Mindful Eating and Inner Healing

Many of us have a low tolerance for discomfort in our lives and a high affliction for distraction. We are constantly being pulled away from ourselves like a flock of birds suddenly startled into flight, their once grounded harmonious formation dispersing chaotically across the sky. Our own minds and authentic selves can really feel scattered and fragmented amidst the distractions of daily life. We often feel lost and seeking direction like those startled birds, yet we yearn for a sense of alignment, connection, and wholeness. Today, I'm sharing another beautiful grounding practice, which is actually part 3 of this three-part grounding series. It's called connecting scattered parts. As we strive to connect our scattered parts we embark on this transformative journey of inner exploration Seeking to reclaim our focus we center ourselves and find solace in the present moment. So grab your headphones and find a comfortable seated or lying posture. Somewhere where you feel at ease and somewhere that you won't be distracted for a little while. This guided practice will start as soon as the podcast intro finishes. Enjoy my friends. Begin by finding a relaxed seated position. Allowing your body to soften by unclenching the jaw. Gliding the shoulders down, allowing them to nestle comfortably into the frame of the body, and opening up any rigidness or contracted muscles around the belly. Whenever you feel ready, close down the eyes gently, turning towards the rhythm of your breath as it flows in and out of the body like a beautiful tide. Feel free to adjust the rhythm and the pace of your breath to evoke a profound, comforting sense of connection with yourself and your physical body. As I count from 5 to 1, start to envision yourself stepping away from the noise and the chaos of the outside world and entering into a serene sanctuary within. Firstly, picture yourself lying in a tranquil garden space or secluded forest clearing. Somewhere, anywhere, where you can find a sense of solace and connection with your inner self, and also the earth around and beneath you. Feel yourself becoming more and more immersed in this peaceful environment, letting go of external distractions and embracing the tranquility of your inner sanctuary. As I count from 5 to 1, this gentle retraction from the outer world gets deeper and deeper. 5. Continuing to connect with your chosen comfortable place in nature. Comfortable place in nature. 4. Start to sense or visualize yourself lying down, feeling like your body is being deeply immersed and connected to the earth or the surface below you. 3, on the next out breath completely let go of all the happenings of the outer world. Allow your image or your visualization to become brighter and brighter. 2. Sink further and further into your body, allowing the parts of your body connected to the surface below to become heavy and grounded. 1. Grounded. 1. Invite a warm comforting embrace to delicately envelop you like the softest, most luxurious blanket imaginable, cocooning you in a serene sense of security. As you lay grounded and comfortable in your scene, start to visualize the sun, slowly but gracefully descending on the horizon. It casts a golden glow of warmth gently across your face and your body. Feel this warmth. Feel the comfort of this warmth. And allow yourself just to let go sinking deeper and deeper into this warming comfort. As the body lies connected and grounded to the earth. Start to imagine yourself looking up at the brazen depths of darkness of the vast night sky. Focusing in on the glimmering force of the shimmering light of the stars above. Observe their scattered arrangement. Light bursting between the deep indigo expanse of the night. And become aware of how some flicker, brighter and lighter than others. Each of these stars in the night sky represents a different aspect of yourself scattered across the expanse of the lunar landscape of the cosmos. Just as the stars in the night sky are scattered across the heavens, So too are the various thoughts, emotions and aspects of yourself scattered within and around your being. Some parts of ourselves have been splintered away into the depths many, many years ago, and some more recent. Yet this is the time right now to bring yourself back to a sense of wholeness, alignment and oneness. Alignment and oneness. Although the stars are physically thousands of kilometres away from your current grounded aspect, In your visualisation you are able to reach up and connect with their light, drawing them closer and closer to you whenever you like. So take a moment now to draw your attention towards 1 particular star. Notice what brings your awareness to it. Is it brighter than the others? Is it the iridescent colours? Is it the iridescent colors? Or is it just a feeling that's drawing you towards this 1 particular star? If this star were to symbolize a fragmented aspect of yourself, what would it