Do you remember what you ate for lunch yesterday? How about dinner last night?
When we eat in a distracted state we not only don’t remember what we eat, but we are likely to eat more than our bodies need. We also don’t enjoy our food as much. To truly experience the pleasure of eating, we need to pay attention with all of our senses.
You’ve probably had the experience of driving your car to a destination that is familiar to you. You’re lost in thought or talking on the cell phone. The next thing you realize, you’re at your destination and you have no memory of the last several miles. How did you manage to safely get there? You were on autopilot. We can get into a habit of eating on autopilot too.
The same thing happens when eating while on the computer, on our phone or watching TV. We have no idea how much we have eaten, we don’t truly enjoy the food and we don’t pay attention to our body’s fullness cues.
Mindful eating takes us off of autopilot. Food becomes it’s own pleasure, we take time to pay attention and our weight and health improve. Autopilot can be beneficial for a commercial airline pilot, but not in eating.
To stop this habit, you first have to become aware that you are actually on autopilot. Awareness is always the first step in any behavior change. Then try, I know it’s difficult, but try to eat without distractions. Turn off the TV, no cell phone, no computer. Focus on the plate of food before you. Savor each bite.