As I mentioned, I did quite a bit of research last week. There is a lot of overlap in the information. Some sites gave me more of an overview and some gave me more specifics or graphics to refer to.
https://www.mirror-mirror.org/mindful-eating.htm
http://www.intuitiveeating.org/10-principles-of-intuitive-eating/
I am sure there are some other great sites. I just didn´t stumble upon them.
Today was an easier day. I didn´t seem nearly as hungry as I was yesterday. I have only had somewhere between 800-900 calories today. I am sure I will be hungry before bed. If so, I will eat.
Wednesday, June 20, 2018
Tuesday, June 19, 2018
Hungry Much?
The obvious starting point to me is the first habit I listed. Only eat when hungry. To many that would be a "Duh" habit. Yeah, not for me. I honestly don't know when I am physically hungry. Of course, when my stomach growls I know I'm hungry. That happens so rarely that I almost don't even remember what that feels like.
I seriously had to research signs of physical hunger. I previously have eaten when I am bored, tired, stressed, excited, angry, sad....... My body seems to be "hungry" at the same time every day whether I just ate or not. I found a website with a hunger scale and a comparison of physical hunger vs emotional hunger that help me understand my body's physical hunger.
I seriously had to research signs of physical hunger. I previously have eaten when I am bored, tired, stressed, excited, angry, sad....... My body seems to be "hungry" at the same time every day whether I just ate or not. I found a website with a hunger scale and a comparison of physical hunger vs emotional hunger that help me understand my body's physical hunger.
It is still not easy for me to identify if I am physically hungry or not. That is going to take some real work. In addition to focusing on this habit I am also trying to really appreciate my food. I am consciously using all 5 senses to think about what I am eating. Surprisingly, the food is more tasty when I do think about it purposefully. I am finding it easier to eat mindfully if I sit down at the table and turn all distractions off. I allow myself to listen to an audiobook but don´t allow myself to watch anything or play phone games. When I eat mindfully and think about chewing the food I find myself eating slower, too. So many habits are all working together making this easier once I get to the point where I am eating.
Once today, I thought I felt hungry. I was looking for something to eat. BBQ chips screamed at me. When I thought about the actual taste of them I was immediately turned off. The only things that sounded good to me where mindless snacks. Just like the chips, when I thought about actually digesting them I was turned off. I guess I wasn´t physically hungry. An hour later when I looked as some of those snacks as well as main dishes they all sounded good to me even when I really thought about putting them in my mouth.
Today is really the fourth day of my mindful eating and health journey. The first couple of days were surprisingly easy. I wasn´t hungry nearly as much as I normally would have been. I just thought I was hungry all the time. I was one of those people who ALWAYS had snacks. I think I have a real fear of hunger. Analyze that! However, Sunday was Fatherś day. I did some mindless eating at the family gathering. I am not sure if it is hormonal or what, but I am much hungrier today. I still worked on identifying if it was physical hunger. I tried drinking water when I felt hungry. I went through the great chip debate described earlier. Better habits! Slow and steady! Tomorrow is a new day. I will keep eating when I am physically hungry and appreciate what I am eating. In time, I will focus more on what I am choosing to eat. At this point, I am only breaking the mindless eating anything and anytime.
Calories - about 1400-1500
Feeling - had a hungry day but ate mindfully
Todayś weight 165
Starting My Journey
Let me introduce myself to you. I am a 45 year old wife, mother, and librarian. I am a fairly sendentary person. I am active around the house and at work but do no exercise. I just don't like it. I don't even like doing active things with my kids and family. I would prefer to go to a movie or watch them do the activities. I have to force myself to participate in order to make the memories and build the family bond. Yep, mom of the year right here!
All of my life my weight and self image has been a focus and struggle. My adolescents and adulthood has consisted of one diet after another. There are some things I have found to be truly helpful such as logging what I eat and how many calories I am eating. I have had gastric bypass and been somewhat successful. My total weight loss was 100 pounds. I have only gained 20 back and that was over the course of 10 years. I may have gained that regardless of the surgery because I hit the damned 40's. I am so done with dieting. I'm sick of it. The yo yo has crashed and burned. My life has revolved around food either uncontrollable eating it or strict restrictions of it. This is it! Time to make some real changes.
So, I'm starting a mindful eating and healthy habits journey. I have done some research and identified the changes I want to make. Obviously, I won't make all the changes at one time. It will be a slower process than a diet, but isn't that the point. My end goal is not weight loss, it is healthy eating habits. Weight loss will hopefully be one of the bonus perks of learning to listen to my body. I hate the idea of having rules. I want to embrace the idea that I am really changing my habits. Here is the list of habits I feel I need to focus on in order to change my relationship with food.
My Habits:
All of my life my weight and self image has been a focus and struggle. My adolescents and adulthood has consisted of one diet after another. There are some things I have found to be truly helpful such as logging what I eat and how many calories I am eating. I have had gastric bypass and been somewhat successful. My total weight loss was 100 pounds. I have only gained 20 back and that was over the course of 10 years. I may have gained that regardless of the surgery because I hit the damned 40's. I am so done with dieting. I'm sick of it. The yo yo has crashed and burned. My life has revolved around food either uncontrollable eating it or strict restrictions of it. This is it! Time to make some real changes.
So, I'm starting a mindful eating and healthy habits journey. I have done some research and identified the changes I want to make. Obviously, I won't make all the changes at one time. It will be a slower process than a diet, but isn't that the point. My end goal is not weight loss, it is healthy eating habits. Weight loss will hopefully be one of the bonus perks of learning to listen to my body. I hate the idea of having rules. I want to embrace the idea that I am really changing my habits. Here is the list of habits I feel I need to focus on in order to change my relationship with food.
My Habits:
- Only eat when physically hungry
- Really experience my food using all 5 senses
- Eat without distractions
- Eat slowly
- Stop when I'm only 80% full
- Choose foods that satisfy my nutritional needs
- Give up the guilt
Sounds reasonable, right?!?
Starting weight: 167
Starting weight: 167
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