be? This aspect could be something that you've lost or has diminished within you. Let your intuition be the guide here as you explore the depths of your consciousness. The answer could manifest as a flicker of energy you've given away, a dormant trait waiting to resurface, or even a long forgotten dream or goal that you still desire that's simply become clouded by the distractions, worry or happenings of life. Whatever it may be, simply trust that it holds significance for you and your journey of self-discovery and grounding within. Even if nothing surfaces in the moment, trust that this star that you have chosen represents a piece of you. Represents a piece of you. Now as you allow this realisation to surface, reach out to this star. Reach out like you're picking an apple off a tree. And start to gently guide the light of this star towards the depths of your being, towards any part of your body, it could be your heart, it could be your belly, it could be your mind, wherever you feel guided to draw this light, this fragmented aspect of yourself back towards your being. As it draws closer and closer, let it illuminate the shadows within, shedding light on your own path towards integration and wholeness. Once this light, this star has reconnected with the whole, you might take a moment to scan back over the sky and notice another star, another piece of yourself that has splintered or scattered away, reaching out and lovingly drawing it back to your heart, back to your wholeness. Once this star has been gathered, you might like to cast your awareness across the sky again. And this time choose as many stars as you wish. As many stars that draw your awareness and your attention to them so you can gently bring them back to you. Bringing them back and reuniting them with yourself, with your wholeness, with your own magnificence. With each welcoming back, feel a sense of completeness and unity wash over you as you integrate all aspects of your being, grounding yourself into wholeness with your true self. Take a moment to reacquaint yourself in this brilliance of the newfound wholeness, knowing that you are a luminous constellation of infinite potential yourself. Really start to notice any subtle shifts or transformations in your energy, the rhythm of your breath or sensations in your body, or it could even be in the emotions that are present or arise within you. Allowing yourself to really linger in this state of heightened awareness, savoring the sensations and insights that arise within you. With each guiding breath, deepen your connection to the present experience, anchoring yourself in the richness of the here and now. Now that you've welcomed back your scattered parts and opened up to any little subtle shifts within you, once this practice is over, I invite you to explore how this newfound grounded sense of wholeness influences your perceptions and interactions with the world around you, including your decisions and self-care actions. Start to embrace the infinite possibilities that unfold before you, knowing that you possess the inner strength and the resilience to navigate life's journey with grace and purpose. Just as each star contributes to the beauty of the night sky, so do every part of you. Your thoughts, your emotions, your experiences, they all contribute to the richness of who you are and life around you. Slowly starting to ground into the sensations of the breath. Knowing that you can come back to this beautiful scene, this guided experience, any time you wish, any time you feel you're pulled in many different directions, anytime you feel scattered or overwhelmed, just simply come back to this scene, gazing across the vast expanse of the night sky, and drawing 1 by 1 the scattered aspects of yourself slowly back into your being. But for now, whenever you feel ready, we slowly come back into sensation of the body connected to the earth below you. Now as I count from 5 to 1, slowly start to reconnect to the world around you, as well as staying grounded to the world within you. 54321... 2... 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... And Whenever you feel ready, you might like to stretch or wiggle your fingers and toes. Gently open your eyes, carrying with you this sense of alignment, wholeness and unity that you've cultivated within yourself today. And allow the benefits to wash in and through your whole entire being and your whole entire life. Revisit this practice often, even every day if you wish. I look forward to sharing with you

