Reduce Stress. Improve Digestion. Calm the Mind.
Incorporate meditation into your day-to-day routine, by including it as part of your meal time routine. Too often, we rush through our meals, just as we rush through other aspects of our lives. And, rushing a meal, perpetuates the stress response and reduces the body’s ability to fully digest and absorb the nutrients from the foods.
This meditation can be done while you eat one your own or while you share a meal with family, friends or co-workers. Teaching our children to eat mindfully, supports their overall health – body, mind and spirit.
As you sit down to your meal, settle into your chair, feet flat on the floor, back comfortably straight, take 10, slow, deep, belly breaths – inhale for 3-4 counts and exhale for 6-8 counts. Then, take a moment to appreciate the meal in front of you – the beauty in the colours on your plate and the delicious scents. And, with each bite, appreciate the flavours and textures of the food as you chew.
Enjoy this meditation with at least one meal per day and notice how your experiences of food and of the rest of your day shift.