Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and that means most of us will be eating more than we usually do- and undoubtedly, more than we need to! Loving your food will make a difference though. It’s true. How you feel about what you eat is as important as what you actually eat.
Technical Explanation: There are two types of digestion – cephalic digestion and GI digestion. One has to do with your head – what you think and believe about the food you’re eating. The other has to do with your body – how your body physically reacts to the food you’re eating.
Non-Technical Interpretation: If you’re happy and grateful about what you’re eating, you won’t get as fat! Good news, indeed!
A Harvard research study showed that when you surround your food with gratitude you actually absorb more nutrients. Perfect! If I’m grateful, I get more of the good stuff and less of the bad. (Kinda sounds like life, doesn’t it?)
1) First and foremost, give thanks for the food! Many people pray before they eat. Some people take a moment of silence. Whatever it is that your belief system supports, do it. In our family, we always held hands and chanted, “God is great. God is good. And we thank Him for our food. By His hands we all our fed. Give us Lord our daily bread.” Simple but powerful. And I thought it was just for Gods benefit, now I know it was better for me too!
2) Thank the preparer. This might be your spouse, your child, a world famous chef or a fast food worker, but thank the person that made that meal for you. If you can’t look them in the eye and thank them, then send them gratitude – direct from your heart to theirs. And if you made the meal, well bless your own heart too!
3) Thank the grower. It’s easy to forget that veggies come out of the ground and fruit grows on trees when the only time you see them is in a bin at the Piggly Wiggly! Remember to thank the person or persons who went to all that effort so you could poke a fork in it and munch out!
4) Acknowledge the life force given. I have to admit, I’m a huge carnivore. I tried to go Vegan. I only made it 4 days – then I ate two hot dogs at one sitting! I LOVE meat. I love fish and chicken and beef! And when I eat a ‘flesh food’ I send gratitude to the animal that gave its life on my behalf.
5) Thank your company. Whether you’re eating alone or with someone, give thanks for the companion you’re breaking bread with. And if you’re eating with yourself express gratitude to you! You deserve some love too!
This same study also found, that in addition to absorbing more nutrients when you expressed gratitude for your food, you also absorbed more fat if you experienced feelings of guilt!
Yeah, you read that right! If you felt guilty about the food you were eating, your body absorbed a higher percentage of fat! Now this doesn’t mean you decide to double up on gravy this Thanksgiving, and then follow up with two helpings of pecan pie and just shout out a big, “Thank you Lord!” It means if you decide you’re going to have a second helping, or a piece of pie (and whipped cream), enjoy it! Don’t beat yourself up. Enjoy the moment. Express your gratitude for it and HAVE NO GUILT ABOUT IT. (Then get off your butt and walk around the block. That won’t hurt you either!)
Make every meal, all year long, a meal of THANKS GIVING and you’ll not only be happier, but healthier and skinnier too!
Gobble, Gobble!