If you have been a dieter most of your life, you may have lost touch with what “normal” eating is. Actually, I prefer the term “balanced” eating. When you are a balanced eater, you eat in a way that serves your well-being most of the time. Yes, you may eat for emotional reasons from time to time, but it’s no big deal because you easily go back to your “healthier” ways without needing to diet or restrict. Unbalanced eating, on the other hand, is the dance between dieting and binging, between restricting and indulging.
Unbalanced eaters live in the “use food to cope” world, while balanced eaters know that the answer to their woes is not inside a carton of Rocky Road ice cream. They may have a scoop or two, but then move on to find a more appropriate solution to what ails them. Mindful eating helps you become a balanced eater because it alerts you to what is really going on, and makes it possible for you to enjoy a scoop or two of ice cream and then go on back to your life.