00:01 - 00:40 Speaker 1: Welcome to part 2 of the power of grounding. Today is a really special practice for you to bring together all of the information that I shared last week in part 1, Which was called the power of grounding and why it's crucial for mind-body connection What we'll be doing is I will share a quick recap now about what is grounding or you can go back and listen To part 1 if you missed out on that last week, there will be the show intro and then we're moving on to the beautiful grounding practice. I'll pop in the show 00:40 - 01:29 Speaker 1: notes below the time that the practice starts. So if you want to come back to this practice often, which I of course recommend you do, you can always just fast forward to the part where the grounding practice starts. Grounding is really being able to come into your body, feeling present in the body, and being able to clearly identify sensations going on inside the body. So having an interoceptive awareness and also sensations going on outside of the body. It really is this beautiful connection between mind and body and now there's so many reasons why we lose that 01:29 - 02:13 Speaker 1: connection which I went into in depth in our last episode, but they could be things like pain, generalized stress, or even trauma. Now the benefits of grounding, they really give us this beautiful foundation to navigate and balance our stress. And it allows us to be fully and completely aware of what's going on within. Our minds tend to lie to us often. I remember I was on the brink of burnout and people were saying, are you okay Larissa? And I'm like, yeah, I'm totally fine. I'm fine. Sometimes our minds like to lie to us and we lie 02:13 - 02:58 Speaker 1: to ourselves. But understanding this beautiful practice of grounding allows us to create deep, authentic connection with ourselves. Now, grounding when it comes to mindful eating is really important because we wanna start to navigate and understand the language of our body. In particular different cues and triggers to eat. Some cues and triggers to eat are because we're hungry but there's many cues and triggers to eat that don't involve hunger at all. And this is where the real magic happens when it comes to mindful eating. It's really starting to understand our behaviors and the sensations that happen internally 02:58 - 03:44 Speaker 1: and also externally that are some of our cues or triggers that drive us to eat or overeat certain foods. When we understand ourselves at an ever greater deeper level, then we have a platform to create lasting change instead of just getting wrapped up in the next fad diet thinking that that's the answer to all of our problems when we actually have a lot of internal and also external cues and triggers to eat. Now that you have a greater understanding about the art of grounding, no doubt you will see how important it is to create that connection 03:44 - 04:41 Speaker 1: between mind and body. To prepare yourself for this grounding meditation, find a comfortable seated or lying position, somewhere where you won't be distracted for about the next 10 minutes, somewhere where you feel safe. And if you choose to, you can close your eyes or keep them open. So next up is our show intro and then your beautiful grounding practice. Once you've settled into your seated or lying position, choose to either gently close your eyes or soften your gaze at a particular point, starting to invite a sense of calmness to wash over you. Lengthen the spine with 04:41 - 05:53 Speaker 1: a graceful stretch, and with a slow audible sigh, let go of any lingering tension in your body, allowing the shoulder blades to gently release into the frame of the body. If comfortable, gently close the mouth, feeling the upper and lower lip touching ever so slightly together. And then start to notice your breath moving in and out through the nose. Taking awareness to the body, and opening up to the points of contact between your body and the surface below you. On the next out breath, Sink into these points of contact, like you're relaxing into a warm bath. 05:55 - 07:03 Speaker 1: Feel the stability and the strength of the surface below you caressing your body. If you're seated, it might be your feet pressing against the floor, the underneath of the thighs pressing against the seat. If you're lying, it could be the back of the heels, the back of the pelvis or the shoulder blades pressing firmly into the surface below. Rest here for a moment, really finding that connection between the physical body and the surface below. With every exhale, sinking the mind and the body into these anchor points. Noticing any subtle sensations in or around these anchor points. 