5 easy S's of Mindful Eating
1. SIT DOWN
Have a seat! Avoid nibbling in front of the refrigerator or snacking in your car. Put food on a plate. You will enjoy food more and eat the right amount for you when you give eating your full attention. Motto: “Only eat off your feet.”
2. SLOWLY CHEW
Eat with your non-dominant hand (if you are right-handed, eat with your left). Research indicates that eating with your opposite hand can reduce how much you eat by 30% because you are naturally slowing down and being more attentive. Intentionally chew slower than the person you are eating with. Motto: “Pace, don’t race.”
3. SAVOR
Take a mindful bite. Smell. Taste. Notice and look at each spoonful. Turn off the TV and other distractions. Motto: “When you eat, just eat.”
4. SIMPLIFY
Create a mindful environment. Place healthy foods in a convenient place like on the counter or in a fruit bowl. Put treats out of view to cut down on mindlessly picking at them. If you really want them, you will get them out. Research indicates that people tend to eat what is in their immediate reach. Motto: “In sight, in mind, out of sight, out of mind.”
5. SMILE
Smiling can create a brief pause between your current bite and the next one. During that gap, ask yourself if you are just satisfied, not full. Mott: “Take a breath, to manage stress
Citation: Susan Albers PsyD www.eatingmindfully.com *Psychol Health Med. 2018 Aug 31:1-10. doi: 10.1080/13548506.2018.1516295.
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