I ate a pie. In fact, I ate two pies. For some of you this is no big deal. Two pies from Night & Day’s $2 Tuesday deal is a great option for all our frugal friends in the world! OR, maybe, you are a snacker. Not only do I find myself snacking after a sufficient meal, but I have to eat when I watch a movie/TV series. Yes, it is a bad habit but it's important to become familiar with our tendencies, triggers, and emotions as these fuel our relationship with food. As a Physical Education graduate, with a keen concern for eating (healthy), I am continually wanting to develop a nutritious relationship with food. With this in mind, I am more conscious of my ‘messy’ moments that some may relate to weaknesses, habits, or cravings. In these moments, when eating is less enjoyable, those times you feel guilty or gluttonous, there is a transformative opportunity for us to access mindfulness in our eating.
Let’s get messy. We are in a society that blurs our vision on health. This is through the images of an ‘ideal’ body usually found on the front of fitness magazines. Accompanying these images are common testimonies about a new diet or exercise fad that has allowed someone to reach their optimal physical appearance (the idolised toned, slim physique with well-defined abs). Too often this results in the over-complication of a truly simple message when it comes to living a healthy and balanced lifestyle. Be mindful. To be attentive to our patterns of eating and to be fully present (and mindful) while we are eating. As individuals, we need to discover how food impacts our individual body, mind, and soul. Yes, food can largely influence our hauora (entire well-being). Amazing, I know. That is why you need to think about your eating habits as part of your relationship with food. One way to move forward in understanding this relationship is to be accepting, gentle, and curious.
Become attentive to your relationship with food through observations of when, how, and why you are eating. Do you eat to fill an emotion? Do you scoff your food or go back for seconds before you have finished your plate? Be aware of what triggers you before, during, and after eating food. There are a number of eating patterns that people engage in for multiple reasons. Do not underestimate the influence our emotions, hormones, and life-long habits have on how and why we eat.
A friend once told me that they only eat a meal when they have the time to appreciate it for the same length of time it took for the meal to be cooked. My friend’s story made me want to take my time when eating my food to appreciate it. I began to focus my senses on what I was eating. The taste, smell, look, and feel of what I ate. This enhances the small act of eating an juicy orange slice to a new level. When we take our time to eat our food it allows our mind to think how that food will bring us nourishment. Next time you are eating something like a lollipop, genuinely ask yourself “how will this nourish my body, mind, or/and soul?”. As we slow our pace of eating, become attentive, and engage our senses while eating we can begin to feel how food impacts our body. Maybe you are aware of what foods make you feel bloated, give you gas, or realise what makes you crave other foods (e.g. after eating something overly salty we tend to reach for something quite sweet to balance). In order for me to learn more about listening to my body, I tried the FODMAP diet.
Over the months of February – May I decided to put myself on the temporary FODMAP diet. I had heard about it from friends as a way to identify potential sources irritation, upset tummies, or general digestion issues caused by food. Fortunately, I don’t have any health concerns around this area but I wanted to become a mindful eater. Earlier this year I had stopped eating refined sugar and my supermarket was the weekly Otago’s Farmers market. This made it very simple for me to begin my FODMAP journey as it is highly restrictive of what you can eat. I will add the disclaimer that it is recommended to undergo this diet with the guidance of a dietitian or professional for guidance and advice. This is not a long-term diet but is a pathway to discover what foods cause irritation, bloatedness, or excessively gasy. On a FODMAP diet it becomes easy to identify the specific food (groups) that cause these effects. After four to five weeks of eating from low FODMAP food options you introduce one food group at a time and observing how your body responds. This process can take two to three months and is a commitment.
They always say the first week is the hardest when changing your diet and I couldn’t agree more! All week I noticed that I was talking about food; what I could eat, what I would feast on post-diet, and what I was craving. The thing that got me through week one was Pic’s peanut butter and 85% dark chocolate. I was aiming to maintain my sugar-free diet (unsuccessful) through this time while eating low FODMAP foods on a plant-based, whole food diet. The farmers market in Dunedin was my absolute saving grace! I would 10/10 recommend that everyone should find a local farmers market. As I continued my FODMAP journey I paid close attention to what irritated my stomach, bowel movements, or other bodily processes which feedback to me whether I should limit or decrease this food (group) on my daily diet. A lot of our body processes are taken for granted until we have significant dysfunctions or issues with them but you will be amazed with the changes you feel with a simple shift in your diet. I could feel how full of energy I felt on a plant-based diet without sugar at the beginning of this year. As I introduced food (groups) I was surprised with how my body responded.
To spare you the details, I recommend that you start you journey of noticing how the food you eat now is effecting you and your body/mind. This could be through keeping a fod-log (physically or electronically), trialing a clean-foods diet with a decrease in processed foods, or simply slowing the pace of your eating (try using chop-sticks). Think of eating like the safety measures when executing a safe river crossing.
Ask yourself: – Should I eat right now? Or am I bored? Drink some water before eating. – Where should I eat? In front of TV/computer to zone out? Or in my own company/friends? Create an environment that is fruitful to eating mindfully. – How should I eat? Take one mouthful at a time and finish it before even picking up another mouthful of food. If that’s too hard give chopsticks a go!
So go out there and help you help yourself. Decide what is stocked in your cupboards (or at least compromise with those you live with, what you can access e.g. hide the biscuits!), savor your food, and attentively listen to what your body is saying to you as you fuel your tank.
>>Live Simply, Simply Live<< MB
Related:
F.O.D.M.A.P = Fermentable oligosaccharides, Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosacchrides, And Polysacchrides. The following groups contain High FODMAP: Fructose, Lactose, Fructans, Galactans, and Polyols.
Comment below if you want me to send you a more extensive list of what foods are associated with each group and for a compiled list of a low and a high FODMAP diet.
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