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Up early so I had time to recap the next chapter in my retreat series :). Enjoy! xoxox (P.S. Vet aspirated my doggie's lump & we'll have the results on Fri or Sat. He was optimistic that the lump had not been there long, was soft & moveable, but we shall see. Of course, I'll be praying until then.)
EWYL-BE Chapter 2 – Trust Your Body Wisdom
Reconnecting with your body wisdom is crucial for resolving binge eating, responding to your needs without turning to food, and healing your relationship with food. Chapter 2 guides us through the process of getting back in touch with our body & learning to trust it again. This chapter & the next three focus on the “when” part of the Mindful Eating Cycle to help us respond mindfully whenever we feel like eating. Being in charge starts with learning to tell the difference between wanting to eat & needing to eat so we can decide how we’ll respond.
Hunger is our body’s way of telling us we need fuel. But many of us have lost touch with our body wisdom. We have to re-learn what hunger feels like, which can be different for each of us and difficult for many. Some feel hunger pangs, a growling or grumbling stomach, an empty or hollow feeling, a gnawing or slight queasy feeling, weakness or a loss of energy, trouble concentrating, lightheadedness or shakiness, a slight headache, irritability or crankiness, and/or a feeling that you must eat as soon as possible. The thing that these all have in common is that they are physical. They are not thoughts, feelings or cravings.
A good way to determine if you are hungry is to do a Body-Mind-Heart Scan, which focuses on your physical sensations, thoughts & feelings. To do so –
Focus your attention – Move away from the sight & smell of food (if possible) so you can focus & pay attention to what your body is telling you.
Focus inward – Take a few deep breaths & calm yourself.
Focus on your physical sensations – Move from the top of your head down your body looking for any physical sensations you can find for hunger. It may help to place you hand on and/or picture your stomach.
Focus on your thoughts – Your thoughts can give you clues about whether or not you’re hungry. Hunger is a physical feeling that comes on gradually, not a thought that suddenly appears. If you have any doubts about whether you’re hungry, you’re probably not.
Focus on your feelings – What emotions are you experiencing at the moment? (They’ll be more on this in later chapters.)
Another useful tool in assessing hunger & fullness levels before, during & after eating is the Hunger & Fullness Scale. It can help you identify hunger cues, observe how different types & amounts of food affect you, and recognize when the urge to eat has been triggered by something other than hunger. The scale ranges from 1 to 10 as follows:
1 – ravenous
2 – starving
3 – hungry
4 – pangs of hunger
5 – satisfied
6 – full
7 – very full
8 – discomfort
9 – stuffed
10 – sick
It may be challenging at first to label your hunger & fullness levels with numbers, but as you practice, it becomes second nature. It can help to visualize what’s happening in your stomach at these different levels of hunger & fullness. Your stomach when empty is only about the size of a fist, so it only takes a handful or two to fill it comfortably to a level 5. You can also picture your stomach as a balloon, being comfortably filled at a level 5. Level 2 or 3 is generally the ideal time to eat with the goal of eating until we feel we’re at a level 5 or 6. Remember, when you wait until you’re hungry to eat, eating is more pleasurable & satisfying. Hunger truly is the best seasoning! And, if you aren’t hungry when you start eating, how will you know when to stop?
The final section of this chapter is about accepting your body. Recovery from binge eating is not just about healing your relationship with food. You must also heal your relationship with you body –
Start with acceptance – Mindfulness is awareness of the present moment without judgment, including accepting your body as it is right now.
Live for today – There might be things you want to work on, but when you get caught up in body hatred, you can delay practicing self-care.
Don’t be weightist (“weightism” is bias or discrimination) – Rid yourself of your own weightist thoughts & don’t buy into the weightist messages of others.
Accept your genetic blueprint & don’t compare yourself.
Focus on function.
Respect & nurture your body, and expect respect in return.
Diet Calendar Entries for 05 December 2013:
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1620 kcal
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Fat: 55.93g | Prot: 100.58g | Carb: 203.00g.
Breakfast: Primal Nutrition Primal Fuel - Vanilla Coconut Creme, Lactaid 100% Lactose Free Fat Free Milk, Harmless Harvest 100% Raw Coconut Water, Spectrum Organic Virgin Coconut Oil. Lunch: Primal Nutrition Primal Fuel - Chocolate Coconut, Lactaid 100% Lactose Free Fat Free Milk. Dinner: Figs, Boston Market Seasonal Fresh Fruit Salad, Happy Harvest Mixed Vegetables, Manhattan Clam Chowder. Snacks/Other: Kroger Vanilla Yogurt Covered Raisins, Pecans, Wegmans Roasted Butternut Squash & Spinach, Asian Pears, Greens, Roasted Brussel Sprouts, Sensible Foods Edamame Crunch Dried Snack. more...
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1958 kcal
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Activities & Exercise:
Tennis - 1 hour and 30 minutes, Sleeping - 8 hours, Resting - 14 hours and 30 minutes. more...
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