Chewing 101

In this exercise, we'll walk through how it feels to really chew your food thoroughly. And do this exercise the next time you're ready for a snack. Choose a small snack that you enjoy, and sit down at the table with it. While it may seem obvious, chewing is usually easier when we are not standing or walking around. Pause this exercise as you gather your snack, and begin playing again when you're seated with the snack in front of you. Now, let's take a few deep breaths. In order to help you feel the difference between chewing a little and chewing a lot, let's take your first bite of the food quickly and swallow it after only chewing once or twice. Go ahead and do this now. Now, check in to see how much you were able to notice about the taste, how much saliva is in the mouth, how your stomach feels after gulping down that bite. It probably feels familiar, but not very satisfying. Let's take your next bite. With this bite, chew at least twice as long as you normally do, even if it feels unusual at first. Pay attention to the multitude of sensations as you chew. Notice the variety of flavors your taste buds register and where this happens across your tongue, and in your mouth. Notice how your tongue gets involved in the process by moving the food around your mouth. Notice how you're breathing as you chew. And whether you're enjoying what you're eating. Go ahead and swallow that bite. Finally, take one more bite and chew as you normally would. How does that feel? Having taken the two previous bites, what do you notice about how you normally chew? Do you only chew a few times, or really, really thoroughly? And does it feel good to chew the way you do, or would it feel better to adjust it somehow? As we learn to slow down and chew thoroughly, we'll not only improve our satisfaction with our food, but also improve our body's ability to digest it too. We look forward to seeing you in the next lesson....