Mindful Eating: A Refresher

Hi there, and welcome back!

If you’ve been following our blog, you’ll be well aware by now that Caroline and I promote the benefits of being Mindful, both for ourselves and for our dogs. 

Since we’re focusing on eating this month, I thought you might enjoy carrying out a little experiment to remind you just how wonderful food can taste, and how much better it’s digested, when you eat Mindfully. Those of you who have taken a course on Mindfulness and/or have read Mark Williams and Danny Penman’s excellent book, Mindfulness will know about this—it’s what Williams and Penman call ‘The Raisin meditation’. I’ve adapted this exercise from their book.

Choose a small item of food you really like—it needn’t be a raisin although that’s a good choice--you might instead prefer a slice of apple or a cube of cheese, or some other tasty morsel. Rather than eating it immediately, slow down! The aim is to experience your treat using all your senses.

Start by looking at it carefully, as if you’ve never seen this sort of food before. What colour is it—or better yet, what colours? Is it uniform in shape?

Now pick it up. How does it feel—smooth or textured, dry or moist? How heavy is it? Take your time to really get to know what you’re about to eat.

Next, smell it. Have you ever taken time to know what this item smells like? 

Now place the morsel on your tongue. Think about how it feels there, what flavours are released. Then slowly begin to chew it, noticing how the texture changes and what other flavours are suggested. When it seems the right time, swallow it.

How do you feel now? Isn’t it a pleasurable experience when you take the time to notice, to be truly be aware, of the delicious potential in even one small bit of food? And isn’t it gratifying to discover how satisfying it is just to eat that one morsel?

We’re lucky that a necessary function like eating, something we need to do regularly to stay fit and well, can be such a varied and pleasurable experience, don’t you think?

Until next time,

Linda