Stop. Think. Chew. And, Stop Again.

We live in a world of multiple screens, multi-tasking, no time, and plenty of stress. Too often, we eat on the run, sometimes for breakfast, lunch and dinner. And, way too often, meals are fast food, as in eaten- fast food (even fast food is wolfed-down fast). Here’s the problem.

The whole process of digestion starts with chewing.  Chewing breaks food into manageable bites, making it easy to swallow. You can’t swallow much solid food whole. Chewing thoroughly releases saliva that coats your food with digestive enzymes—which actually begin to digest the food before you swallow it. At the same time, those same enzymes begin digesting the carbohydrates and fats, meaning less work for your stomach. If food is swallowed un-chewed, or not chewed thoroughly, important nutrients remain locked in the fragments. These fragments in turn, create an environment in the colon that can contribute to digestive distress—bacterial overgrowth, gas, and bloating.

The act of just seeing your food causes your brain to send signals to the pancreas and stomach to secrete digestive acids and enzymes that are essential to digestion. The longer your food has contact with your taste and smell receptors and the longer you chew each bite, the stronger those signals become. Strong signals mean more digestive molecules, less indigestion, and superior nutrient absorption. Enough Biology 101.

We enjoy food. We’re supposed to enjoy it. And, if we slow down and appreciate what we eat, we end up eating less. This is being mindful of what and how we eat. And, eating more slowly gives your body a chance to tell your mind that it’s full, so that you stop eating before you go overboard. Consider trying the following tips along with your next meal.

• Don’t eat in front of distractions such as the TV or computer, or while driving.
• Give yourself enough time to eat—at least 20-30 minutes to eat the meal.
• Be mindful while you eat. Notice the smell, temperature, texture, color, and subtle flavor differences of each food you consume.
• Take smaller portions and take a 5 minute a break before serving yourself seconds.
• Put your fork down after each bite.
• Eat slowly, chewing each bite as many times as necessary to pulverize any texture.
• If you’re eating in a group, challenge yourself to be the last to finish.

In addition to the physical benefits of eating mindfully, if you allow yourself to slow down and chew thoroughly, you’ll find yourself eating less and enjoying your food more.

A New Beginning

Shiny as a new penny. A fresh start. Now really is the time. Right? Heard it all before?

What does it take to convince yourself that you are worth what it takes to begin to take control of your health and well-being. No one else can do it for you, and no one else could even begin to do it as well as you can. You know what drives you. You know what you will and won’t do. And, you know the reasons why (and why not). You also know it’s all really up to you.

But, why do you need a new beginning in the first place? There are beginnings which are exciting opportunities. And then, there are new beginnings, which come about when those exciting new opportunities (and all that goes with them) don’t always meet expectations. The reasons are endless. Maybe goals were set too high. Maybe enthusiasm waned. Maybe there was an illness or unexpected disruption in your day-to-day routine. Maybe it was too hard. Maybe you just lost interest. Maybe you felt defeated. Doesn’t matter. All is not lost.

Whatever the reason, there are always new beginnings, and those come with lessons learned. You had your reasons when you decided then was the time—aren’t those reasons still valid? Maybe they’re more valid now. If so, now will be a most excellent time for a new beginning.

If not now, exactly when?

Giving...and Getting. And, Food Signals?

With Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas and New Year’s fast-approaching, it’s probably natural that we occasionally think of giving and getting. It is, after all, that time of year. But, have you ever considered the “Giving and Getting” side of food signals? Now is a great time to give it some thought because those signals are all around us.

Let’s start with an obvious seasonal signal—that plate of cookies many of us leave out for Santa (who obviously doesn’t need cookies but we want Santa to be comfortable). We bake cookies for friends, and receive cookies and candies from friends. Face it, food is on our minds. (Make a mental note when you’re out shopping to notice the number of restaurants touting “All You Can Eat.”)

But, in real life, the holidays, and the rest of the year, are not about all you can eat. Where food is concerned, we think the focus should be on the why, what and how much you eat.

In a logical world, we should be eating for nutrition and to satisfy true hunger. Babies know this. When they’re hungry they cry. We feed them. When they’ve had enough, they stop eating. As we grow up, we get distracted by food signals, and those distractions lead us away from what we did naturally as babies.

Food is everywhere. It’s hard to escape it. And, because it’s all around us, many of us find we’re almost always eating—sometimes just a bite of something that looks good, sometimes a big meal, and often more than we need or really want. We tend to eat mindlessly, sitting at our desks, in front of the TV, in the car, and as a result, we don’t pay attention to how much we’re eating or whether we’re even hungry. Do you think the Cinnabon smell that permeates the food court at the mall is an accident?

We tend to eat too fast—even when we’re not in a hurry. This doesn’t allow time for our bodies to receive the “full” or satiety signal. Have you ever finished a meal, and realized you barely tasted what you just ate? Have you ever looked at your desk and wondered where those four little bite-size fun bars went?

And we tend to eat when we feel stressed—and at this time of the year we all feel a little, or a lot of stress. In your heart of hearts, you already know there are other, more productive ways to deal with stress. Ask yourself, why are you eating . . . does the food comfort you? Do you eat to celebrate? Are you eating because everyone else is eating? Are you really about to starve to death?  Probably not.