07:10 - 08:20 Speaker 1: Gently drawing breath in through the nostrils and becoming aware of which nostril feels more open and accepting of the breath. Tracking the journey of the breath as it moves through the nostrils, gliding down the back gliding down the back of the throat and moving into the lower lobes of the lungs. Being aware of that gentle rise of the belly on the in-breath, and the softening of the belly on the out-breath, Enjoying the awareness of the body with curiosity and acceptance. And gently take the mind, Guiding it through the body, starting at the top of the head 08:20 - 09:50 Speaker 1: and gently sweeping it through the body, opening up to any particular sensations that draw your awareness to them. Gently sweeping awareness down through the neck and over the shoulders. Gliding down the front and the back of the torso, creating connection, mind and body, allowing the awareness to cascade over the legs, to the heels or the soles of the feet, bringing loving attention to any parts of the body that are delivering sensation. It could be constriction or softness. The effects of gravity grounding the body into the earth below. There could be pain or peacefulness. Allow the in-breath 09:50 - 11:05 Speaker 1: to open up awareness of the body as a whole, gently drawing the breath in. You might even like to feel as though you're sending energetic roots from the points of contact of your body to the earth down into the earth, and on the breath, drawing up grounding earth energy. Exhale, sinking down, sending your energetic roots into the earth, connecting mind, body and matter. And gently inhale, drawing up grounding earth energy. Exhale, sinking down, sending your energetic roots into the earth, connecting mind, body and matter. Simply allow yourself to be present with the body right here, right 11:05 - 12:36 Speaker 1: now, in the moment. Noticing if the mind wanders off, and gently come back to the body. Releasing down into the earth, into the earth. Opening up a channel of communication between the mind and the body. Honoring any sensation that arises in the moment. And then allowing yourself to take 3 more gentle flowing breaths in through the nose, following the journey of the breath into the body, opening up to sensation, and the expansion on the in-breath, exhaling and just sinking into the body, and allowing the body to sink into the anchor points below you. Continue with this 12:36 - 14:19 Speaker 1: gentle expansion and softening. Rise and fall. You Allow the body to be a home base for the mind. Wherever the mind goes, the body stays grounded and anchored. And whenever you notice the mind wandering off, allow the body to guide it back to the here and now. Tune in and check in any time you need to during your days, and return to this practice often. And whenever you feel ready, you may like to reopen or focus your eyes. Gently looking around in your surrounds and noticing something that feels comforting or visually pleasing to your eyes. You 14:19 - 15:24 Speaker 1: might even like to take 1 hand over the middle of your chest, and 1 hand over your belly button. And feel the gentle pressure of your hands on the body. That sense of grounding, connection and love. Enjoy a stretch and return to your day. Feel free to share this practice with anyone you think may need it. It's great to come back to this grounding practice if you feel stressed, scattered, overwhelmed, anxious, on autopilot, or if you just need a moment to yourself to feel present, grounded and connected. So I hope you enjoyed this practice today, in 15:24 - 15:52 Speaker 1: next week's podcast I'll be sharing another grounding practice but a slightly different practice for you, so you can have some tools you can use in your daily life to start to befriend and open up to the language and sensations of your body. So thank you for listening, from my heart to yours, Have the most beautiful week and I look forward to sharing again with you next week. Bye for now.

00:00 - 00:47 Speaker 1: Have you ever felt like you're floating through life, disconnected from your body and the world around you? You're just being pulled along in this endless sea of distractions and obligations. If so, you're definitely not alone. But what if I told you there is a way to anchor yourself amidst the chaos to find solace in the present moment and reclaim the connection to your inner wisdom, your inner compass and individual sense of self. Today we're diving deep into the transformative practice of grounding and we're going to explore how it can be this life raft you've been searching 00:47 - 01:50 Speaker 1: for in the vast ocean of the scattered mess of our modern day living. We're going to look at how grounding can actually provide a stable foundation from which we can navigate and balance stress, anxiousness, disconnection, overwhelm, burnout, physical and emotional pain, and more. Join me today as we uncover the profound benefits of grounding and of course learn practical techniques to integrate this powerful practice into our daily routines and lives. It's time to reclaim our sense of presence, purpose and mind-body connection in a world that often feels adrift. Today we're diving into the transformative power of grounding 01:51 - 02:34 Speaker 1: and why it's absolutely the key to unlocking a deeper, more meaningful connection with our body and of course our mind. And then over the next few weeks I'm going to share some grounding practices for you. I know how exciting that you do not want to miss out on. So be sure to subscribe to the podcast or jump over to our website and you can subscribe and receive our weekly