According to Pinterest, the search query for "mindful eating" is up 44%. Our author wants to take a closer look at the term. Does she have to worry about her bag of chips now?
Mindfulness seems to be the favorite word of millennials – whether in connection with everyday life, the job or love. Yes, even when it comes to fashion, the buzzing trend word is popular. What does mindfulness actually mean? I imagine the whole thing like driving a car. Do you know that, if you drive the same route over and over again, at some point you switch off, the drive goes by itself. And when you arrive you ask yourself: "Man, how did I get here?" You sink into your daily grind, the autopilot is on. And that's where mindfulness comes into play, recommending that you shift down a gear and become more aware of your surroundings again. Sounds obvious, but what does that have to do with food?
Eat? I can do that!
Am I not careful enough already? After all, I consciously deal with the subject of food every day. No really! When I've just finished breakfast, I'm already thinking about my afternoon snack. I love to eat, yes, I even eat sometimes when I'm not hungry. Well, that seems to be the problem.
I deal with food, but rarely with how I eat. Often it just happens out of habit (it's lunchtime after all) or out of reason (oh, haven't eaten in a long time) or out of boredom (the classic). But this is where mindfulness steps in. I'd better listen to my gut instinct. Written down!
Where a little mindfulness can't hurt
Everyone knows it, everyone does it: the typical food on the side. I can tell you a thing or two about it. Out of time, I stuff myself a sandwich while I quickly formulate an email. At lunch I casually occupy myself with the smartphone, it is possible that I will miss something. At this point, a little confession: Admittedly, I'm writing the article while I'm plastering my morning muesli – not exactly mindful. Although I actually think it's damn good not to be distracted while eating. I am also an advocate of the fact that cell phones at the table and the television on in the background have no place at dinner.
And that's not the only thing I like about mindful eating. I look in vain for calorie tables or lists of forbidden foods, as well as diet rules and weight loss promises. This is less about What I eat, but about as I eat. A little awareness at this point, I think, can't hurt.
… yet
… I eat my plate empty even though I half-burst because otherwise the weather won't be nice tomorrow (damn education). The bag of chips, which I earned after a hard day, I still put in front of the telly. And if I prefer to sleep longer in the morning, then I just eat my bread while I check my emails at work. And that's totally okay too. Creating a little awareness certainly doesn't do any harm in certain areas. But seeing it relaxed is even more important. Because that brings us to the next trend word: serenity …