Mindful Eating

So often we consume things at a rate that doesn't allow us to appreciate it fully. In this practice, I'll guide you through a mindful eating practice to help you see the joy that is to eat. Calling on your 5 senses you'll be emerged in the pleasure of consuming food.

Transcript

Welcome to your mindful eating practice.

Now as the name suggests you're gonna need something to eat.

Now I would suggest something not too big,

Something that could fit in the palm of your hand and it really can be anything.

A snack,

Savory or sweet.

So pause this meditation now and go grab that thing,

Whatever it is you want to eat in this practice.

Alright so I'm gonna assume that you've got whatever you need to consume there with you.

Before we get started let's get the body and mind in the right place and to do that we do what we always do.

We find a comfortable seat,

We sit up nice and tall,

We roll the shoulders back and we sit comfortably.

Take a deep inhale through the nostrils and a deep exhale out.

Remember that inhale bring an awareness into the body,

That exhale bring relaxation.

Now holding this food piece in your hand,

Just have it presented right in front of you.

Now you'll notice I've not asked you to close your eyes in this meditation and that's because in order to be mindful with this eating we're gonna start with looking at this item.

So whatever you've chosen have a look at it right now.

You can bring it up to your face and start to examine it.

Look at the colors or color,

Look at the texture,

See how the light reflects or refracts off it.

See if it's got different shades in different places,

See if there's any shadows that are cast by it.

Great work.

Now you can put it back in the palm of your hand and using the other hand you can start to touch it and to feel it.

Again checking that texture,

Moving it around in your hand,

In the palm of your hand,

Maybe in between your fingers.

Just feeling what this thing is,

Feeling the weight of what it is,

Feeling the substance.

Now slowly pick this thing up back towards your nose and start to smell it.

Really smell it,

Take a nice deep inhale through the nostrils,

Take in all of that smell.

Notice where you feel that smell,

Where you notice that smell.

How does it smell?

Does it smell the same at the beginning as at the end and does it linger in the nostrils after you've done smelling?

Take the item now,

You can either put the whole thing in your mouth now or if it's too big for that just take a bite.

Before you do anything else just let it settle in your mouth,

Put it onto your tongue,

Let it rest there for a moment.

Feel the reaction of your mouth as saliva is generated,

Noticing the weight of the food substance on your tongue,

Noticing any tastes that are coming as a result of it.

Once again can you notice the smell and is it different now that you've bitten into it or now that it's entered your mouth?

Move it around your mouth,

Let it go into your cheeks,

Let it touch the top of your mouth,

The roof of your mouth,

Maybe the back of the teeth,

Maybe even place it under the tongue.

Is this food substance changing at all?

Is it melting?

Is it starting to soften?

Just explore what's happening as you do this.

You can now slowly start to chew it and I mean slowly.

Remember the art here isn't to see how quickly we can eat this but how mindfully we can eat this.

So as you chew into it what are the sounds it makes?

Is it hard?

Is it brittle?

Is it soft and squidgy?

Does it require tearing?

Feel the texture in your mouth,

Notice it change,

Notice it move around your mouth,

Notice the action of your teeth,

Your tongue and your cheeks all working together.

As you do so and you break this thing down,

Is there any change in taste?

Is there any change in smell?

And now slowly swallow the item.

As you do so,

Feel it go down your throat as it starts its journey to your stomach.

Can you notice a taste in your throat at all?

Can you feel it travel through your body?

Can you notice any aftertaste left in your mouth?

Any residual smell left in your nose?

What's your general feeling now that you've consumed this thing?

How do you feel?

How does your body feel?

Can we find the simple pleasure of eating?

An action that so often we take for granted and as our body starts to absorb all the nutrients in whatever the thing we ate is,

Can we start to bring thanks to whatever allowed that thing to get to us?

The time and effort it took to grow or to process or put together?

The people that worked hard to package it,

To deliver it or to allow you to buy it?

Can you give thanks not just to the miracle that is to grow this item,

To bring this item into being,

But also all those along the way that helped it get into your hand,

Into your mouth and then into your stomach as it now slowly becomes part of you?

As does the love and the attention of all those who partook in this production now also become part of you?

We start to see the connected nature of all of our actions and we also count ourselves lucky that we get to eat on demand.

But this act of eating is a privilege and not a right and we should be grateful for that.

Take a deep breath in and a deep breath out.

Sit with the feeling that it's come with this newfound mindfulness and let it wash over your body with each breath.

Now each time we eat does not need to be as involved as this but it gives us some of the elements that we can start to bring in to every moment we eat as we bring mindfulness into our daily practice,

Into our daily lives,

Helping us to savor a few more of the joys in life.

When you're ready you can open up your eyes and slowly come back into the room.

Reviews

I did this with my morning oatmeal porridge.Works good aswell! Will try to put aspects of this practice into my daily meals, as you suggested.I especially like the last part of the practice: the connection with all the people who took part in the chain of actions leading to me being able to eat this particular food. Thank you very much for an excellent practice! 🙏✨

After many years of being anorexic but now recovered , I never thought I would be able to meditate with food , but I did and I enjoyed it so thank you. Brightest blessings.)0(

Beautiful I really liked the beginning where you said "let's do what we always do" and I realised I had prepared myself intuitively. This is confidence building
Thank you!

This meditation practice caused my food to explode with flavor, I was much more satisfied than I would have otherwise and was so aware of how much soliva was generation the moment I put the food in my mouth.

Excellent
Slowing down and changing our relationship to food and eating is a valuable habit — appreciate your tending to this skill :)

First ever mindful eating experience. Seems pretty good.

So often we shovel food down our throats with little awareness of the nature of our intake. This practice brings consumption into sharp focus and enhances appreciation.