Want to Lose Weight? Savor Your Food!

Most people approach weight loss by focusing on counting calories, as we gulp down our lunch on the run or devour food while driving away from the take-out window. It would greatly behoove your digestion and metabolism to devote a decent chunk of time to truly TASTING your food. Just think about that for a moment…

And then ask yourself this: when was your last meal that conjures up memories of vivid flavors, brilliant colors, mouthwatering aromas and distinctive textures?

If you answered today – great! Yesterday – good! Last week? Hmmm. Can’t remember? Read on.

In our hurried, number-obsessed culture, using any of our five senses during a meal has been left by the wayside, replaced by a desperate attempt to hunt down a pre-packaged, low-calorie meal. Never mind how it tastes or how our body feels after mindlessly inhaling a nondescript lunch down in five minutes.

The fact is your metabolism relies on a very complex synchronicity of hormones and enzymes working to break down your food and absorb nutrients. This process not only converts food to energy, but also affects how efficiently your body uses this energy.

Digestion actually starts before that first bite, following cues to secrete digestive substances from using our senses; for example, while picking up a tempting scent lingering in the air. Even a mere thought of our next food craving can trigger this process. This short but important prelude to our (hopefully) awaiting meal is called the cephalic phase. At this time any sensory stimulation provokes a digestive-related response in our body. One of these responses is the release of gut peptides. The role of these peptides is to release the digestive enzymes that help to assimilate and absorb nutrients in our digestive tract.

If you are in a relaxed state before and during mealtime, your bodily functions will be able to focus and utilize the benefits of these enzymes and other such complexities of the digestive process. On the other hand, when we are anxious while eating or rushed during our lunch break, this creates stress which takes away from efficiently using our digestive system. When under stress our heart rate and blood pressure increase, detouring blood from our digestive tract out to our arms, legs and head, resulting in a lack of absorbing vital nutrients.

So my next question to you is this: where do you eat breakfast? How about lunch? Dinner? Is it on the run? Are you juggling three other tasks while you eat…perhaps frantically catching up on emails?

For those who are distracted by work while speeding through your meal I want to challenge you to pay attention to your next meal. Strive to concentrate on one thing while eating: your food. Step away from your desk and find a relaxing, serene setting to eat your meal. With each bite I want you to:

1)     Look at the different colors,

2)     Smell the scents,

3)     Taste each distinctive flavor, and

4)     Feel the various textures.

Also, don’t forget to:

1)      Breathe, and

2)      Chew

while savoring your meal.

This exercise will not only aid your metabolism and improve digestion, but will bring newfound awareness to what you’re eating and, as a bonus, discovery of some new flavors!