How to start eating mindfully
Very often, we either don’t think too much about what we eat, or, conversely, following the requirements of the diet, we eat what we don’t want at all, without getting any pleasure.
The philosophy of conscious nutrition is based on focusing on everyone details of the act of consuming any product involving all the senses. At the same time, avoiding violence against your body, you will learn to understand what and how much you need to eat in order to restore the cost of energy and nutrients.
But what does this mean in practice? Adherents of conscious nutrition suggest starting a "training" with a simple and familiar product. At the same time, we will immediately agree that we have at least twenty minutes to eat, or rather enjoy this dish, even if it is just an ordinary apple.
Here are the main steps you need to focus on:
1. Fill your plate with food. Do not be greedy, take no more than two-thirds of the usual portion. If you don't have enough, you can take a supplement.
2. Assess the appearance of the dish, its color scheme.
3. Pay attention to the aroma, evaluate it critically. Is everything about it perfect? Is it too rich or missing something?
4. Break off a piece, put it in your mouth, listen to your impressions. Connoisseurs recommend putting cutlery aside and, slowly, chewing food, analyze in detail the taste of the dish and its texture, your feelings when a piece has already been swallowed.
5. Check out all the changes in taste and texture as you eat.
You also need to assess your condition: are you really hungry, or just eating up a serving, following a habit? We will evaluate the feeling of hunger (as well as satiety) on a ten-point scale.
It is clear that the rhythm of life of a modern person does not favor such a style of eating. But no one is forcing you to do it all the time. You can start with once a week — and it will prove to be a very interesting experience!
Mindful eating system as a lifestyle
Of course, such exercises are the basis of a conscious eating system, but they — just a tool, allowing a person to understand what exactly his body needs. However, the main — it is a revision of your attitude to food, a refusal to mindlessly follow any diets, recommendations and restrictions. This means that you are required not only to monitor your feelings, but also to analyze them.
Do you want to eat the muffin because you are hungry, or are you attracted by the smell of fresh muffin? Are you pouring a second cup of coffee for the sake of the taste of the drink, cookies, or to justify pauses in work?
Transition to conscious food consumption — a great opportunity to create your own diet of proper nutrition that meets the needs of your body. But how to do that? We will not bore you with banal calls to love yourself and your body. We suggest taking a little more seriously what you eat. Can you remember what you ate for breakfast yesterday, what (and how much) you ate stress or just had a snack when you came home from work?
Many dieticians recommend keeping a food diary, recording details of each meal. This will allow you to objectively assess the hidden source of all those extra pounds.
Do you want to achieve your ideal weight and feel good? Then try, for starters:
· eat three (or better, four times a day);
· getting up from the table feeling like you could eat a little more;
· avoid (as much as possible) fast food and convenience foods;
· do not eat "for company";
· have dinner no later than three hours before going to bed.
But most importantly, try not to torment yourself over "forbidden" foods, as the stress of eating the chips will do as much harm as the chips themselves.
The main and indisputable advantage of conscious nutrition is the absence of artificial prohibitions and restrictions, the desire for inner harmony and perfection. More interesting information on healthy eating can be found on the website estet-portal.com.
See also: Controlling the number of portions: the secrets of a slim figure
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