Adjusting to a new eating routine can be challenging, especially when that adjustment comes after decades of one’s previous habits. But challenging doesn’t mean impossible, and people of all ages can benefit from incorporating mindful eating into their daily routines.
To make this adjustment more manageable for your members, we’ve compiled a list of helpful books, podcasts, and blog articles about mindful eating. These resources cover everything from step-by-step instructions for mindful eating to strategies for building a better relationship with food.
How to Practice Mindful Eating
Johns Hopkins Patient Guide to Diabetes
This guide to mindful eating introduces the concept through a question-and-answer format. In presenting the information this way, readers are guided to ask themselves important questions they might not have thought about previously, such as noting how quickly they tend to finish meals and if they eat while distracted.
Tip Sheet for Eating Mindfully
Johns Hopkins
This infographic is an excellent accompaniment to the previous article, as it illustrates how to practice mindful eating in seven steps. Each illustrated step includes a brief paragraph explaining how to complete it.
Mindful Eating Meditations
The Center for Mindful Eating
Mindful eating is a mindfulness practice, which is a type of meditation. This compilation of mindful eating meditations includes multiple meditations designed to guide listeners through eating. They range in length from just a few minutes to close to 15 minutes, giving listeners a variety of meditations to fit their needs.
Mindful Eating
Harvard School of Public Health
This comprehensive guide provides a detailed overview of mindful eating. It includes an explanation of how to practice mindful eating and its purpose, a numbered list of mindful eating practices, and a section explaining the potential pitfalls of mindful eating. It also links to peer-reviewed research conducted on mindful eating.
Tips for Mindful Snacking
Mayo Clinic
While mindful eating guides often focus on meals, this article focuses on mindful snacking. This short piece discusses three strategies readers can use as part of their mindful eating plan to improve their likelihood of successfully sticking with it.
Mayo Clinic Minute Video
Mayo Clinic
Many people eat while watching television or engaging in similar activities, like scrolling on their phones. This short video, along with its accompanying article, explains how eating while distracted can cause an individual to consume more calories than they need.
Mindful Eating Exercises
Cleveland Clinic
This article discusses the harms of mindless eating and the environmental triggers that cause it. After explaining how to identify common triggers, the post lists helpful mindful eating strategies and three easy exercises the reader can do to eat more mindfully.
Mindful Eating: Strategies for a Better Relationship with Food with Dr. Susan Albers
Cleveland Clinic
This episode of The Health Essentials podcast features Dr. Susan Albers, a clinical psychologist and mindful eating expert. In it, Dr. Albers sits down with host Deanna Pogorelc to explain the psychology behind mindful eating. She explains how it’s a practice, not a diet, and how it can work for everybody.
Eating Mindfully Books
Susan Albers, PsyD
In addition to appearing on The Health Essentials podcast, Dr. Albers has published multiple books on mindful eating. Readers can purchase her books through her website, eatingmindfully.com (more on that below) and learn more about her work. For readers just starting their mindful eating practice, we recommend the following titles:
1. Eating Mindfully: How to End Mindless Eating and Enjoy a Balanced Relationship with Food
Eatingmindfully.com
Susan Albers, PsyD
Eatingmindfully.com is an all-in-one spot where readers can see Dr. Albers’ media appearances, read her blog, learn more about the emotional aspects of eating disorders, weight loss, and body image, and download free mindful eating-related programs.
The Mindful Eating Workbook: Simple Mindfulness Practices to Nurture a Healthy Relationship with Food
Vincci Tsui, RD
This workbook is for readers who want to keep an ongoing record of their mindful eating practice. It introduces people to mindful eating theory and works through real-life exercises they can use to stay consistent with mindful eating.
Eat What You Love, Love What You Eat: A Mindful Eating Program to Break Your Eat-Repent-Repeat Cycle
Michelle May, MD
Another workbook for individuals interested in mindful eating, “Eat What You Love, Love What You Eat,” is a program designed to break readers out of harmful guilt cycles surrounding food. Readers can download the first chapter for free to see if this system is an appropriate choice for them.
Practicing mindful eating is a key part of committing to any healthy eating plan, but it’s only one part. Our medically tailored meals provide high-quality nutrition for people with all lifestyles and dietary needs. Are you interested in bringing our meal benefit to your members? Contact LiveWell with Traditions today to learn more about our medically tailored meal options.
