Mindful Eating

So now that Christmas is over so are my cookie and ice cream binges!! During my pregnancy I took pleasure in eating the goodies I usually didn't let myself eat. At least without guilt anyway. I could blame the pounds on the pregnancy and everyone let me. So now that Alana is here and my body is getting back to normal my eating habits have to do the same. So after speaking to a friend I am choosing to slow down and enjoy mindful eating. I am going to try and reset my eating habits and thinking. I have a whole lifetime of bad eating habits. So what is mindful eating well I have been reading up on it a lot trying to fit it in to my life. Here are a few things I have learned about it.....

Mindful Eating is Eating with Intention and Attention

Eating is a natural, healthy, and pleasurable activity when it's done to satisfy hunger. The bottom line is that weight management is not just about what you eat. How you eat matters just as much.

Choosing to eat "mindfully," in other words, giving food and eating your full attention, will allow you to have optimal satisfaction and enjoyment without eating to excess.

Mindful eating makes it possible for you to experience the difference between physical satisfaction and fullness. Mindful eating also allows you to feel more satisfied with smaller quantities of food. Learning to savor your food simply makes eating more pleasurable. Knowing what satisfies you and getting the most pleasure from your eating experiences are key factors for a lifetime of weight control.

So for the next 3 weeks I am taking 3 days and really sitting down away from the TV and any other distraction so I can enjoy what I am putting into my body. It won't be about calories in or out. It will just be a time to start a new more aware way of eating. I hope to learn that I can be satisfied with moderation and not deprivation. I have a beautiful daughter that looks up to me now and I have to start showing her good eating habits and exercise habits. I have so much work to do on myself hopefully by the time she is old enough to understand I will be in a better relationship with food and my body image. I usually don't do New Years Resolutions because I don't keep them so this is not a resolution this is a new chapter.
Here was my start in April of 2010

Chico and I would go walking 3+ days a week.

This was right before I found out I was pregnant down to a 2x. I am not quite back there yet but I am close and will be there very soon.