Intentional Eating #10 - The 20 Minute Meal

Intentional eating - the concept that we are aware of the food that we eat, and we appreciate all of it. We don't eat more than we need, and we allow ourselves to enjoy the food we eat. 

This eliminates mindless eating, empty calories, and the excessive unhealthy fats, salt, and refined carbohydrates that can undo even the most productive of days.

The following blog posts in this 10 part countdown series are meant as a pick-what-works guide. Trying to maintain all 10 tips at the same time will be overwhelming - choose 2-3 to implement for a 2-3 week time-span. This will be long enough to make them a part of your lifestyle - the best way to help new habits stick.

First, we'll start with taking your time eating - at least 20 minutes per meal. 

It takes 20 minutes for the full signals to travel from your stomach to your brain.

When you make the time in your schedule to eat food over a longer period of time, you may also become more aware of nuances in your food: the texture of a roasted root vegetable, the sweetness of a blueberry, or the natural saltiness of salmon.

In addition to benefitting your waistline, this practice benefits your relationship with food. Instead of fearing food due to calories, saturated fat, or sodium, you may find that you appreciate each bite for what it provides you. Find the silver lining in each bite of wild rice, snack of walnuts, or slice of bell pepper.

Think about the benefits that come with the foods you eat - how the carbohydrates will nourish your muscles, or how the protein is supplying essential amino acids, or how the lipids are making brain-building blocks. 

Before I leave you on this post, I'd like to differentiate between eating slowly and distracted eating. Now, more than ever, we have plenty of opportunities to distract ourselves while eating. Using smart phones, watching tv, or checking the internet can all seem like ways to extend the length of your meal - however, I caution against these, as they tend to cloud the mind from being able to register the satiated signal that it's receiving.

Take your mealtimes as a chance to slow down and relax. We get at least three times per day to concentrate on eating and enjoying our food. Make the most of each opportunity.

Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

September 1, 2015