Hello and welcome to mindful eating.
My name is Doris,
I'm a yoga teacher but also a dietitian.
So when it comes to mindful eating that is sort of where my two disciplines meet.
And for this guided practice,
Guided meditation,
I invite you to have this track on as you eat.
It can be any meal,
It can be a main meal,
It can be a little snack.
To teach you how to eat with more mindfulness.
So before we get started,
Make sure that you have everything you need on the table,
Your food,
All the utensils and ideally have a little space on the table or whatever you choose to eat that is free from other distractions.
So maybe you can take a moment to tidy up that space.
Perhaps you want to even set it up,
Get some flowers,
Light a candle,
Whatever helps you create a great atmosphere for you.
And now that your food is in front of you,
And pause this if you need more time,
I invite you to take a moment to just tune in with your physical cues.
So checking in with how hungry you feel,
Are you really excited to eat that food or maybe is this more of a task for you?
Knowing that there are no right or wrong answers,
We just want to get an idea of how you feel in this very moment.
And then take a moment to look at your food and smell your food.
Take it in with senses other than taste.
How does it make you feel to now really explore your food other than you intended it to explore?
What sensations or emotions arise when you look and see that food and when you smell it?
How does it make your body feel?
And then once you feel ready and take a moment if you feel like you need a bit more time,
Let's take our first bite.
So allow it to be an appropriate size for you,
Maybe not the biggest bite but it doesn't have to be the tiniest of bites.
And notice how it feels once that food is in your mouth.
How does the texture feel?
What flavour do you get from it?
Swirl it around,
Maybe allow it to touch all parts of your tongue or parts of your mouth.
Chewing.
Maybe closing the eyes so your focus can really be on the taste.
And then swallow it once you feel like you've explored it enough.
Just give yourself a tiny bit of break before you dive into the next bite.
And then get ready,
Take another bite,
Explore it with the same level of curiosity,
Appreciating the food that you've made.
Knowing that every bite can be different because at some point you might be more satiated or the flavours might change or when other things can occur when the temperature of your food is changing.
So same thing with every bite,
Taking it in,
Chewing it,
Allowing it to touch all parts of your mouth and then swallowing it.
Repeat this with your food,
Trying to stay mindful throughout the whole process,
Taking a bite,
Chewing it and then swallowing.
If you're used to eating quite fast then this might be really unusual,
Uncommon for you so also allow yourself some time to change your eating pattern if that's something you wish to do.
And maybe just a bit slower is already enough for you at the moment,
We don't need to go from 0 to 100 and vice versa.
Checking in with your body every time you pause.
And allow yourself to stop eating whenever you feel like you've had enough or you don't want this to be the food for later or giving it to someone else.
Leaving the table eventually at a comfortable level of satiety and fullness.
So ideally not too full but also not hungry.
Giving thanks to the food that you've created,
The time you took,
All the ingredients that went into this meal,
The time you took to prep it,
The time you took to get the food in the first place,
To get your groceries,
Your items.
It might have been really quick,
It might have taken a lot more time,
We try to appreciate the food equally no matter where it came from.
No matter how much time it took.
How does how you feel as you've maybe come closer to the end of your meal?
How does it feel to be in your body,
To live in your body now?
How was this experience to eat mindfully?
Probably quite different to eating with a book or in front of the TV or with someone else.
How was it to keep a certain pace for you?
How was it to really have the food be your focus?
Do you feel like you need more to feel satiated?
What do you feel like you've had enough?
Could you really listen to your body's cues and honour its needs?
And then if you feel completed here,
If your meal is gone,
If you've eaten what you wanted and needed to eat,
Maybe take a moment to close your eyes and show some gratitude towards yourself for taking this practice.
Maybe something quite unusual for you or maybe it's become a regular practice.
Take a breath in and out to show thanks.
Thank you so much for taking this time.
I know that there can be a lot of emotions around the subject of eating and taking a practice like this can be a great step into the right direction to integrate a more mindful eating practice into your life.
So repeat this for every meal or for as many times as you'd like to.
I'd love to hear from you and you can always reach out to me and I wish you a great rest of your day and see you soon.
