Mindful Eating: Here's Why You Should Try It If You're Sick Of Dieting

Should you really stop dieting and start mindful eating? Well, if your diet plan hasn't been helping with your weight loss goals, or if you're finding it very difficult to stick to, then yes – give mindful eating a go. It might actually be better on your body and mental health.

But wait, what is mindful eating?

Mindful eating relates to mindfulness, a concept that stems from Buddhism. Originally, it involves meditation so you become aware of your current state and being. This helps you better cope with your internal (emotions, thoughts) and external (physical) sensations.

Case in point: the way American writer Ernest Hemingway enjoys his oysters. To the unknowing, he’s just being very descriptive with his food; but if you’ve heard of mindful eating, that’s exactly what he’s doing.

As I ate the oysters with their strong taste of the sea and their faint metallic taste that the cold white wine washed away, leaving only the sea taste and the succulent texture, and as I drank their cold liquid from each shell and washed it down with the crisp taste of the wine, I lost the empty feeling and began to be happy and to make plans.
― Ernest Hemingway

I have to admit that when I first heard of this term, it sounded very fluffy. It’s a different approach to when I count calories with clients, or teach them about the nutrients in food.

After doing some further reading about mindful eating, I came to realise that it should always go hand in hand with dietary change. Here are five reasons why.