5 Steps to Intuitive and Mindful Eating

written by Susanne Merz (reading time 5 min.)

Step 1 

Be in contact with all your senses: touch, sight, hearing, smell and taste.

It’s all about learning to become more aware of your own sensibilities to fragrances, beauty, sounds, flavors and to how you feel. When you observe a toddler, you see someone who is open to the world with all their senses and who is full of wonder. We were never meant to be emotionally blunt but to be constant discoverers of the world's curiosities with all its beauty and magnificence, despite our age, prestige or traumatic experiences.

Step 2 

Recognize your kind of hunger.

In nutritional psychology there are different types of hunger that need to be met in a variety of ways. If not recognized, we try to compensate all our needs usually with comfort food and/or fail to stick to our self-imposed diet. We basically disqualify ourselves for success. 

• Eye-Hunger: hungry for beauty

• Nose-Hunger: hungry for fragrance

• Mouth-Hunger: hungry for crunch or texture

• Stomach-Hunger: hungry for right amount and kind of food

• Body Cells-Hunger: hungry for nutrients, liquids, vitamins, minerals and secondary plant metabolites (like color, smell, flavor, etc.)

• Spirit-Hunger: hungry for connection with God

• Mind-Hunger: hungry for a change of information and peaceful surroundings

• Heart-Hunger: hungry for intimacy

• Soul-Hunger: hungry for emotions often attached to positive food experiences in the past 

Step 3

Reconcile with God, self and others.

Any kind of resentment, hate, disrespect, etc. towards God, yourself or another person will produce stress that leads to emotional eating and overrides all the other signals that the body is trying to send. It will keep you away from intuitive and mindful eating.

You can use the R formula to deal with an issue whenever something might surface: 

Recognize the issue.

Regret your own or someone else’s fault.

Repent before God (ask for forgiveness).

Receive forgiveness (and speak out forgiveness).

Rewrite the story with renewed relationships (Let God help you with that).

Step 4

Tune in and trust the signals that your body is sending. 

Signals like hunger and thirst or physical reactions like sneezing, yawning or skin rashes are obvious transmitters and difficult to ignore. However, there are quiet signals that long for some fine-tuning in order to be heard. By gaining the ability to tune in, you’ll be able to improve your health and sense of well-being.

Step 5

Heal while eating.

Eat food only when your body and/or your body cells signal hunger - imagine what you’d like to eat and try to make it happen. If it’s not possible right away, you can plan it for another time and stick to it - your body and/or soul seems to need it. It’s impressive how if we allow it, our body knows exactly what’s needed for a certain process.

The main reason we eat is for energy, body cell regeneration and the production of enzymes and hormones. What an amazing gift to be able to use all our senses to turn this basic necessity into a pleasant and flavorful mouth experience!

On that note, I wish a joyful discovery of new flavors and new ways to nourish all areas of your life!