Purim is almost upon us, and with it comes so many wonderful ways of celebrating, with food a central focus of the many mitzvos of the day. All day, beautiful mishloach manos packages filled with food, some healthy and some not so healthy, are delivered from house to house. Often the highlight of the day is the huge Purim seuda, that festive meal complete with many courses. And the day itself is so busy, whether going to the megillah twice during the holiday, delivering mishloach manos, delivering tzedakah, or cooking for the seuda, that it’s very easy to go into a “mindless” mode, eating all day long without even realizing what, when, or how much is being consumed.
Mindfulness is a powerful way to bring balance into every aspect of how we eat. It cultivates both inner wisdom — awareness of how our body and mind are reacting — and outer wisdom — making wiser use of nutritional information to satisfy our needs and preferences.
Here is a mindful-eating technique to use during Purim. Stop for a moment as you gaze at the mound of mishloach manos you have collected throughout Purim day. In the past, you may have started at one end of the mound and stopped only when you reached the other side, sampling all of the goodies along the way.
Here is where inner wisdom comes in. Check in with your body first. Here’s how: Stop and bring your awareness to your breath. Slow down by taking two or three deeper breaths. Close your eyes, if you so choose. Then ask yourself these questions: Am I physically hungry? How hungry am I, or am I simply stressed and overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of tasks to accomplish today?
Choose what you eat from the mishloach manos you’ve received wisely. What is really calling you, and what would be the most satisfying? Are you looking for something chocolate, like that giant Hershey bar with almonds, or something more crunchy and salty like that bag of Kettle chips? Give some thought to this, because you’ll be more satisfied and less likely to eat more if you don’t just grab the first thing in front of you.
Next, use outer wisdom to consider how much to eat. Figure out what would be a reasonable portion, using a yardstick of what may be about 100 calories. Combine this with inner wisdom and really savor what you chose, eating it slowly and without doing anything else. Pay attention to the actual enjoyment of the food, to the pleasure signals your mouth and taste buds are sending you. You’ll be surprised at how satisfied you can get from a smaller amount of food, both because you’re fully paying attention and because you’re giving yourself permission to enjoy it.
Slowing down is one of the best ways to get the mind and body to communicate. The brain doesn’t immediately register that the stomach is full. This process take approximately 20 minutes, which is why we often unconsciously overeat. But if you slow down as you eat, you give your body a chance to catch up to the brain and actually hear the signals to eat a reasonable amount. One of the simplest ways to do this is to actually sit down to eat, ideally at a table, and not just hover over that basket of goodies.
Do you know your body’s personal hunger signals? Are you responding to an emotional desire or your body’s needs? Often we listen first to our minds and emotions, but we might discover more wisdom by tuning into our bodies first. True mindful eating means actually listening to our body’s signals for hunger. Is your stomach growling, is your energy low, are you feeling a little lightheaded?
As we practice choosing healthier foods and a greater variety of foods, we’re less inclined to binge on comfort foods and more inclined to enjoy healthy foods.
Finally, on Purim we’re inclined to multitask, with so much to do on that one day, and eating while we multitask is a perfect recipe for not being able to listen to our body’s needs and wants. When we’re distracted, doing all the things that need to get done to fulfill the mitzvos of the day, it becomes so much harder to listen to our body’s signals about food and other needs. Try to sit still and just eat, with no distractions, and see how that feels.
You can also ask yourself, “Do we really need all this nosh in the house a month before Pesach?” A wonderful lesson to role model for our children is to pack up some of the food and to take it to a shelter. You can allow your children to pick three or four of their favorite treats beforehand, mindfully of course, and then pack up the rest in a beautiful basket to regift.
As you celebrate this Purim, put a different twist on it. Decide to go through the holiday mindfully, leaving the mindlessness for another time – or maybe not.
Wishing you a happy, mindful Purim.
Adriane Kozlovsky is a Licensed Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, educator, writer, and researcher in private practice, working with individuals, groups, corporations, and nonprofits for the past 25+ years. She is also a certified yoga instructor and teaches private beginner yoga classes. For any questions, please call 410-870-LIFE (8433), visit www.ChaiLifeNutritionForU.com, or email akozlovsky@gmail.com.
