Tag: mindful

Mindful Eating: Transform Your Relationship with Food

by Brittany M. Edwards, posted in Mindful Living

In today’s fast-paced world, it’s easy to rush through meals without fully enjoying or noticing what you eat. Mindful eating offers a powerful way to reconnect with your food and your body’s natural signals. By slowing down and paying attention, you can cultivate a healthier and more enjoyable relationship with eating.

What Is Mindful Eating?

Mindful eating is about being present and fully aware during meals. It involves tuning into the flavors, textures and smells of your food while also paying attention to hunger cues and emotions. Unlike traditional dieting, mindful eating isn’t focused on restrictions, but instead on listening to your body’s needs and enjoying food without guilt.

Benefits of Mindful Eating

Practicing mindful eating offers several benefits:

  • Better digestion: Eating slowly and chewing thoroughly can improve digestion and nutrient absorption.
  • Weight management: Being mindful helps prevent overeating, making it easier to recognize when you’re full.
  • Enhanced enjoyment: Savoring each bite can make meals more pleasurable and satisfying.
  • Reduced emotional eating: Mindfulness can help you identify triggers for stress eating and make healthier choices.
  • Improved relationship with food: By removing guilt and judgment, mindful eating fosters a more positive outlook on eating.

How to Practice Mindful Eating

Here are simple steps to incorporate mindful eating into your daily routine:

  1. Eliminate distractions: Turn off the TV, put your phone away, and sit at a designated eating spot.
  2. Take a moment of gratitude: Before eating, pause to appreciate your food—where it came from, who prepared it, and its nourishment.
  3. Engage your senses: Notice the colors, textures, and aromas while you’re eating your meal. Take your first bite slowly and savor the flavors.
  4. Chew thoroughly: Aim to chew each bite around 20-30 times, which aids digestion and allows you to enjoy the full taste of your food.
  5. Eat slowly: Put your utensils on the table or on your plate in between bites and take breaks during your meal.
  6. Tune into hunger and fullness: Check in with yourself throughout the meal to gauge your hunger level. Stop eating when you feel satisfied, not stuffed.
  7. Acknowledge your emotions: Notice if you’re eating due to stress, boredom, or sadness. If so, consider non-food ways to cope, like deep breathing or a short walk.

Mindful Eating Exercise

Try this exercise with a small piece of fruit, like a raisin or a slice of orange:

  • Hold the fruit and observe its shape, color, and texture.
  • Bring it to your nose and smell it.
  • Place it in your mouth without chewing and notice how it feels.
  • Slowly chew and pay attention to the sensations and flavors.

Mindful eating is a simple but impactful practice that encourages a balanced and joyful approach to food. It may take time to break old habits, but each mindful bite brings you closer to a healthier and more harmonious relationship with eating.

Start small and be patient with yourself. Over time, mindful eating can become a natural and rewarding part of your life.

Here’s to savoring every bite and living well!

Embracing Walking Meditation

by Brittany M. Edwards, posted in Mindful Living

In our fast-paced world, mindful living offers a path to greater presence and peace. One powerful way to cultivate mindfulness daily is through mindful walking meditation. Unlike traditional seated meditation, walking meditation invites movement, nature, and awareness into each step. This practice can be done anywhere—on a walk through the park, a stroll down your street, or even pacing around a small room. Whether you’re new to mindfulness or looking for fresh ways to deepen your practice, mindful walking offers a beautiful way to connect with the present moment.

What is Walking Meditation?

Walking meditation is a form of meditation that combines movement with awareness. Rather than rushing from one place to another, you slow down, walking in a way that allows you to notice the sensations of your body and the world around you. It’s less about reaching a destination and more about being fully present in the journey, using each step as an opportunity to embrace and practice mindfulness.

This practice can be tailored to fit your day, whether you have just a few minutes or want to spend more extended time in nature. As you walk, you can focus on the feeling of your feet touching the ground, the movement of your muscles, the sounds around you, and even the rhythm of your breath. Walking meditation bridges the gap between traditional seated meditation and the active world, making it a versatile and accessible practice for all.

How to Practice Walking Meditation

If you’re new to mindful walking, here’s a simple guide. Aim to walk somewhere quiet if possible, but know that you can practice anywhere—even a bustling city street!

1. Set Your Intention

Begin by setting a clear intention to walk mindfully. Remind yourself that this isn’t about exercise or reaching a destination; it’s about being fully present. You might say to yourself, “I am here to connect with each step.”

2. Start by Focusing on Your Posture

Stand tall, yet relaxed. Feel the soles of your feet connecting with the ground. Bring your attention to the present moment by taking a few deep breaths. Notice how your body feels and allow yourself to arrive fully in this moment.

3. Take Slow, Deliberate Steps

Begin to walk slowly, lifting one foot, moving it forward, and placing it down with awareness. Pay attention to the sensations in your legs and feet—the pressure, the texture of the ground, and the movement of each muscle.

4. Coordinate Breath and Steps

Notice your breathing as you walk. Some people find it helpful to synchronize their breath with their steps—for example, taking two steps as you breathe in and two as you breathe out. You might choose a pattern that feels natural to you, or simply allow your breath to flow freely.

5. Engage All Your Senses

Mindful walking is not just about your body; it’s about experiencing the world around you. Notice the sounds, smells, and sights as you walk. Feel the air against your skin, listen to the rustling of leaves, or observe the light. If your mind starts to wander, gently bring it back to the sensations of walking.

6. Return to the Present When You Drift

It’s natural for thoughts to arise as you walk. When you notice your mind wandering, simply acknowledge it without judgment and bring your attention back to the sensations of walking. The act of returning to the present is an essential part of mindfulness practice.

