So, one of the problems with attending a Super Bowl party when you don’t really care much about football, is that you tend to spend the entire evening hovering around the buffet table.
This would be the definition of mindless eating.
Which, of course, is the exact opposite of mindful eating.
Despite fifteen months of nutritional education and dedication to the Body Ecology Diet, I fell off the healthy eating wagon with a thump. Okay, to be perfectly honest, I kind of jumped.
It wasn’t as bad as it could have been, though. I was at my sister’s house, and she is always thoughtful enough to provide healthy options. There were fresh fruits and vegetables, which I enjoyed.
And meatballs in marinara sauce, cheese fondue, baked brie with raspberry compote, brownies and macaroons and Rice Krispie treats.
I could have resisted beer and chicken wings, but macaroons? Rice Krispie treats??
Part of my new and improved, more conscious self-concept requires that I forgive myself this evening of craziness. I am still a good person. I had miso soup for breakfast today, and a big green salad for lunch.
I’m still committed to healthy eating. I’ll be okay.
But I am just a little disappointed. It isn’t the chocolate brownie that has me sad, or even the cheese fondue. It is the way that I simply stopped thinking about what I was putting in my mouth.
I sort of lost consciousness. Is there a word for blacking out while continuing to shovel food into your mouth? I think I did that.
I am trying to teach my children about mindful eating.
We’ve always said grace before most family meals, but lately we’ve been taking time to truly bless our food – to give thanks for the nourishment provided – and for the way our food makes our bodies healthy and strong.
We’ve also been learning about the concept of a mindful bite.
The idea is to take one bite of food at a time, then put down your fork or spoon, stop talking (I know, Miss Manners would suggest that you not speak with your mouth full of food anyway), and chew slowly.
It turns out that when you do this, you can actually taste your food. With a mindful bite, you might not need to slather your food with ketchup or drown it in salt to get the attention of your taste buds.
I find that when we slow down and do this, I experience feeding myself as an act of love for my body. My body enjoys this, if I may be so bold as to speak on its behalf.
And it makes me want to gift myself with healthy food at the next meal.
Unfortunately, none of this was taking place at the buffet table last night.
I did give thanks for the Rice Krispie treats, and felt genuine gratitude to my sister for providing a meal that I did not have to cook, but my behavior wasn’t quite all that I would have hoped for.
Next time, I will do better.
Today, I will relax and give thanks for all the food we are blessed with each day. And for my sister, who was kind enough to include us in her Super Bowl celebration.
And for my children, who season every meal with joy... even when I serve my infamous blended carrot soup for dinner. Guess what's cooking?
Recommended Reading
Every family meal is an opportunity to be present and to give thanks. I just picked up What the World Eats, a mesmerizing journey around the globe to see what families eat in the course of one week.
Photographed by Peter Menzel and written by Faith D’Aluisio, it will remind you of the blessings inherent in every family meal. And it just might make you a little more mindful of where you spend your food dollars next week.
Read this one with your children.
My youngest slathers her food with ketchup to purposely avoid tasting it ... we still have a long way to go to accomplish mindful eating. :-)
Don't be so hard on yourself - sounds like you needed a break and you seem to be back on track already. It is part of human nature that we are not perfect, difficult as that is for so many of us to accept in ourselves. As long as we are aware of it and continue to strive for improvement, right?
Posted by: Cindy | February 04, 2009 at 02:26 AM