updates. First, we're going to get clear on what grounding is so you know in what context we're talking about grounding in. Grounding is really coming into the body, 02:35 - 03:21 Speaker 1: feeling present in the body and being able to clearly identify sensations inside the body and sensations outside the body. Everyone has a different level of understanding when it comes to the interoceptive and proprioceptive system. Your interoceptive system is this system that helps you to identify when you're hungry. So, inner sensations, or even perhaps when you need to go the loop. And it also helps you to identify different feelings. So when you're anxious because of a situation or maybe become fearful, it could be when you're feeling happy, comfortable, and content. Now your proprioceptive system is this part 03:21 - 04:02 Speaker 1: of the physical structural body that helps you better understand where your body is in time and space as it relates to other things around us. So for example just say a tiger or some sort of robber or thief entered the room. Your body would feel that and be able to signal through your nervous system that it's time to hightail it out of there. Now this experience even happens sometimes with different people or situations. We just have this sense that something isn't right. The body gathers information from the outer world and then sends it to the inner 04:02 - 04:44 Speaker 1: world and gives you different feedback or feelings and sensations for you to take action. Fight, flight, flee, appease, whatever it is. So the proprioceptive system and the interoceptive system, They really plug into 1 another. They're like peanut butter and honey. I know Americans say peanut butter and jelly, but I love peanut butter and honey, right? They're like peanut butter and honey on a sandwich. They plug into 1 another and create connection. And through grounding, we're able to leverage that and better understand what the unconscious is communicating through the somatic body. So through your body, through feeling. 04:45 - 05:32 Speaker 1: So grounding could also be described as a state of being. It's kind of akin to anchoring oneself firmly in the present moment. It's about being rooted in this profound connection to the physical body and our surrounding environment. It's a state of deep presence and inner stability and really aligns us with the here and now. It's really the embodiment of the self and mindfulness in action. Now in this state of grounding, outer distractions can start to fade into the background and we can have this heightened awareness of sensations, emotions and thoughts as they arise in the present 05:32 - 06:16 Speaker 1: moment. Now, grounding allows us to feel rooted also in our authenticity, empowered by this sense of inner strength and resilience. And this can transcend the fluctuations of external circumstances. So it doesn't matter what's happening in the outer world. I always say it matters what's happening in the moment in your inner world. Grounding techniques can include things Grounding techniques can include things like focusing on the breath, engaging in specific physical movement, sensory awareness through mindfulness, or using objects to anchor our attention to our present reality. The goal of grounding techniques are to really bring this sense of 06:16 - 07:08 Speaker 1: stability, safety, and presence within. And this really helps us to regulate our emotions and maintain a connection with our bodily sensations. So why do we actually even need this? Well, we live in this world that often prioritizes the mind over the body. And so we find ourselves disconnected from this very vessel that houses our deepest wisdom and intuition. Now We need grounding because our modern life pulls us away from our present moment experiences leading to feelings of stress, disconnection, overwhelm and even anxiousness. In this scattered state, we become vulnerable to external pressures, allowing our emotions to 07:08 - 07:54 Speaker 1: be dictated by this chaotic world around us rather than finding this beautiful intrinsic balance and resilience within ourselves. So rather than shooting into our own inner compass and our own intuition to guide the way, we're going to go into why grounding and finding this body connection is crucial in curbing our under or over eating patterns and accessing our inner wisdom? The answer lies in this profound interplay between our physical sensations, emotions and behaviour. When we disconnect from our bodies, we lose touch with this rich kaleidoscope of sensations that guide us towards balance and nourishment. We disconnect 07:54 - 08:47 Speaker 1: from feelings of hunger and satiety so we can under or overfeed the body. Instead, we can also turn to food as a substitute for genuine physical and emotional nourishment, leading to those patterns of overeating or disordered eating, and using food to numb our physical sensations. We need to learn to