Slow Down! Chew your Food!
In the book “ I Used To Have Cancer,” by James Templeton, James would talk about how much he would chew his food. James would chew his food 180 times per mouthful. He describes learning the macrobiotic lifestyle which includes the recommendation on chewing your food 50x or until its almost liquid.
James took it even farther to give his body the most benefit he could. He would even seek out quiet places to sit alone, chew his food slowly in private, and meditate with each bite. That practice, in turn, opened up another level of awareness. The coolest part was adding extra intention to his meals. After all, foods already carry specific properties and nutrients tailored to his health needs but, when he consumed nutrient-rich food for healing, those healing intentions were amplified with focused energy as well. Many people don’t understand this but, your thoughts while you eat help shape what you become. He used each meal as a meditation, savoring every flavor and imagining it entering his body to support and restore him. In response, his body aligned and benefited.
Could you Imagine chewing your food 50x per bite. I know most of us out there take massive bites then swallow within 5-10 chews. Maybe that. I am a people watcher. I watch a lot of people. Not to be weird or gross. Just fascinates me. I do not judge. I notice. I cannot even count on fingers and toes the amount of people I watch that bite off their food, then just swallow it. You wonder why your stomach hurts. You wonder why you have reflux. Your guts are not meant to breakdown whole foods. We have molars in our mouths to grind down food. We were molded in purpose. We were taught to forget and follow blindly and consume.
When we swallow our food, it should be almost liquid. When you chew thoroughly, your saliva begins to break it down and coat the particles, helping your body more effectively absorb nutrients. Your body’s’ intestinal track continues the break down as it goes on. The more your food is chewed and broken down; the easier of a time you will have afterwards. You will feel and notice a difference in your appetite as well. You will not eat as much. You will eat until full. So the next time you eat; pay attention to the amount of times you chew your food. See if you can get it to 20 as the first goal. Make the long term goal at 50x a bite. Take it a step at a time. You will actually notice a difference in your gut health.
If you want to take it a step further — like I always do to see how far I can push the benefit of what I do — I create my dish while quietly repeating the intention I want for the meal in my head. Focusing on nourishing and restorative energy and care for whoever consumes it. Then, while eating, I focus on what it’s doing for my body. Take my chia pudding. I love making different varieties to keep it fresh and enjoyable any time. As I eat my chia pudding, I think about the high-quality ingredients, The care and intention behind it, how it’s going to help me stay regular, and how it will fuel my body so I can move, work out, and keep shaping my body to be healthier and look the way I want and deserve. Every sunrise, after I eat my chia pudding I get up, do my sunrise routine, I check myself in the mirror. It keeps me slim, gives me protein, helps keep the bad bacteria balanced in my stomach.