7. End with Gratitude

When you’re ready to finish, pause for a moment and take a deep breath. Reflect on the experience with gratitude for the time you spent connecting with yourself and the world. You might place your hands on your heart and take a few moments of silence to close the practice.

The Benefits of Walking Meditation

Walking meditation has a range of mental, emotional, and physical benefits. Here are a few ways it can enhance your mindful living journey:

• Reduces Stress and Anxiety: Focusing on the present moment helps to quiet the mind, reducing stress and anxiety as you step away from worries and into awareness.

• Enhances Focus and Concentration: Walking meditation trains the mind to stay with one task at a time, which can improve focus in other areas of your life.

• Increases Body Awareness: By tuning into each movement, you become more connected to your body, helping you notice tension, stiffness, or areas where you can bring more ease.

• Connects You with Nature: Walking meditation offers a unique opportunity to experience the natural world with mindfulness, which can foster a sense of connection and gratitude.

• Boosts Emotional Resilience: Regular practice can help you build a habit of returning to the present, which can support emotional balance and resilience over time.

Tips for Integrating Walking Meditation into Daily Life

• Start Small: Begin with just a few minutes each day. As you become more comfortable, you can extend your sessions.

• Practice Anywhere: Mindful walking doesn’t have to be a big event. Try it while walking to your car, in the grocery store, or as you go about your daily routines.

• Combine with Traditional Meditation: Walking meditation is a great complement to seated meditation. If you find seated meditation challenging, walking meditation might be a refreshing alternative.

• Use Visual Reminders: Place reminders around your home or on your phone to take a few mindful steps throughout your day.

Breathe – Big Smile

by Brittany M. Edwards, posted in Mindful Living

It can be so easy to have a great day. All you have to do is start by taking a deep breath and smile. Smile big, smile bright, smile often.

Have you tried smiling your bad day away recently? I know I have had to. Just this morning as I was leaving out for work – on time and everything – the unthinkable happened. My bus that was scheduled to depart at 7:19 AM was there right when I walked out my house at 7:11 AM. Then I get to the train station and no train is in sight and over 150 people are standing and waiting. I wanted to scream, but instead I smiled and said to myself “it is going to be okay.” It is easy to just start yelling and saying “this is not fair” or “why did this have to happen to me?” or “could this get any worse?” or, in my case, blame the bus driver for speeding down the street and arriving early. I had no words for the train.

So even though things pretty much went south and had me late to work, I still reminded myself that maybe it was not meant for me to be on that bus. I will still get to work, I just will not arrive early as planned. There is nothing wrong with that. Letting all those negative thoughts leave out of my mind put me in a much better mood for the rest of my day ahead.

The best part of all this is every time I smiled, someone smiled right back at me. It made me feel good and I could tell the other person was in a good mood as well. It is amazing what something so small as a smile can do for you. So if you have not already done this today, put a smile on your face and enjoy the warmth of others smiling back at you!

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The Power of Positivity

by Brittany M. Edwards, posted in Mindful Living

Positivity

It’s a common concept that gets tossed around in numerous situations. With so many reasons to be negative, we have to find it in ourselves to be positive everyday and not let things get to us. It’s sometimes harder to keep positive on a regular basis, especially with all the crazy things that are going on in the world today. Why is it so important to keep positive? Well the energy you put out is the same energy you’ll receive back. If you emit positive energy, positive things will happen for you. Don’t believe me? Try it!

We constantly have a million and one thoughts going through our minds, not all of them are positive. So how do you change a negative thought into a positive one?

When that negative thought comes in your head, you have to immediately change it. Seems simple right? Not completely, not for everyone. Even I find myself having moments where I should have turned a negative thought into a positive one and instead I have just let it slide on by. However, with practice, comes the ability to really be able to succeed at this. Getting rid of the defeatist thoughts can be a challenge, but it’s very rewarding.

No more saying to yourself “I can’t do this,” or “the task is just too hard,” or “I’ll never get it right.” You have to say instead “I can do this, nothing is too hard for me, and I can get this task completed correctly.” One thing I always find that helps me to get rid of the defeatist thoughts is a scripture: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13.

That scripture is so powerful and it reminds us that we can do anything we set out to do with the strength of God through Christ. I also like to hum a tune in my head that sounds upbeat and sunny. Sometimes it’s a children’s song like BINGO or Pop Goes the Weasel, and other times it’s funny song I heard on YouTube. Either way it helps bring you out of your thoughts all together.

So give it a try and see the difference it’ll make in your life.

 

Mindful Breathing

by Brittany M. Edwards, posted in Mindful Living, Mindfulness

I find that learning to breathe mindfully, is the first step to living a mindful life. It can be difficult when you’re just starting out, but it gets easier. The more you practice, the better you get. Mindful breathing helps you calm your mind. A calm mind is just the beginning to gaining a deeper understanding of yourself.

To make it easy I start with simply find a comfortable place to sit. You can also lay down if you want. In any case, make sure you keep your back straight. Get a timer, and set it to five minutes. While taking a deep breath in and letting it out, slowly close your eyes. To help you only focus on your breath; say the words “inhale” as you inhale your breath, and “exhale” as you exhale your breath. If at all your thoughts began to wonder, just bring your focus back to the words “inhale” and “exhale”.

Aim to practice mindfully breathing everyday for five minutes for a week. Pick a time of day, maybe after you brush your teeth in the morning and/or before you go to bed at night. It’s a good time frame to get you started. On the second week, you can extend your time frame to ten minutes everyday. The next week, fifteen minutes and twenty minutes by the forth week.