Learning to Listen to Your Body

It’s common advice now to “listen” to your body – to tune in to its signals and respond accordingly. However, I’m reminded by the painfully transparent blog posts that I’ve seen this week for the upcoming Eating Disorders Awareness Week (Feb 26 – March 4) that those signals are not clear to all.

Even for people without eating disorders, the wires can get crossed or the messages can be misinterpreted. Hunger can get ignored, or pain can be eaten. Plus, habits and ideologies can get in the way of doing what really does feel best.

I have so many examples from my own life of having my wires crossed. I “love” chocolate (I really, really do), but I now only love eating it in certain situations. When I was an elementary teacher, holidays always brought boatloads of gifts from the students, and most of the gifts were some kind of dessert – either a tasteful box of chocolates or a thoughtful homemade treat. Even though I truly do love chocolate, I did not love how I felt after over-indulging in these sweet gifts. Once the first wrapper opened, there was no end in sight!

Just to clarify – it’s not that chocolate makes me overeat – it’s that having an almost-unlimited supply of chocolate by myself creates a situation in which overeating is basically inevitable.

But I’m not a victim. After a holiday or two of this repeated pattern, I knew what to do. I just didn’t open or keep the gifts. It may sound hard-hearted, but I would warmly and profusely thank the students, accept their gift, allow the gifts to pile up (un-opened) in my classroom, and later re-gift my goodies to the custodial staff or – sorry – tactfully throw it all away off-campus.

Does that sound crazy? Maybe to some people. But to me, listening to my body meant that I knew that I could not mindfully enjoy “a chocolate” with 20 boxes of chocolate alone in my classroom…. and I took action! Small shifts like this can prevent shame/guilt/struggle around food and fitness, and it’s why I encourage my clients to  listen closely not just to their physical signals around food and exercise, but also to how they interact with and feel about food and exercise. It is extremely individual.

In the spirit of raising awareness about how to develop healthy relationships with food and exercise, I wanted to create a list of reflective questions that could help us all become a little more mindful about our food and exercise decisions. “Mindfulness” doesn’t mean sitting silently and meditating through each meal – it simply means staying aware of sensations, feelings, and thoughts, especially after the experience. Some of the questions are purely physical, but some of them are more experiential or emotional. I encourage you to read through the list, and to keep it in mind over the next few days as you eat and exercise. You may be surprised at what turns up!

Mindful Questions to Ask Yourself

Which foods (and exercises) make you feel sleepy afterwards? 

Which foods (and exercises) make you feel energized and alert? 

Which foods make your stomach upset? 

Which foods make you bloated or constipated?

Which foods keep you regular? 

Which foods (or environments) make you want to over-eat?

Which foods (that you enjoy) can you easily stop eating at 80% fullness? 

Which exercises makes you feel run-down?

Which foods and exercises make you feel relaxed? 

Which foods and exercises make you feel happy? 

Which foods and exercises make you feel wired (beyond alert)? 

Which foods and exercises feel the best close to bedtime? 

Which exercises consistently hurt? 

Which foods, behaviors, or exercises leave you hungry and snacky at night? 

Which foods and exercises feel good in the morning? 

How do you know when you need a rest – or easy – day? 

You may find that something that you thought was supposed to be good for you, like quinoa, actually upsets your stomach. Or, you may discover that squeezing in the evening HIIT workout makes you wired and snacky and keeps you up too late.

On the other hand, you may realize that there are certain situations in which you simply can’t not overeat. Or, maybe you don’t sleep so great after that nightly glass of wine. By being aware, mindful, and observant, you have the tools at your disposal to make decisions about how you want to structure your day and social life so that you can enjoy feeling great all day, and also sleep well at night.

Using Mindfulness to Improve Your Health

Mindfulness is more than bringing your full senses to each experience and really enjoying your food (as mindful eating is often portrayed) – it’s also about the bigger picture. It’s about being mindful both in the moment of eating but also in the moment of stopping eating, and in the hours after. It’s about being aware of the body during exercise, and how you feel before, during, and after. It’s about being able to take stock of your week in review, make decisions, and plan for the following week.

Mindfulness should help you learn what foods best agree with you and you can eat in moderation, which foods should be reserved for special occasions, and which foods/situations may be off-limits. Awareness should allow you to observe which exercises make you feel better than before, fit your schedule, don’t injure you, and allow you to sleep well at night.

Health, fitness, exercise, and nutrition are all meant to improve the quality of your life. By actively tuning in and listening to our bodies’ signals, we can make important changes and create a lifestyle that allows us to shift healthy decisions – most importantly – into long-lasting habits that create both peace of mind and fitness… for life! 

If you would like more information about National Eating Disorders Awareness Week, visit the National Eating Disorders Association website!