Does your food nourish you with satisfaction?
Many know we need nourishment to keep our body functioning healthily, but did you know that the food we eat also needs to be satisfying for us in many ways so that our mind is happy with the food we are putting in our body, so that our body can response positively to it to optimise functions within the cellular systems. This is because the way we think, the brains neurological messages to the body, and the body systems themselves are all interlinked, and affected by each other.
It may sound like a hippy way of looking at your food but really if you observed what you ate and how you ate it (and by observing other’s experiences also), you may find that you start to become aware of how important satisfaction with nutrition and nourishment is.
Satisfaction encompasses states of being such as, contentment, pleasure and a fulfilment of ones needs. A lack of these elements when we go on a diet is often why people “fall off the wagon” and end up in cycles of yoyo dieting, accompanied by mental and physical health imbalances.
For example, if you were to eat some rice bubbles for breakfast because it is less calories than having muesli with fruit and yoghurt, but in the end don’t feel satisfied and wind-up desiring and stuffing your face with more of the less nutrient dense foods, do you think you think that the mind and body will utilise the food you ate for beneficial purposes? The same could go the other way sometimes we do need to indulge in pleasures to remain balanced. Such as you may really desire some quality chocolate to enjoy eating chocolate but because you have put yourself on a diet, in that moment, you choose to go for the apple and it oddly doesn’t really satisfy you, so you end up eating the chocolate anyway, because a little bit of what you love was what you needed.
Here we must be careful we don’t overindulge in either treat foods or restrictive practices. This is about creating balance and satisfaction with your nourishment. This means again coming back to the state of awareness of what you need and what works with your body, within reason. There are many complicated neurological and energetic components regarding the relationship and interaction of nutrition with an individual’s body yet to be acknowledged but in the meantime, we can learn to start to retrain our perspective towards how we eat and nourish ourselves.
A few pointers on how to work with creating more satisfaction when you eat:
- Before you make decisions on what you will eat take a moment to assess why you are choosing to eat the food you are. Are you choosing it for nourishment? Are you allowing yourself a bit of room to indulge in a bit of pleasure? Or do you even find the food you are eating both nourishing and pleasurable? Are you eating because it is bringing you socially together with loved ones making it pleasurable? Discover what you find most satisfying when it comes to nourishing yourself and eating as this will help to create a more positive relationship with food.
- When you do eat, make the experience as positive as possible and be grateful for your experiences. Allow yourself to realise any guilt or preconceived ideas or too higher expectations and enjoy the moment.
- When you eat slowly and saviour your mouthfuls (the greatest challenge when we live in such fast-paced lifestyles). Did you know when we eat slowly and really engage with what we are eating our senses pick up more of the flavours and textures? So, you may find when you eat slowly you discover your body liking different foods over others, most likely that will serve your body better, than if you were to inhale food with less nutrients.
- Take note on how you respond mentally and how your body responds physically.
- Enjoy the nourishment you receive and look at creating more of a healthy viewpoint towards your nutrition and body.
If you require guidance with your relationship with your nutrition and body then please do not hesitate to get in touch to discover a whole new pathway of nourishment for you.