tune in and understand our own sensations and bodily feedback systems. In essence, our bodies serve as this ultimate barometer of our internal landscape, providing this invaluable information and insight into our own true needs and desires. Now when we learn to listen to our bodies with curiosity and 08:47 - 09:35 Speaker 1: compassion, we unlock this wealth, absolute wealth of inner wisdom that guides us towards optimal health and wellbeing. Rene Descartes famously proclaimed, I think, therefore I am. But it is through our embodied experiences that we truly come to know ourselves. I actually have full goosebumps right now. So it's really powerful. I'm just going to say it again and just sink into the words. It's that feeling body that allows our thinking self to know that we are part of this world. We are a human having an experience in this world. Now, The journey towards body connection isn't always 09:35 - 10:23 Speaker 1: an easy 1, especially for those who have experienced chronic pain or tension, trauma, overwhelmed stress or anxiousness, or any type of emotional or physical or spiritual pain. For many of us trying to reconnect with our bodies, it can evoke feelings of fear, shame, vulnerability, and bring up anxiousness in itself. It really requires this delicate balance of patience, self-compassion and gentle exploration. It's really about working in our window of tolerance. Many of you know, as well as mindful eating, I also teach and share somatic healing, so connecting to the body. I'm a kinesiologist. I teach yoga, meditation, 10:23 - 11:04 Speaker 1: and breath work. And so a lot of what I'm teaching is learning to connect to ourselves and allow our bodies to bring up the wisdom so we can therefore become whole again. So quite often when we have traumatic events or just shit that happens in our life that are really uncomfortable, we almost splinter a part of ourselves away from the whole. And this is sometimes why we can feel so disconnected and scattered. And we just feel like we're going through the motions every day, rather than operating from this place of wholeness and oneness. Now, when we 11:04 - 11:49 Speaker 1: do this work, and it can get uncomfortable. So it's always important to really explore sensations within our own comfort space, within our own window of tolerance. Now let's look at grounding when it comes to mindful eating. Mindful eating is really all about being present and engaged with the experience of eating, paying attention to taste and texture, aromas. That's just 1 tiny part actually of mindful eating. But we also look at fullness and hunger cues. Now, if we're disconnected to that, we have no idea the feedback our body's sending us. And so then we can't act accordingly. 11:49 - 12:34 Speaker 1: And what quite often happens is we're ruled by these outer world guidelines such as, okay, eat 90 grams of chicken rather than eat the amount of chicken that your body needs today, or you're only allowed to have this many pieces of wholemeal bread, or whatever it is. So we become ruled by these outer world measurements rather than connecting to our body's inner wisdom. So mindful eating is really an embodiment practice. Mindful eating involves being attuned to emotional cues that might influence our eating behaviors. Now we've gone through s

00:00 - 00:39 Speaker 1: Because this week's episode is all about mindful meal planning and prep, I thought why not start with a little story about planning. You see, there were these 3 fish that lived in a pond. Their names were, The first 1 was Plannerhead, the other 1 was Thinkfast and the third fish was called Wait-and-See. They overheard a fisherman talking that the following day he was going to cast his net in their pond. Plannerhead said, that's it, I'm swimming down the river. Thinkfast said, I'm sure I'll come up with a plan. And Wait and See lazily said, I just 00:39 - 01:15 Speaker 1: can't think about it right now. The fisherman cast his net in their pond the next day, and Plan Ahead was able to escape from the net. But Think Fast and Wait and See, well, they obviously were caught by the fisherman. Then Think Fast suddenly rolled on his belly upside down and pretended to be dead. This fish is no good, said the fisherman and cast him aside. However, wait and see, ended up at the fish market. So, I don't need to explain the moral of this story, but you can see what happened to wait and see and 01:15 - 02:14 Speaker 1: I'll think fast. And I'll think fast. So that brings us to today's episode all about mindful meal planning and prep. We've all been there, caught up in the whirlwind of excuses. I don't have time for that. It's all just so overwhelming. I'm clueless about what to eat. I absolutely loathe cooking. Does this sound familiar? Well, if it does, you're definitely not alone. In fact, let's just talk science for a quick moment. Ever heard of this study that was done about long-term weight loss? Now the