The Importance of the Pause & Rhythmic Eating

I used to be a snacker, a grazer, an emotional eater…..

So much of my life was focused around using food/alcohol to numb me and my feelings of boredom, anxiety, stress, or just not wanting to deal with what was coming up or going on around me.

I struggled with weight, emotional eating, anxiety, and depression well into my 30s.

If I wasn’t eating, dieting, or working, I was exercising to burn off the calories in my free time so that I could hopefully feel better about the way I looked, but I never felt I was enough. I think about the physical, mental, and emotional energy spent here – it was A LOT of effort!

Rather than allowing myself time and space to process emotions, I buried them.

As time progressed and I began to listen to my body I searched for other ways to tap into the calm and focus of my mind & body.  I wanted more ease.

Over time I realized the power of food to make me feel differently, the power of yoga to help me connect to the body and mind and spirit, the power of the breath to ground me, and the power I also had over my mindset to help me heal.

I began to eat cleaner. I began to move my body in a different way and began to slowly honor the power of PAUSE.

When I first learned about Intermittent Fasting, I thought it was another fad diet. After being on a diet my entire life I was apprehensive about hopping on this wagon.  I also could not comprehend how I could possibly go without eating for more than 12 hours. In my mind, I would potentially see myself passing out. I needed a shift in mindset.

I had studied the many benefits of this way of eating – knew that yogis had eaten this way for thousands of years, so there had to be a way for me to integrate this into my life. Ayurveda calls it Rhythmic Eating…. Now that was a phrase I could embrace, RHYTHM.

As my curiosity and understanding of Ayurveda evolved, I better understood these rhythms of day/night and aligning the habits. We are diurnal creatures. It made sense that we need to follow these cycles to feel better grounded, calmer, have better energy, improved digestion, and better energy levels.

Using habit-changing science, I decided to use Kaizen to take a slow approach to Rhythmic Eating. Most of my life was spent working towards immediate results, so the idea of moving slowly and pausing was a new experience. I was learning to PAUSE.

I began by eating three meals a day – no snacks, then started with an early light dinner, shifting my larger meal to the middle of the day. Eventually, I moved into longer fasting times based on my body type. Using hot water/herbal tea in between meals was key for me. Over time I was able to adhere to the Ayurvedic rule of not eating when it was dark. Now I am religious around this.

This is not a diet fad. It is my lifestyle. I give my body permission to fully digest, absorb, assimilate my food during fasting times.

This is a way of living for me, a way to take a PAUSE, recognize my emotions and acknowledge them, allow them to process, digest.

I feel lighter in my body, my mind. I have more space and time. I don’t have to eat as many meals so I spend less time in the kitchen.

Over time I have gained more focus, more energy, more calm, more lean body mass, better sleep, fewer aches & pains. I believe I am aging younger.

Now I am a Rhythmic Eater.

I have seen similar results in my clients.

Wouldn’t you like to see how this works for you?

Reach out for a Discovery Session to see how this could help you get the results you desire.