How to Change Eating Habits with Mindful Eating

Our Habits and Mind…

Our daily choices are managed by our habits and carried out subconsciously. We don’t have the same level of control over them as we do over our conscious decisions because we don’t have the same level of commitment and willpower.

Most of our food choices are made subconsciously by our instinctive brain. We need to use our conscious brain to build good habits and environments so that we make healthy subconscious choices.

When you think of movies, you may think of popcorn and chips or watching a sport then soft drink and beer. Specific environmental cues will make us want to eat those foods. This sort of subconscious eating often drives us to eat more even if we are full.

We are aware of healthy choices and foods we must eat to keep our weight under control. But it takes more than deliberate choice to translate that knowledge into your everyday life. This is where we need a handle on our habits. It is important to be conscious of and adjust our everyday habits if we want to be successful in achieving weight loss.

Conscious thinking and subconscious…

Our brain alternates between two forms of thought: conscious thinking and subconscious. Conscious decisions are more reasonable and goal-oriented but they also require our energy and effort.

If we spend time on every decision that our brain makes then it will be hard to get through the day. Our brain automatically handles many things like, how to dress up, taking shower, driving, find ways to go anywhere, etc.

Our brain delegate some of these routine tasks to the subconscious mind. This part of the brain is called the “primitive brain”, which works automatically and reacts to situations. This frees up our conscious brain to spend time and energy on choices and decisions that require consideration.

Habits are subconscious actions that have been replicated enough times. The context alone such as a social event, sights, smell, the place will immediately trigger the habit. Many of the advertisements that we see on billboards, Television, can trigger the expectation that a reward is imminent. Sights and smells can activate cravings in this way.

A Step by Step Approach to Habit Change…

Many people struggle to get started when they are advised they need to change their eating habits. Here are some suggestions to help you accomplish the long-term food habit transformation.

To begin, it is important to follow a step-by-step approach to making nutritional adjustments. Making one or two minor adjustments each week will result in more sustainable improvement than making several big changes all at once.

Identify areas where you want to make a difference, such as times of day that are particularly difficult for you or circumstances where you tend to overeat. This might assist you in defining those incremental adjustments and developing an action plan.

In week one, for example, you may opt to replace all sweetened beverages with unsweetened sparkling water.
You might even come up with innovative methods to remind yourself of this change, such as cleaning and flossing your teeth right after dinner.

Goals added in the second week may include taking a home-cooked lunch to work rather than grabbing a pizza from fast food restaurant. In addition, replace excessively processed, high-calorie snack items in the house with fresh fruits and crisp vegetables, as well as a healthy dip. Later on, you may decide to forgo meat on one or two days of the week and instead have plant-based proteins such as beans or lentils on those days.

How do we control our food habits?

The primary way for using habits to your advantage is to be mindful of the impulsive relationships we make with our environment and to break and create better ones. We should take advantage of habits to change our eating patterns.

By associating the desired choice with a basic activity you do every day, you will make healthier decisions effortless and automatic over time. For example, include a 10-minute exercise when you get up in the morning

Planning your meals ahead of time helps to make healthier choices as a habit. So that when you are busy, hungry, and stressed the most convenient option is the healthy one. For e.g. cut vegetables and fruits and make them readily available. Having nuts for snacking at home or work.

Make changes to your environment so the default choice is a healthy one. It can be difficult to do so because there are so many tempting and convenient choices readily available – drive us to unhealthy choices. However, if you take time to plan ahead you can have many backup options for when you are busy, stressed, and tired. For e.g. if you tend to eat large bags of cookies, can you buy small snack size bags? Can you replace it with vegetables and hummus, nuts, unsalted popcorn, or other healthy snacks?

Adjust the temptations, rather than relying on willpower (which rarely works). For example, You eat less candy if it’s in your drawer rather than on your table. What do you see on your counter? According to a report, if unhealthy foods are visible on your counter, you gain 10 kg on average. Fix your environment, remove all temptations and negative signals. Promote healthy surroundings by placing positive cues visible.

What is Mindless Eating?

Another common way we have become less aware of our food choices is by eating mindlessly while distracted.

• Texting and eating
• Eating snacks right out of a box and losing track of how many you eat
• Driving and eating
• Watching TV and eating

Eating mindlessly can be an equally critical barrier to good weight loss in the long term.

We don’t enable our brain to form a memory of the meal when we eat mindlessly. Studies indicate that we snack and eat more later in the day as a result. We also do not leverage the internal signals that tell us when we are full and over-eat as a result. Mindless eating will make it challenging to maintain weight loss and to lose weight.

Mindful eating

Mindfulness involves concentrating on the present moment, while consciously knowing and embracing the emotions, feelings, and sensations in the body.

• Mindfulness eating means chewing our food, paying attention to its flavor, smell, and texture, and taking the time to know when we are full.
• Mindful eating promotes the skills needed to identify and become aware of our thoughts and emotions that lead to overeating.
• Assist in the distinction between emotional eating and eating in response to actual physical hunger.
• Help us to tolerate negative feelings, find better ways to respond to stress, and improve our relationship with food when practiced regularly.
• Allows our brain to form a memory of the meal.

We enjoy the food much more when we practice mindful eating. It helps us to watch our portions, deal with feelings related to nutrition, and build a better food mentality.

When we practice mindfulness we are in tune with what we are experiencing at the moment instead of worrying about the past or thinking about the future.

How to Do Mindful Eating

• Slowly chew your food and don’t rush through your meals. It takes 20 minutes for the brain to realize that you are full. You can overeat if you eat quickly and don’t know you’re full.
• Take your time to enjoy food – experience the texture, flavor, and taste of your food.
• Stop multitasking when you’re eating.
• Stay away from distractions. Pay attention to your appetite and fullness signs.

In Summary

Recognize that many of the choices that we make on a daily basis are taken subconsciously by our brain. Try to associate a regular prompt with the desired health activity. Make it simpler and more convenient to make healthier decisions by carefully planning the surroundings. Practice mindfulness when you eat and avoid any distractions.

Reference

• Mindful Eating 101 — A Beginner’s Guide
• 8 steps to mindful eating
• Role of Stress on Weight Management
• Weight Loss
• Improving Your Eating Habits
• Is Our Environment making us eat more
• The benefits of Home cooking for Your Family
• Mindful Eating, Mindful Life
• Stop Unconscious Overeating