We also tend to eat too much. While this is not news, it’s also not all our fault. We’re served larger servings at restaurants—in fact we’d probably complain if we were served an actual recommended portion. And, did you know there’s science behind why we sometimes eat too much? A study by the UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas finds that foods high in fat (such as a hamburger) actually tell your brain to “keep eating.” The study points out that your brain chemistry can change in a short period of time, meaning that when your brain gets “hit” with the fatty acids, you can become resistant to the hormones insulin and leptin. In other words, your brain isn’t being told to stop eating. In addition, those foods highest in fat are the foods that cause us to eat more—beef, butter, cheese and milk. Take a look at the ingredients in your favorite junk food—see anything there you might want to avoid?

Now, what happens if we decide to get back in touch with what we eat, and why we’re eating it? What if we’re on the lookout for what all those food signals really mean? Which of them are in our own best interests rather than adding to some fast food chain’s burger count? And while we’re at it, think what we could do for our collective health and well-being if along with becoming aware of the food signals we get, we all began to pay a little closer attention to the food signals we give others.

The food signals aren’t going to go away—the catch is learning to listen to them—and then paying attention to where they direct us. It’s not always where we want to, or should go. But, isn't that up to us?

Creating Change . . . Making it Happen

Change happens, and it often happens whether you want it to or not—and it’s not always for the best—but it can be. Change also happens when we make it happen. Yet, so many of us are too often afraid to create change because we are afraid to fail. So, if you’ve lost confidence in your inner ability to create change—think about the following questions. Then, answer them honestly.

1) Do you take your power or inspiration from external sources or from within yourself?  2) Do you read and look at ads and commercials and think to yourself, “This is what I need; this is what I have to do; this is how I should look; this is who I want to be?” This is important, because you know yourself better than anyone else, and you are the one who should be in charge of what you want to change—not an outside source who tells you what and how you should do or be. It takes some thought, and it takes some time, and it takes resolve, but the results stay with you because you are the one who is in charge. And, you are the only one who can make it happen.

  

We know repeated behaviors eventually turn into habits. And we know improving willpower long-term requires commitment (drawing on our inner ability). We also know as individuals we never stay the same. But, to create change, we have to expand our zones of comfort. We have to develop those behaviors that turn into habits, and then we have to change them—it’s the habit of changing habits that builds inner confidence (that little, or loud voice that says, “Yes you can do this”).

Now, let’s take change and our ability to change, and apply it to our personal health and wellness (because after all, that’s what this Blog is about).

Mindful choices made each day will result in steady changes leading to sustainable health and wellness. The effect is cumulative—and what we do—or don’t do, determines our success and our overall wellness and well-being. Imagine thinking of laying a foundation of wellness as you would think of breathing—in other words, not as a one-time choice but an automatic response and action. So, take a deep breath. Your values—and actions—speak to what is most important to you in life. Where is your focus? We suggest that rather than focusing on all the reasons for why not, or why you will fail, focus instead on all the reasons you will succeed. Keep in mind those things you do well and use those accomplishments to foster a sense of achievement.

Belief is the common element in all forms of achievement. When you believe in your ability to achieve, you are actually setting a goal, and your mind and actions take you where you need to go to reach that goal. When faced with a problem or situation you want to change, by creating change for yourself, you become the solution. The rewards are endless. That inner power can influence not only your health and wellness, but also those pieces in your life you might not even be aware you want or need to change.

The takeaway—What do you think would happen if you put yourself in charge when it comes down to looking at your ability to create change? Hmm  . . . You might just become your own lifeline to your health and wellness decisions and choices.

You Can’t Outrun Your Fork!

Huh? Here’s the thing. To lose a pound of weight each week through physical activity is pretty much the equivalent of running a marathon. Actually, the calories burned running those 26 miles don’t quite erase a pound, and that also means, not eating what you probably should eat to fuel those miles. It’s a conundrum. (What a great word!)

To be clear, I’m not at all saying physical activity doesn’t count. Where your health is concerned, it’s at the top of the list. But you can’t outrun your fork, and the calories you take in (and don’t take in) are what will ultimately determine how much weight you lose.

This is part of the challenge (and conundrum) people face when starting, or continuing on their weight loss journey, the idea that joining the gym and faithfully attending or running, or walking 5 miles a day will result in weight loss. It won’t, and the downside is, it often discourages physical activity when the scales don’t respond. We tend to give up. We feel we’ve failed, yet again. This is not good.  It’s not good on many levels—personal, societal, and yes, wellness and well-being.

Now, if we take physical activity out of the weight loss equation ... Your diet, the food you choose to eat on a daily basis, is responsible for about 80 percent of your weight (or weight loss) and consequent health. If your goal is to lose weight, the kitchen (and all the other places you find food)  is a better solution than the gym. But, and this is a really big but, for HEALTH, you need both.

It doesn’t seem fair, but then, so many things aren’t. Health, wellness and weight loss are not synonyms, but they are connected. What do you think?