Happy New Year!!

I hope everyone had an awesome Christmas! We still have New Years to enjoy, it feels like we have been going through the “Holidays” since October, ha-ha! So, tell me, how many cookies have you eaten so far? We just had an all-day cookie making marathon, Sophia and my mom worked at it while I went outside to chop the ice in the driveway, there are a lot to eat! Yikes, portion control!!

I have a suggestion of a new practice for you at this time of the year, mindful eating. What is being mindful? It is being in the present moment, paying attention to thoughts, feelings, and surroundings. When you incorporate being mindful into your eating routine you will reap many benefits. Have you ever eaten a meal and afterword don’t remember tasting the food? I know I am guilty of that on many occasions. If you can adopt this lifestyle change for the rest of the holiday season, I bet you will be able to make it a habit that will work for the entire year. It doesn’t take any more energy, just some precious time. When most people hear it will take time, they automatically assume it will take a lot of time. This is not the case with this practice, if you can slow your eating down by one minute you can accomplish the goal, more time than that and you can achieve new eating patterns to assist in weight management.

With a little adjustment to the real practice we can adjust this to the holiday season. Even if you are at a party you can pay attention…use all your senses to focus on the food and drink, not just taste. Look at the different colors and textures, all those colors and textures are responsible for the nutrients contained in the food (ha-ha even if there aren’t any). Listen to how it sounds when you eat it, does it crunch? Smell each bite you put in your mouth; sense of smell plays an important part in our taste sense. Then chew slowly, feel each texture in your mouth, enjoy the taste sensation of the food. When you take your time eating you are better able to recognize when you are satisfied and full, before getting to the point of feeling uncomfortably full.

By utilizing this practice during a food centered season and throughout the year, you will reduce the number of calories ingested and aid in maintaining or losing weight.

Happy Holidays and Enjoy every mouthful!!