So,
You are ready for your meal.
You sat down at the table,
Alone.
You don't have to take a fork and a knife right now.
Take a moment to reflect on the fact that the meal has begun.
You don't have to pray,
Thank someone,
Or raise your eyes to heaven.
Just slowly say to yourself,
I'm going to start eating now.
Remember,
What happened to you just before?
Think about what awaits you after this meal.
Now try to cut off all the before and after with willpower.
Fill yourself with feelings here and now.
Look at the composition of the food in front of you.
How the plates are standing.
The instruments are lying there.
Do you like it?
Don't?
Change the picture a little bit to make it better.
For a moment,
Feel like an artist before the great work.
Try to see the world around as a photographer.
Are your clothes comfortable?
Maybe you should take off your jacket?
You are not starting to just absorb food.
You are preparing for a session of active meditation.
Feel the chair underneath you if you sit on the chair.
Position your legs comfortably.
Imagine that someone is looking at you and you have to look attractive.
It doesn't matter what you are wearing.
Your posture is important now.
The position of your arms and legs,
The tilt of your head.
If you are in public place,
Forget about the people around you for a while.
It is a good idea if the room has no TV and your phone is muted in your pocket,
Not on the table.
It is important.
You sit down and there is food in front of you.
But still take time.
It doesn't matter what you are going to eat,
Breakfast,
Lunch or dinner.
You should be fully immersed in the process and keep your focus solely on it.
Are you hungry?
Or is it a meal based on circumstances?
A scheduler?
Do you want this particular meal?
If not,
Imagine what do you want?
Feel the pleasure if you ate what you want.
Can you smell your food?
Is it strong or sharp or thin and barely perceptible?
Could you separate the smell into ingredients?
Cover your eyes for a moment.
Smell it.
What associations does it have for you?
What comes to mind immediately if the smell is not pleasant to you?
Try to smell your fingers and imagine not what is in front of you,
But what you would like to eat now.
Try to imagine it so much that you can smell it.
Now start eating.
Slowly take your time.
You've got 10 minutes for sure.
Slowly take a first little slice and put it in your mouth.
Before you chew,
Feel the food.
Is it hard or soft?
What's its temperature?
Can you already taste it?
Think about what you will feel when you start chewing it.
Start eating.
Feel a little effort it takes to move your jaw.
Imagine your tongue.
What's it doing now?
Do you feel the need for it?
What kind of feelings do you feel about it?
Does it taste good to you?
What is the consistency of food?
Which part of tongue helps you feel it?
Your swallow,
The food and it goes deep into your body.
Has your sense of anticipation changed?
Does food meet your expectations?
If you have a complex meal or a few dishes,
Take something else in the next small piece.
Try to feel contrast.
Harder versus soft.
Warm versus cool.
Slippery versus rough.
Can you feel how you are shifting?
How do you feel it?
If you felt it with your tongue,
What part of it?
Look at your food.
As you separate the pieces,
Try to make the rest look attractive.
Feel like a sculptor.
Create a form with each move.
You may have been scolded as a child for playing with food.
It is not a game now.
Now it is creativity.
Enjoy the process.
Do it slowly and thoughtfully.
Try to imagine a quiet and smooth melody sounding in your head.
It sets the pace for your meal.
It can be classical music or something of your favorite popular.
Let it sound gentle and calm.
Now turn it off.
Your task at this moment is to forget all that was in the past.
All suffering,
Tensions and feelings associated directly or indirectly with lack of food.
With past hunger,
With fear of hunger,
With a desire to eat.
Your next challenge is to stop thinking about the future.
The next time you can eat,
The fact that food increases your weight or that it calms you down.
Stop thinking about the future while you eat.
Listen to your body right now.
Catch a moment of pleasure when you are still very pleasant,
But still very easy.
Don't torture yourself with excessive restrictions,
But don't give yourself the chance to be overloaded with food.
Maybe you want to speed things up,
Cut off a bigger piece and stuff it in your mouth.
The motives may be different,
You are hungry and that's good.
You are in a hurry and you feel sorry for the time.
The nearer a bone,
The sweeter the flesh.
You are just too lazy to cut it with a knife.
Stop it.
Be elegant even on your own.
And above all,
Alone with yourself.
You are the person who you respect the most.
You are the person whose opinion you value the most.
Appreciate the moments when you can be alone with him.
Be polite with him.
Don't let yourself too spoiled by the pleasure of this meeting.
After all,
Try to look in the mirror.
Big pieces break the harmony of this ritual.
You turn from a polite interlocutor into an inattentive and almost insolent cheeky cow.
Appreciate the moment.
Roll the pieces of food with your tongue in your mouth to feel not only all the shades of their taste,
But also all the facet of the reactions of your own mind.
How does your perception change as your blood sugar increases?
Does your passion for food change to sluggish chewing?
Does the brightness of taste fade?
Does the flavor of food stop beckoning and tickling your nostrils?
If you have any doubts,
Would you want another piece?
Stop.
This is a moment of truth.
This is where you should stop eating.
Determinately get up and leave the table for at least 20 minutes.
Most likely after 20 minutes you'll realize you don't want to continue,
But if you don't,
You'll sit down and continue with your meal in peace.
As you eat,
Wait for this moment when the satisfaction of true hunger turns into a routine procedure of shoving food inside.
Enjoy the excitement of satisfying your desires,
But keep them in tone.
In this case,
Every meal meeting will not be a heavy approach of mind and body,
But it will be a light flirtation that keeps the state of love.
Enjoy the appetite and your mindful eating.
Efactor Gasoline
