The Mindful Diet

Mindfulness Tool: Healing Self-Touch
The following exercise is an opportunity to reconnect with your body and treat yourself with compassion, especially when you no­tice your harsh Inner Critic.
1. Begin with a relaxation exercise. Bring awareness to and relax each body area—feet, legs, abdomen, shoulders, arms, neck, and face.
2. Now, bring attention to your hands. Imagine that your hands are beginning to fill up with kindness, however you can en­vision that happening . . . your hands are full of kindness, caring, warmth, and tenderness.
3. Place one hand over your heart. Notice your breathing. Feel the caring quality of your heart. Let it come through your hands. Let all the mental chatter just come and go, com­ing back to a sense of tenderness and caring. Relax your hands.
4. Now lift one hand and place it on the opposite arm—a gen­tle, caring touch. After gently touching your arm, conveying tender care, gently drop your hand. Now lift the other hand and place it on the opposite arm—a kind and caring touch.
5. Just notice what this feels like, the sense of touching. What is your reaction? What is going through your mind? Notice, without judging, what thoughts come up . . . just touching with kindness.
6. Slowly move your hands to your abdomen. Let them rest and move with your abdomen as you breathe. Notice your reaction. Continue to feel the kindness in your hands, a sense of holding yourself in tenderness.
7. Next, move both your hands to your thighs. Gently place them wherever is comfortable, perhaps wondering if you can touch them with a sense of appreciation. Completely relax, allowing tenderness for all the feelings this may bring up.
8. Again, place one or both hands over your heart. Notice your breathing. Feel the caring quality of your heart. Let it come through your hands. Let all the mental chatter just come and go, coming back to a sense of tenderness and caring.
9. In the last moments of this process, you can continue to rest your hands where they are, or if you feel there is another part of your body that could use a tender, caring touch, move your hand there. Continue to rest with a sense of warmth toward yourself.
10. Slowly bring your attention back to the room. When you are finished with the exercise, take a few minutes to write in your journal. Consider what happened. What did you no­tice? What was difficult? What felt comfortable? What was helpful?

“Stress cannot exist in the presence of a pie.”
—David Mamet

Whatever kind of eating environment you grew up in, you can create your own eating culture—one that supports your health.

Create Your Own Eating Culture
Just as creating your own exercise pattern is crucial, developing your own eating culture can also help to build your foundation.

Achieving balance is a dance—a dynamic process, not a static one.

Health is not something that exists only in our bodies, separate from our lives.

animals whose primary sense is vi­sual, human beings have a physiological response to seeing food or pictures of food. Neurochemically, we anticipate eating it, and our brains start secreting chemicals that cause cravings and can lead to overeating.

Our Food Culture: Fast, Cheap, and Out of Control

It’s normal to eat too much, eat too quickly, eat for comfort, or choose unhealthy food on occasion. But for increasing numbers of people, these habits are not the exception; they’re the norm.

“When walking, walk. When eating, eat.”