By Chef K.T. Murphy
Meditation Improving Your Diet Choices:
While some people meditate in a bid to achieve a higher state of consciousness or to obtain a more peaceful life, there are other benefits to meditation. Thanks to modern science, we know that meditation can relieve the symptoms of a variety of conditions. For instance, it can provide relief from bloating, cramps, and other digestive issues.
• Meditation has a direct effect on the symptoms of stress and anxiety, two big factors in your digestive process and in the choices, you make about food. When you’re highly stressed, you are more inclined to opt for the high in fat, sugary food options. When you are in a state of stress, everything takes the backseat and your sole focus is on it and giving your body things that aim to relieve the feeling, even if it’s only temporary. Meditation relieves stress allowing you to make healthy choices and informed decisions.
• Meditation is an effective way to get in touch with your whole body, thus understand its needs and wants better.
• Meditation doesn’t just improve digestion by relieving anxiety and stress; it has a direct effect on it, too. Any type of practice that involves deep breathing and concentration will offer substantial health benefits. It creates an increase in oxygen levels in the circulatory system and blood, which plays a major role in the digestive tract. Not only can it create immediate relief, but also it improves over sessions so it’s an effective long-term solution.
• Meditation assists in altering the mindset that results in overeating and poor dietary decisions. Many people who have an unhealthy relationship with food also suffer from digestive issues. Therefore, meditation can be an effective course of treatment on a number of fronts. You may wonder what leads people to binge eat and the answer is generally rooted in stress and anxiety. These are caused by events in life or in emotional conflicts that are unresolved, and everyone has them. Some people turn to food to suppress those unpleasant emotions. This has a direct effect on the digestive system, so meditating can help you get to the root of the issues and make real changes to your overall health and well-being. There are also effective ways to deepen your meditation, and these tips serve a dual purpose. They are the right dietary decisions for your health, so the two facilitate each other. Consider this:
• Go vegetarian. Many serious mediators choose vegetarianism; it’s a healthy way of living and contributes to deeper meditation sessions. If you aren’t ready to commit to a meat-free life, try to enjoy a few days a week without meat on your plate.
• Increase your fiber intake by enjoying plenty of green vegetables and fresh fruit. This will aid your digestion.
• Water is essential so you must ensure that you are drinking plenty of it every day. Aim for around two liters of water daily and replace sugary beverages with water or herbal teas (whether iced or hot).
• Don’t be tempted to overeat. If you eat too much it will make meditation more difficult, as one of the key aspects of it is to create a comfortable space to relax. It’s difficult to relax when you’re so full you’re in pain or feel nauseous.
• Consider meetings an Ayurvedic doctor to discuss the right type of diet for your body constitution. This is known as Prakriti (http://ayurvedadosha.org/doshas/ayurveda-dosha-test) and there are three body types, based on a story of three very different friends. It’s believed that the ideal is the Sattvic diet; however, a consultation will allow you to adopt the right diet to improve your meditation and your overall diet choices.
Food for thought, My moto “Good Food Makes For Better Decisions”
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