Mindful Eating...Am I really hungry??
Experts say "think away the weight" trick REALLY works
According to research conducted at North Carolina State University simply paying closer attention to eating--a process researchers call "mindfulness"--can help us beat the battle of the bulge. The study, presented at this year's European Congress on Obesity in Portugal found that making an effort to focus on eating, without distractions, helped dieters shed significantly more weight.
Mindful eaters lost 583% more weight! For the randomized controlled trial 80 volunteers were divided into an intervention group--those who received the mindfulness training--and a wait list control group. Those in the intervention group received training on mindful eating from a live instructor at the same time every week by computer or smart phone.
The volunteers were taught...
To pay close attention to their feelings of hunger and fullness
To plan out meals and snacks
To make eating a singular activity without distractions such as reading or TV
To pay special attention to how food tastes (including indulging in one or two bites of higher calorie foods and savoring the flavors)
At the end of the 15 week weight-management program the volunteers who had learned how to mindfully eat had lost significantly more weight. In fact, the mindful eating folks lost 4.2 pounds compared to just 0.7 in the control group, a difference of well over 500% more.
