The Art of Mindful Eating: Learning to Enjoy Your Food and Your Life

With many of us tackling busy lifestyles, juggling home and work, and multitasking daily, sitting down for a mindful meal has become a rarity. With the vast majority of South Africans eating ‘on the go,’ it has become the norm to have a quick meal to return to the hustle and bustle of everyday life. 

Taking the time to question what happens when eating mindlessly is the beginning of understanding the importance of practising mindful eating. Mindless eating, or distracted eating, is often associated with weight gain, overeating, and anxiety.

But what is mindful eating, and how can it benefit you? Flora has put together some information on mindful eating and a few delicious recipes to start your ‘mindful eating journey.’

What Is Mindful Eating?

The art of mindful eating focuses on your eating experience, thoughts, feelings, and body-related sensations in connection with food. Mindful eating requires a heightened awareness and non-judgemental approach, with attention to your food preferences, internal and external physical cues concerning nutrition, and responses to those cues. Studies have shown that mindful eating can increase pleasure, psychological well-being, and body satisfaction. 

Making healthy food choices has become all the more difficult in the busyness of everyday life. Thankfully Flora has put together five ‘mindful eating’ recipes for you and your loved ones.

Five ‘Mindful Eating Recipes

1. The Pesto Pasta with Free Range Chicken, Courgette and Peppers recipe is packed with flavourful ingredients and stimulates the palate for a mindful dinner eating experience. This delicious meal is made with free-range chicken, whole wheat penne pasta, sun-dried tomatoes, chopped courgette, parsley, and Flora Regular. 
2. If you’re looking for a delicious side to add to your mindful eating experience, look no further than the Flora Cracked Potatoes recipe. This savoury side dish is made from baby potatoes, paprika and thyme, Atlantic sea salt, and Flora Gold. 
3. Talk about a mindful eating experience with enough texture and colour to satisfy any palate and appease the appetite. The Flora Chilli Lime Fish on a Bed of Rice recipe combines fresh vegetables, herbs, spices, and everything excellent. This delicious meal is made from the fish fillet, balsamic vinegar, freshly chopped fennel, mixed fresh vegetables, mixed herbs, and Flora Oil, to name a few. 
4. One of the requirements for mindful eating is paying attention to what we put into our bodies. The Butternut Burgers with Feta and Tomato Chutney recipe is healthy and layered with different and delicious textures. Made from ingredients such as garlic, red onion, mixed seeds, cherry tomatoes, and Flora Oil, we want to arrive on time for this mindful eating dinner date!

Follow Flora on social media for more healthy dinner recipes, including healthy living tips and much more!