Turn off that television!
After a long day, it can be tempting to flop down in front of the TV with your meal. Turn on your favorite show and dig in. Not the best idea, because you’ll unknowingly consume many more calories.
These days, everyone is focused on being mindful, but are you mindful during dinner too? Not if you sit in front of the TV with a plate on your lap. Your attention is then on the television, which means you eat mindlessly, according to research from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. You eat up to 25 percent more when your focus isn’t on the food.
Chips
This applies to dinner, but also to snacks. You become so absorbed in the film that you keep stuffing handfuls of chips into your mouth without thinking. Until suddenly you feel the bottom of the bag. Because you’re watching TV, you barely notice how much you’re eating.
Suspense and sensation
Too many stimuli from that thrilling scene can even trigger a biological reaction. “When you see something exciting on television or social media, your body can display a fight or flight response. This stress response is no longer compatible with proper digestion. To digest food, blood needs to flow to the digestive tract, but when your body enters fight or flight mode, it instead flows to the other limbs so that you can take action,” dietitian Gesina Hammad-Waslander tells AD.
Besides not watching TV while eating, it’s therefore also better to put your phone away for a moment and really focus on your food. Not entirely unimportant: it’s also a waste of the dining experience. Don’t you think a plate of pasta tastes much better when you take the time to enjoy every bite? We get it, mindful eating isn’t that easy, but these three tips will help you get started.
Eat from a smaller plate
It’s very simple. A smaller plate holds less food. Even if you’re sitting in front of the TV, you can never eat more than what’s on your plate. If that isn’t very much to begin with, your problem is solved before it even starts. And put chips in a bowl instead of eating them straight from the bag.
Put down your cutlery
You’re often already preparing the next bite while you’re still busy chewing. Put down your cutlery between bites and don’t prepare the next bite until you’ve finished chewing completely. This prevents you from eating too quickly and gives you more time to enjoy each bite.
Set an alarm
We’re all busy, busy, busy, so meals are often eaten quickly. Stuff everything down and get back to the dishes, or perhaps you still have some work to do. Set an alarm for twenty minutes and don’t leave the table until the time has passed. This way, you can be sure you’re taking enough time for your meal and, if applicable, for your family/housemates too.
