Don’t Just Be Thankful, Be Mindful This Thanksgiving

Did you know that turkey wasn’t served at the first Thanksgiving? However, early celebrators did have cranberry and pumpkin on the menu!

While everyone celebrates this holiday a little differently, the one thing everyone has in common is that there is always something delicious on the table. As you gather with friends and family over food to give thanks, remember to practice mindfulness and gratitude.

4 Tips for Practicing Mindful Eating

With delicious smelling turkey and freshly baked pumpkin pies, Thanksgiving comes with a lot of food. You probably eat more this holiday than you do any other day of the year. It’s easy to eat past comfortable fullness or into a food coma this time of year, so I have 4 tipsfor mindful eating during the holiday season.

1) Reflect, take stock. Before sitting down to eat, ask yourself a few questions. How do you feel right now? Are you hungry? How much food do you think you will need to feel satisfied? After answering some of these questions, you can move forward based on your answers. You can ask yourself these questions during the meal too as a way to stay in tuned with what your body wants or needs.

2) Pace yourself. At the holiday dinner table, there’s so much food it can often be overwhelming. Take your time eating, eat at a pace where you can stay in tune with your body’s hunger cues and stop when you feel full. Engage in conversation with those around you and the rest will fall into place.

3) Put down your fork. Between each bite during your meal, place your fork down on the table. Try not topick up the fork to prepare your next bite until you’ve chewed and swallowed the food you have in your mouth. This gives you the time and space you may need to fully engage in the meal.

4) Savor the flavor. Try chewing your food slowly, savoring each bite. Take this time to notice the flavors and different textures of your foods. Chewing longer helps to slow down your eating pace so your body has time to recognize when it’s had enough for one sitting.

Thanksgiving Menu Ideas

Have you given thought to what you will serve at your Thanksgiving feast (besides the Turkey)?

Are you looking to spice up the meal or just a new recipe to love?

2 Resources for You:

Enjoying Food Peace: Recipes and Intuitive Eating Wisdom to Nourish Your Body and Mind (my most recent cookbook, which you can purchase here if you haven’t already)
BRGHealth.com – Healthy Recipes

Here are some of my favorite recipes and where you can find them:

Starters:

Roasted Chestnut Soup (Enjoying Food Peace, page 14)
Roasted Apple and Butternut Squash Salad with Olives (linked here)

Sides:

Very Moist Stuffing (Enjoying Food Peace, page 73)
Whole Grain Stuffing with Apples (linked here)
Ginger Caraway Carrots (Enjoying Food Peace, page 92)
Spinach Stuffed Twice Baked Potato (linked here)
Asparagus with Mustard Vinaigrette (linked here)

Desserts:

Pumpkin Pie (linked here)
Cherry Apple Crumble (Enjoying Food Peace, page 289)

Thanksgiving is meant to be a nice, pleasant day spent with loved ones. Test out some of these mindful practices and delicious recipes and enjoy this special day! I’m confident you’ll have a lovely holiday and enjoy this joyous time of year!

Your Turn to Take Action:How will you be mindful this Thanksgiving? Let me know in the comments below!