Allie Atkinson
  • Home
  • Coaching
  • Cuddling
  • Connecting

Sea Change 2014 - Week 2: Mindful Eating

10/1/2014

1 Comment

 
Picture
Another habit that I am working on cultivating this month, along with drinking my litre of water in the morning, is mindful eating. In Sea Change, Leo suggests two minutes of Mindful Eating. In a bid to get healthier and release some excess weight on my body that is no longer serving me, John and I have started eating our meals with cake forks. I have a bit of a 'thing' for wee things and cake forks are one of the ultimate utensils in my mind. No only are they a tiny fork, a lot of them have a little built-in knife. Woot woot! (As it happens, I seem to love multi-purpose utensils. I also really like sporks, but that's a story for another day.) 

Soooo anyhow, back to mindful eating: each meal I sit with my food on a small plate or bowl with a little fork. I focus on each mouthful, savouring the taste, the smell, the sensations. I feel how the food sits with my body, whether I have any resistance to it. I feel when I am starting to feel full and I stop eating. 

A friend read that the ideal mouthful size for best chewing and digestion is about the size of a cherry. This is perfect with a cake fork, even if you load it up, it never exceeds this. Of course if I was shoveling food in with the wee fork I would still over-eat, but the mindfulness of purposefully eating each bite and tasting it has stopped me from doing this for the most part. If I am really hungry the first few mouthfuls can be a little rushed, but I am practising slowing down and being aware of this. 

Leo suggests mindful eating for one meal a day, but as I have already practised that, I have upped my goal to all food that I consume. It's really making a difference and I really want to continue with this and ensure it becomes a firm habit!
Picture
1 Comment

Sea Change 2014 - Week 1: Drinking Water

10/1/2014

1 Comment

 
Picture
So these two water bottles sit next to my bed. Each evening I fill them with filtered water and place them on my bedside table and every morning I drink both of them before I eat or drink anything else. 

WHY?

As I said here, I am participating in Leo Babauta's Sea Change programme. January 2014 is the month of Mindfulness. He encouraged us to start the year off with 2 mins of Mindful Sitting (basically the start of meditation). However he had an alternative for people who struggle with creating habits or keeping them going long enough for lasting change. He suggested choosing a 'easy' win to focus on for the month. I knew that the one thing that would make a big difference in my life was drinking a litre of water first thing in the morning, so I decided to focus on that.
A while ago I watched the Food Matters DVD. It really spoke to me! I had heard of David Wolfe before and I loved what he had to say and this part of the video captured my attention. I have been percolating on the concept of drinking a litre of water every morning for a while. I had done some research. I knew that it was something that I wanted to do. I had even tried it here and there. I just hadn't committed to turning it into a habit. As part of my vow to live more purposefully in 2014 and to follow along with Leo's Sea Change programme, I decided my first habit would be to drink this litre of water EVERY morning before I ate or drunk anything else. 

SO HOW AM I GOING?

I started on January 1st, 2014. This wasn't overly intentional. I had gone out the night before and had a few drinks, something I rarely do because my body doesn't process alcohol very well, and stayed out late. I woke up and drank a lot of water because I was super thirsty.
The next morning was harder and I didn't finish the entire litre before I had my coffee, but I did consume the entire litre and I am calling this a win. I signed up to the Sea Change programme on the 3rd and committed to continuing for January. The 3rd until the 10th I have drunk the entire litre before any food or other drinks. The first few days took a LONG time to drink. I felt full and uncomfortable. Now I drink it in 15-20 mins and it feels great. 

I had intended to just focus on this for the month and make it into a habit. I think I have finally committed however as I am managing it easily. Perhaps having John staying with me has made a difference? Maybe it's that I am motivated after deciding on my One Little Word – Purpose? I am not entirely sure. All I know for certain is, it feels right and I want to continue!
So instead of only focussing on building this habit during the month, I have decided to incorporate the second week Mindfulness habit of Mindful Eating as well. This adds a little complexity to the table as I am still continuing with the Week 1 habit, but I am bringing in the Week 2 habit as well. 

What habits are you purposefully cultivating in 2014?
Picture
1 Comment

    Allie Atkinson

    A recently engaged girl in her mid-thirties living and loving life as best she can. Passionate about health, art and personal development with a side order of getting organised. A business woman, a sexual authenticity coach and a mixed-media artist. 
    ​Welcome.

    Archives

    October 2015
    August 2015
    June 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    June 2014
    January 2014
    June 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013

    Categories

    All
    2014
    2015
    Authentic Allie
    Authentic Allie
    Books
    Career
    Co Dependancy
    Co-dependancy
    Connection
    Crazy Monday Kit
    Food
    Friendships
    Goals
    Habit
    Habits
    Health
    Intention
    Layout
    Leo Babauta
    Levi
    Mamahood
    Mindful Eating
    New Year
    OLW
    One Little Word
    Purpose 2014 OLW
    Relationship
    Routine
    SC14
    Scrapbooking
    Sea Change
    Soul Connection
    Water

    RSS Feed


Allie Atkinson 
+6427 2700 770 
  • Home
  • Coaching
  • Cuddling
  • Connecting