This article is written by Lacy Ngo, a registered dietitian and top expert in faith-based mindfulness and nutrition. It has been updated and is adapted from my book, 18 Weeks to a Healthier, Happier, Most Purposeful Life
The Weight Obsessing Began
It all started in middle school when I was teased for being heavier. Fueled by embarrassment, I lost weight, but in the process became weight obsessed. Since weight was so important to me, I thought I needed to help others lose weight too. So I decided to get my degree in human nutrition. I completed, both, my undergrad and masters in human nutrition, and learned that food can do amazing things for us and that health wasn’t all about weight loss. Yet I was still weight obsessed. Now with a degree in tow, I knew all the things food could do for us AND the best evidence-based weight loss practices. As you can guess, I focused on the latter.
Mindful Eating Changed my Focus
Later I started reading about an up and coming technique in our field called mindful eating. This technique intrigued me. You mean I don’t have to follow all of these food rule or keep up the willpower? I liked what I read about mindful eating so I decided to get some of my required continuing education units by taking a “Mindful Eating for Dietitians” course.
What’s Not to Love!
I loved everything about mindful eating! No willpower needed, and no food was off limits. I could just enjoy my food. Yet, mindful eating is about much more than just slowly eating whatever you want. Mindful eating is about pausing before each bite AND about listening to your body and pausing before making food choices. Mindful eating is about learning what the science says about food and about noticing how your body reacts when you apply that science to your eating. You know, it’s about focusing on the other things food can do for you other than just weight.
Yes, we can eat that cheeseburger and fries, but we can also notice that if we eat a cheeseburger and fries two days in a row, our body doesn’t feel as good. Mindful eating is also about making mindful choices; therefore, knowing what the science says happens to our bodies if I eat a cheeseburger and fries everyday is important as well. In other words, because of mindful eating and my nutrition knowledge, I am going to mindfully choose to eat foods that help my body feel good on most days.
Adding Faith to Mindful Eating
Remember one of the biggest components of mindful eating is the pause, and since I am a person of faith, I naturally incorporated my faith into my mindful eating pause. When I paused and looked at my food, I automatically began to thank God for the miracle of food. During the pause, I began to realize how big of a miracle food was. Our body can’t thrive on its own; it needs certain things to thrive. And miraculously we can get these things that help our mood, brain, and energy levels straight out of the ground!
Mindful Eating Changed my Health
I never could have imagined how much faith-based mindfulness would impact my health, but, wow, did it ever!
My mood improved, my asthma and seasonal allergies improved (Did you know that research shows that nutrition can even impact seasonal allergies?), and ironically I even lost weight even though I was no longer focusing on weight.
Mindful Eating Evolved to Mindful Living
But something else happened as well. I noticed how much pausing before eating helped me nutritionally, and I started to think, “hmm, what if I incorporated aspects of faith-based mindful eating into my whole life?” So I decided to start pausing and praying before entering any new environment. I paused and prayed before going into my children’s school, or the grocery store, or the bank.. and when I entered that bank, I focused on those surroundings and the people in the bank. These people in this bank are the people God put into my life in this very moment, and I want to be present with them and love them. You know, the Bible encourages us to continuously pray, and I felt like pausing and praying before entering a new place, was a way for me to continuously pray.
Mindful Living Lead to More Goose-Bump Moments
The story doesn’t end there…
When I started adding this mindful prayer before entering any new place, something surprisingly wonderful happened. I started noticing God more and experiencing amazing goose-bump moments all over the place (all because I was taking the time to notice God and God’s presence)! I began to have all of these “gives-you-chills” stories share. And I did! Every time I would share a story, people reacted in awe, often times showing me the chills on their arms.
How to Add Faith-based Mindful Living and Mindful Eating into Your Life
You can find out more about how to add faith-based Mindful Living and Mindful Eating into your life in the book, 18 Weeks to a Healthier, Happier, More Purposeful Life.
What is included in 18 Weeks to a Healthier, Happier, More Purposeful Life
- The 18-week journey: This journey will provide small, simple challenges each week to produce the biggest impact on your health, mood, and life.
- The Mindful Journal: This journal helps you keep a record of what is really important when it comes to wellness and weight loss.
- Easy meal plan ideas that can be tweaked to your preferences and lifestyle.
- The exact steps that, based on scientific research, produce the most dramatic health and weight loss success.
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Faith-Based Mindfulness and Nutrition: The Basics
3 Simple Steps to Faith-Based Mindful Eating
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6 Ways to Incorporate Faith-Based Mindfulness into Your Life