Eating changes both body and mind, the total of who we are. What we eat and how much we eat changes who we are physiologically. Why we eat and how we eat changes who we are psychologically.
Mindlessness is Blindness
When we eat mindlessly, the body expands (to the extent to which mindless eating leads to overeating) and the mind shrinks (to the extent to which mindless eating denies us the experience of eating). After all being mindless means just that: being of less mind. Mindlessness hides the reality and robs us of the experience.
I am sure you are familiar with this experience of having no experience: you get into the car, you start driving, half an hour later you are at your destination, but as you look back you don’t remember the actual experience of driving. We’ve learned not to be puzzled by that. "Highway hypnosis," we think and move on. It’s the same with eating, a kitchen-table hypnosis of sorts. You shop, you cook, you set up the meal, you turn the TV on and several mindless minutes later, you are done: your stomach is full but your mind is empty, and you are craving seconds just to have the very experience of eating you missed in the first place.
Mindfulness is Vision
When we eat mindfully, the body shrinks (to the extent to which mindful eating reduces mindless overeating), and the mind expands. After all being mindful means just that: having a full mind. Mindfulness is vision. Mindfulness reveals the reality of what is, in all its nuanced, complex and unique such-ness. The traditions of saying grace (to infuse a moment of spiritual gratitude into a meal), the Zen tradition of Oryoki (a form of meditative eating designed to facilitate here-and-now presence), the veganism movement (with its attempt to manifest one’s ethics of compassion through eating) — these and many other traditions have all recognized that eating can serve as an invaluable existential platform for awakening the zombie in us. Whereas mindless eating robs us of the experience, mindful eating allows us to reclaim the eating moments of our lives.
According to the Center for Mindful Eating, a multidisciplinary forum for "developing, deepening and understanding the value and importance of mindful eating," "mindful eating has the powerful potential to transform people’s relationship to food and eating, to improve overall health, body image, relationships and self-esteem." The recent years have witnessed an emerging self-help and clinical literature on mindfulness-based counseling for overeating and binge-eating.
Therefore, it would appear that mindful eating is, indeed, the missing ingredient of the USDA Food Pyramid. The addition of an eye atop the food pyramid would cue the public to the importance of eating with both short- and long-term vision, with here-and-now tactical awareness of the process of eating and with the strategic vision of how the behavior of eating fits with their overall living philosophy.
The symbol of the all-seeing-eye-at-the-top-of-a-pyramid traces its origin back to ancient Egypt and indicates "that the dead god is entombed in the underworld but is still watchful," and "the open eye is his soul that is still alive, so he knows what is happening in the world" (Sandra Forty, Symbols, p. 11). The symbol, however, has been sufficiently secularized by the fact that it appears on the $1 bill and has become largely accepted as a legitimate part of American iconography.
Eating is physiologically inevitable, but mindfulness isn’t. Associating eating with mindfulness, one meal at a time, can help us not only manage weight (by reducing mindless overeating) but also to nourish and enrich the mind.
Pavel Somov, Ph.D. is the author of "Eating the Moment: 141 Mindful Practices to Overcome Overeating One Meal at a Time" (New Harbinger, 2008).
Hi Pavel,
Thank you for bringing Buddhist practices and science–a marriage that seems to work well–to this site. Even though I've been practicing a form of Taoist martial meditation for years, I am guilty of eating in front of the TV at night. And I don't eat mindfully. I'm sure if I did I would eat substantially less. And would weigh less.
Being mindful–living in the moment–is very hard, especially when you have bills to pay and the future is uncertain. But I think the practice of eating mindfully is a good place to start. Tonight I'll shut off the TV and do it.
Regards,
Bob
Sure, Bob. Thanks for your thoughts. Mindful eating is hard when we try to make it full-time, oryoki-style (monastic-intensity of mindful eating). I feel that's excessive. The idea here is to infuse some degree of consciousness into eating, here and there, and that's enough… No need to make it "work," just play with it…
Pavel Somov, Ph.D., licensed psychologist, author of "Eating the Moment: 141 Mindful Practices to Overcome Overeating One Meal at a Time" (New Harbinger, 2008) http://www.eatingthemoment.com
Pavel, today i cooked food at home and tried your technique and i felt wonderful for next 2-3 hours , it was the most satisfying meal in a long time .thanks for suggestion.
