1. Mindful Eating in Today’s Busy World
Mary Bitterauf, BS, CHES
Certified Health and Wellness Coach

2. Why Mindful Eating?
“One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.” ~Virginia Woolf
Include reason why chose topic, not an expert

3. First: What is Mindfulness?
Paying attention to your thoughts, feelings, and emotions in a particular way without judgment.
Noticing your own thoughts and reactions is an important step in creating the opportunity for change – in particular when it comes to our relationship to food and eating.

4. Mindful Meditation Practice
Just sit comfortably in a chair, upright and relaxed.
Focus your attention on your breath.
Bring your awareness to the sensations you are most aware of when breathing.
Each time your mind wanders, gentle bring it back to the breath.

5. Habits of Mindless Eating
Mindless Dieter
Mindless Over Eater
Mindless Under Eater
Mindless Chaotic Eater

6. A Culture of Multi-tasking
We often pair eating with other activities, such as driving or working at our desks.
Where and how did you eat your breakfast today??

7. Habits of Mindful Eating
Paying attention to your hunger.
Enjoying fully the foods you choose to prepare and eat – smell, texture, flavor.
Acknowledging when hunger is emotional rather than physical.
Learning to be aware of signals in and outside yourself so that you can make wise choices every moment.

8. The Mind – Body Connection
The mind-body connection plays a pivotal role in our ability to accurately assess hunger and fullness.
We eat meal after meal, snack after snack, barely aware of what we’re eating and how much we’re consuming.
Has this ever happened to you? You start eating something, get side tracked by work, a book or the TV, and you realize your food is gone but you don’t even remember eating it?

9. Benefits of Mindful Eating
It’s a non-diet approach
It’s safe for everyone
The exercises are doable and realistic
It supports self-acceptance
It’s non-judgmental and compassionate
It provides clarity
It works!

10. Habits of the Mindful Eater
Flexible about eating
Aware of nutritional needs
In touch with body (hunger cues – fullness)
Eats when hungry – stops when full
Nonjudgmental about self and others
Focuses on the impact of food on health
Enjoys food – not bogged down by guilt
Can eat mindlessly occasionally
Recovers quickly from incidences

11. Seven Skills of Mindful Eating
Awareness
Observation
Being in the Moment
Being Mindful of the Environment
Non Judgment
Letting Go
Acceptance

12. Awareness Zoning out while eating
Eating more than what your body needs
Not paying attention to the way food tastes
Being overly focused on calories – fat grams
Skipping meals

13. Observation Not seeing what’s behind mindless eating
Not paying attention to thoughts and feelings around food
Not listening to when the body
Feeling anxious about food and your body

14. Being in the Moment Thinking about body a past body image
Thinking about a future, desired, body image
Multitasking when eating
Eating in front of t.v. or at the computer
Snacking – eating prepared foods

15. The Environment Do you know what’s in the kitchen?
Do you make the right choices to eat out?
Do friends and family struggle with food?
Are you talking a lot about dieting?
What triggers are present?

16. Letting Go Clinging to the idea of losing weight Acting on urges
Thinking obsessively about body and food
Worry about failing

17. Non Judgment Labeling yourself when you think you fail
Getting mad for worrying so much
Avoiding foods as a punishment
Feeling guilty
Negative self-image affects your relationships

18. Begin by Paying Attention
Knowing when your body needs to be fed.
Am I really hungry?
Do I need to eat, or do I just want to eat?

19. H.A.L.T Not sure why you are eating? Try asking: Hungry? Angry?
Lonely?
Tired?

20. Types of Hunger Eye Hunger Nose Hunger Mouth Hunger Stomach Hunger
Mind Hunger
Heart Hunger

21. Heart Hunger
When you talk to people about comfort foods, you will always uncover a story that is warm with feelings of connection, love and companionship.
All the rich foods in the world will not fill our heart’s hunger. The heart is only nourished by intimacy with others!

22. Satisfying Heart Hunger
When you feel hungry, but a check with the six hungers says you’re not, do something deliberate to nourish the heart.
Talk to a person you love, play with a child or a pet, work in your garden, create something, listen to your favorite music, give a gift.
If you eat, eat slowly and give thanks.

23. Eating Mindfully Involves the whole eating experience
Emotions, thoughts, judgments around food
Tastes, colors, aromas and textures of food
Being fully present to the eating experience

24. Arriving
Being fully present without wanting to be somewhere else – being in the moment.

25. Slowing it Down
When food enters the stomach and small intestine, appestat hormones signal the brain and body, “We’ve had enough. Time to slow down.”
It takes about 20 minutes for the important biological feedback loop to be completed.
Eating too quickly means too much food before the signal arrives.

26. Tuning in to your Body Notice your emotions when you eat.
Notice how your body feels as you eat.
Remind yourself that there is no “bad” food, and no guilt associated with eating.

27. Notice When Your Hungry
Don’t ignore true hunger.
Most people need to eat every 3-4 hours while awake for their blood sugar and mood to remain stable.

28. True Hunger How to tell if you are hungry Physical signs
The desire to eat doesn’t go away
The desire for food intensifies over time

30. Cravings No physical hunger “pains”
The thought of eating goes away if distracted
You feel “emotional” about eating a particular food
You crave specifics: crunchy, sweet, salty

31. Cravings are Normal It’s normal to feel cravings
But we want to relate to them mindfully and not get blinded by them
We can learn to become aware of our cravings and their messages

32. Mindful Eating Suggestions
Eat sitting down
Create an inviting atmosphere
Eat without TV, newspaper, computer
Chew your food 30 to 50 times per bite
Try to make the meal last 20 minutes
(Food is enjoyed in the mouth, eat slowly!)

33. Suggestions for Slowing Down
Eat with chopsticks
Eat with your non-dominant hand
Don’t eat from a bag or box
Box up half of the meal at a restaurant
Keep extra food away from table

34. Plan for Success Use a smaller plate at meals Do not skip meals
Plan meals and snacks ahead of time
Keep a mindful eating journal

35. Compassion
When our relationship to eating and food is out of balance, it is easy to be overcome with negative emotions.
Notice aversion to the mirror or jealousy and anger toward ourselves for our inability to end our struggle.
Practice self-compassion always.

36. Loving Kindness

37. Questions?

38. Mindful Eating Websites

39. Mindful Eating Book Suggestions
Bays, J.C. (2009) Mindful Eating. Boston, Massachusetts: Shambhala Publications, Inc.
May, M (2011) Eat What You Love, Love What You Eat. Oakland, California: New Harbinger Publications, Inc.
Nhat Hanh, T. (2011) Savor: Mindful Eating, Mindful Life. New York, New York: HarperOne Publishers.
Wansink, B. (2010) Mindless Eating. New York, New York: Random House, Inc.
Weil, A. (2011) The Joy of Eating Well. (CD) Boulder, Colorado: Sounds True, Inc.