statistics say 85 to 95% of people who lose weight end up 02:14 - 02:50 Speaker 1: putting the weight back on in certain timeframes. The whole purpose of the study was to find out what the people who kept the weight off had in common and also some of the similar traits and behaviors of the people who put weight back on. Of course I put the link in today's show notes, but 1 of the eye opening findings was that many folks who shed weight found themselves gaining it back because of, this is 1 of many reasons, but 1 of them was of course lack of planning. But fear not, today I'm going to help 02:50 - 03:28 Speaker 1: you turn planning into 1 of your superpowers. We're really delving into the art of mindful meal prep and planning and of course we're always going to sprinkle that little dash of mindfulness around. So why does mindful meal planning actually matter? It's more than just a chore. It's a real game changer for your health, happiness and longevity. So let's first talk about time. I get it. Life moves fast and finding time to plan meals can really just be another item on our endless to-do list. But here's the thing, a little bit of planning up front can save 03:28 - 04:06 Speaker 1: you heaps of time and stress down the road, especially in those, oh, I'm so hungry, what can I eat right now moments? Or, oh my gosh, I have a craving, what am I gonna do? And it could really mean a difference of succumbing to that craving and choosing another option. Of course, if you own my online program, Mindful Eating, Mindset and Metabolism Mastery, you've got plenty of craving tools there. You know exactly what they are, why they occur and how to combat them. But today it's all about planning. So by mapping out your meals for the 04:06 - 04:40 Speaker 1: week, you can really streamline your grocery shopping, cut down on those last minute trips to the store that you can literally never get out of Woolies or Coles without spending 50 bucks and say goodbye to the dreaded, oh, what's for dinner tonight at like 05:00 when usually you have dinner ready by 5.30. I don't know about you, but I hate this question. And the answer in our house and everybody knows it is just go and check the plan. Go to the fridge, check the plan and you'll find out what's for dinner tonight. So it's not just 04:40 - 05:24 Speaker 1: about saving time but also reclaiming our health. Remember the study I mentioned a few moments ago, the 1 about weight loss maintenance. Well, it turns out those who maintain their weight loss long-term were masters of planning. By thoughtfully preparing their meals ahead of time, they set themselves up for success, making healthier choices and avoiding impulse eating. So now that we understand the significance of mindful meal planning, let's just roll up our sleeves and dive in a little bit further. I'm going to share with you today a step-by-step guide to kickstart your journey to mindful meal planning 05:24 - 06:04 Speaker 1: and preparation. I'm going to share this step-by-step process first, and then I'm going to take you through it in real time and share with you how it comes to life in our family. Maybe you already plan and prep and that's amazing, but hopefully I'll add a few little insights to your whole process today. So we're gonna start with the first 1, which is simply set your intention. So before even diving into planning, we take a moment just to reflect on our goals and our intentions. We wanna ask ourselves, what do we hope to achieve through mindful 06:05 - 06:44 Speaker 1: meal planning? So whether it's improving our health, saving time and money, or reducing food waste, really clarifying our own intentions will guide our planning process and really keep us focused along the way. This is where we can also bring in our own family values as well when it comes to wellness and food. So what are our family values and even our personal values? The second 1 is to really know your schedule. Like we don't want to do pie-in-the-sky planning here, we want to do real-life planning that's actually going to work. We need to consider our work 06:44 - 07:23 Speaker 1: commitments, our family obligations and any social events and activities that might impact what we eat and how much time we have to plan or cook our meals. Really knowing our schedule will help us plan meals that seamlessly fit into our routine, ensuring that we have the time and the energy to both prepare and the most important part, enjoy them. The third 1 is assess your preferences and dietary needs. This is a no-brainer but we really need to take into consideration what our dietary needs are. So of course that's going to be any food allergies or intolerances, 07:23 - 08:03 Speaker 1: but most importantly what our favorite foods are, different cuisines we'd like to choose or try and cooking methods that fit with our schedule. It's all about creating a plan that's both delicious and nourishing, but it's tailored to our own unique tastes