Mindful Eating Series - 8 TIPS TO CONSIDER WHEN HAVING A BUSY LIFE
If you're a super-busy person or you are going through a busier time than normal, you may wonder how in the world you can find the time to eat mindfully. However, you can. The thing is, we make time for the things that are important to us. If eating mindfully is important to you, you'll set your life up so that you can do it.
Start and End the Day with Relaxation
One thing about mindfulness that is needed is a sign or a practice to help you get ready for the day and to help you wind down so that you can sleep well at night. Luckily, relaxation can serve both purposes. It's all about how you think about it. What's more, you only need to set aside five to ten minutes each time.
Make Nutrition Important
We tend to pay attention to what is important to us. Sadly, because health issues take a while to show up, we tend to put nutrition on the back burner. This is a big mistake. Make nutrient just as important as brushing your teeth before bed, so that you actually make time for it.
Savor Your Food
Schedule in enough time to eat meals where you can savor your food. Every meal should take at least 20 minutes to eat. Setting aside enough time to eat the food in a way that makes it pleasurable and enjoyable is important for mindfulness even when you're busy.
Plan for Busy Times
You're probably not busy 24/7, 365 days a year. Because of this, you can make plans for the times when you know you'll be super-busy. For example, if you know that during soccer season you'll be too busy, you can feed your freezer with healthy food in advance.
Eat with Gratitude
When you do eat, regardless of who prepared it, do it with thankfulness for the nutrition and the experience. When you are truly thankful for each bite of food that you put in your mouth, it's hard not to be mindful.
Tidy Up, Organize and Automate
You can also become less busy. Clean up so that you aren't wasting time looking for stuff. Organize so that everything has a place. Find ways to automate things that you can. Of course, you cannot change the fact that soccer is a busy time, but perhaps you can hire someone to clean weekly, drop off your laundry, and automate your bill paying so that you have more time in other areas of your life.
Focus on the Present
Sometimes, being busy is a symptom of avoiding life. It depends what you're busy with, of course. But most people can find ways to do better focusing on now instead of later. If your idea of busy is stressing with circular thoughts about an issue at work when you're home – let it go. Learn to compartmentalize your time.
Breathe
Finally, it's imperative to breathe properly. Busy people tend to find themselves holding their breath a lot due to stress. Helping your body oxygenate itself properly is going to give you more energy to get through the day.
At the end of the day, you are responsible for all your choices. You can choose to find ways to manage your time better so that you can eat mindfully. Don't just give in and give up. Instead, focus on ways you can improve mindfulness in every aspect of your life, including eating.