Hello Pavel
i do try to eat 'mindfully' , i learned of this through reading Jon Kabat Zim's book 'Full Castrophe Living'. He gives an exercise in eating a raisin. i tried it, eyes closed, 'mindfull'.
i couldn't believe just how much this affected me. I realised just how much of 'life' was passing me by, by not being present, mindful. But i agree with the comment Bob made it 'is' difficult, so it seems, to remain 'mindful'. However, being aware of 'mindfullness' i can catch myself sometimes in mid 'mindlessness' and call myself back to the moment. i just wish it would happen more often. With an adult son with severe autism, still at home with us, and two other 18 and 20 year old son, daughter. our home is quite 'stressful' and 'hectic' at times. Bringing myself back to present moment really does help as my mind is so often onto the next possible meltdown, argument, chaotic moment…that to 'stop' and breathe, connect mindfully, really helps me. i do try and 'cook' mindfully too, and imbibe good, loving, peaceful energy into what i am, cooking. i read that a 'stressed mindless' chef imbues negative, stressful energies into the food they are cooking. But i really wonder why? i cannot maintain the 'mindful' process. is it just practice? i despair when i realise another hour, day week? has slipped by and i truly haven't ben present. A life half lived seems to be my lot!
Thank you for reminding me of the importance of mindfullness, and in particular 'mindful eating'.
Pam
Pam
I think the only true way to achieve all-the-time mindfulness is by practicing meditation–training the mind for many years. The books you see out such as The Power of Now–they don't tell you about the work involved. I've done Taoist standing post meditation for many years, and it helps. I think the only time I truly lived in the now was during the six years I fought supposedly terminal bone cancer. Perhaps it's the old saying–"Knowing you're going to be hanged in a fortnight concentrates the wind wonderfully."
Since then, I've had to deal with many more common problems–divorce, debt, blackballed from good jobs. And it's difficult. It would be a lot easier in a monastery, that's for sure. I think with all you have on your plate it is amazing you can do it for any period of time at all. I think Pavel's suggestions regarding mindful eating are a good place to start.
Best regards,
Bob
Thank you Bob for replying to my post. i appreciate your input. i can well understand that you would focus on 'mindfullness' and being truly in the 'now' during your years of fighting terminal bone cancer. i do hope that you are through this with a clean bill of health. Obvously when such circumstances are on our doorstep we take note, and act or at least try to. i am very sad to hear that you have since had to cope with so many. although you say 'common' problems they are all live defining. i agree with you living in a monastery would seem the easier route, but maybe our lives are destined for the 'true grit' of experience. Isn't there a term of Buddhism that allows the 'middle path'? That doesn't sound right but i hope you know what i mean. i wish you health and happiness .Bob you may decree my path to be dificult but yours, to me, is by far more difficult. Dealing with your mortality must be the worst situation ever.
i wish you well in every aspect.
Pam
Great for you, Care Forall! Great "handle" too.
Pavel Somov, Ph.D., licensed psychologist, author of "Eating the Moment: 141 Mindful Practices to Overcome Overeating One Meal at a Time" (New Harbinger, 2008) http://www.eatingthemoment.com
You are welcome, Pam. It sounds like you are definately trying. That's enough.
Pavel Somov, Ph.D., licensed psychologist, author of "Eating the Moment: 141 Mindful Practices to Overcome Overeating One Meal at a Time" (New Harbinger, 2008) http://www.eatingthemoment.com
In the case of mindfulness, practice doesn't make it perfect but makes it natural… Once again, the idea of full-time/moment-by-moment mindful eating – in my opinion – is a bit extreme for Western style… I advocate moderation – even if in the matters of mindfulness…
Pavel Somov, Ph.D., licensed psychologist, author of "Eating the Moment: 141 Mindful Practices to Overcome Overeating One Meal at a Time" (New Harbinger, 2008) http://www.eatingthemoment.com