and nutritional requirements. Number 4 is taking stock of our pantry. So we really want to get to know our pantries and our fridges on an intimate level. We want to make a list of our staples that are in there and any staples that need to be replenished weekly. Now Having a well-stocked pantry and fridge make 08:03 - 08:46 Speaker 1: it so much easier to whip up and enjoy the meals you love without those immediate gratifying choices when we have a craving or whether we're stressed or going into an emotional eating cycle. Step 5 is all about mindfully choosing our recipes. This is always the fun part, the food part. There's always awesome recipes that come up on Instagram or maybe even your old cookbook. Browsing websites and apps for inspiration and keeping things exciting is always important. We aim for a mix of simple fuss free recipes and we can experiment every now and then with elaborate dishes 08:46 - 09:25 Speaker 1: to keep it exciting. It's also good to consider things like seasonality and ingredient availability when selecting our recipes. Now look, we're up to step 6. We haven't even made the plan yet. So of course step 6 is actually make your plan. We do this on a weekly basis. So once we've chosen our recipes, what we have actual time for, then we start mapping out our meals. We take into account breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, and maybe throw in a few desserts in there as well. We always want to make room for flexibility, the F word, we got 09:25 - 10:04 Speaker 1: to stay flexible and spontaneity and allow ourselves to swap out recipes or improvise based on what's available and how you're feeling that day. The final 1, step 7 is prep ahead. We set a little bit of time aside for meal prep. This could be chopping veggies, marinating proteins, cooking grains in advance. So we really streamline that cooking process for during the week when we're busy. By prepping ahead, we save heaps of time and also energy, ensuring we have healthy ingredients always on hand. So there you have it. It's the beginner's guide to mindful meal planning and 10:04 - 10:44 Speaker 1: prep. Now these steps are your roadmap to cultivate a healthier, happier relationship with food and also cooking. Now I'm going to give you like the real-time, a real-life example of how this plays out. I'm going to use me and my family as an example because of course I know me better than anyone else. Number 1 is our intention and our family goals. So my kids health is our priority. It impacts their immune system, brain development, motor skills, energy, of course, and pretty much everything and more. So our family goals are to minimize but not completely eliminate 10:45 - 11:22 Speaker 1: ultra processed food and making nutritious yet delicious meals for them. My husband and I, Paul, we're older parents. I'm 45, he's 49, we've got a 2 and a 6 year old. So we really wanna stay fit and healthy as we age for 1, ourselves, each other and our boys. So this is part of our intentions and our family values. We really want to minimize food costs so we can use our money for fun things like holidays and different outings. We also want to save time so we can do fun things like actually play with the kids, 11:22 - 11:57 Speaker 1: enjoying their childhood. We want to exercise and just get outside and explore the world a little bit

Today, we're diving deep into the delicious dilemma of why we often find ourselves succumbing to the siren call of indulgence, despite our best intentions to resist that extra cupcake, chocolate bar, or, in my case this week, the irresistible allure of grandma's ginger cake. We'll unravel the mysteries behind our seemingly insatiable cravings and explore the perplexing question: why is it so darn difficult to just say no and stick to it? We'll delve into the psychology of overindulgence, examining the H.A.L.T acronym to uncover the hidden motivations driving our behaviors when we know deep down that we'd rather exercise restraint. But here's the kicker: we'll also uncover why relying solely on willpower is like trying to paddle upstream without a paddle. Spoiler alert: it doesn't work in the long run. So buckle up, my fellow food enthusiasts, as we unravel the five reasons why we often find ourselves reaching for that extra bite when we know we shouldn't. Sure, it's easy to exercise control when we want to, but what about those moments when our appetites seem to have a mind of their own? That's where things get interesting. So grab your fork and let's dig in as we explore the intricate dance between mind, body, and food in the quest for mindful eating and inner healing. Welcome to the delicious dilemma. Let's feast on the wisdom together. Links Mentioned: Free Training: What's Mindful Eating and How can it Help Me Mindful Eating, Mindset and Metabolism Mastery Course Facebook Instagram Larissa xx P.S If you love to read the transcript has been included HERE on the SHOW NOTES PAGES