What Is Mindfulness?

“Mindfulness is the aware, balanced acceptance of the present experience. It isn’t more complicated than that. It is opening to or receiving the present moment, pleasant or unpleasant, just as it is, without either clinging to it or rejecting it.”

–Sylvia Boorstein

Jon Kabat-Zinn, the founder of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), emphasizes, in addition to nonjudgmentally being in the present, the following principles he associates with being mindful:¹

• Cultivating patience within ourselves
• Experiencing life with a beginner’s mind
• Developing trust in ourselves and our bodies
• Letting things unfold without an agenda
• Letting go of attachments
• Showing gratitude for the present moment and avoiding taking life for granted²

What Is Mindful Eating?

Eating mindfully is one way to bring mindful awareness into your everyday life. Rather than focusing entirely on WHAT you eat, mindful eating helps you gain insight into HOW and WHY you eat.³ It is not about judging your food choices but instead focusing on the HERE and NOW of eating. By paying close attention to taste, textures, and sensations, you can savor each bite and get more enjoyment out of your food.

Most of us are not as aware of our food as we could be while we are eating. Here is an example of what happens for many of us when our eating patterns are not mindful: