What does eating healthy really means?

In today’s life, eating healthy is a buzzword, but what does it really mean? Is it about what you eat, how you eat or when you eat? I think it is about all three.

For a long time, I did not pay attention to all aspects of eating healthy. Later in life, when I was finally able to choose what I ate rather than what I had available at the time, a healthy option was important to me. However, I totally neglected the when and how I ate. Being always busy and on the go, I tended to skip meals.

I had days with only one meal or the most two meals. Is it bad for the body to skip meals? The answer is no because the body and the brain are functioning much better when the stomach is almost empty. Actually, I have recently learned that if you are over 30 years of age, two meals a day should suffice. However, if your body becomes weaker because of different stressors in your life, and you starve yourself consistently for a more extended period, then your stomach will suffer for sure.

In my view, how to eat covers two parts: how much we should eat and how consciously we are eating. Lately, almost everyone is emphasizing and knows about the importance of portion control. I have tried not to overindulge, but at times, it was hard to succeed. When you get up from the table make sure you feel like you could have more.

One good tip to help you eat less is chewing more. Probably you have already noticed that when munching on fresh fruit or veggie, you feel full sooner than eating some cooked food because you have to chew more. And by doing so, you help the digestion as it starts in the mouth with the saliva.

Thinking that our body is the accumulation of food we ate over time, how many times have you consciously choose your food? Honestly, not many times in the past because I did not have time for such questions. For me, eating was more of a necessity than anything else was.

It was only recently when I started to have a different relationship with food. I finally decided to take care of me, listen to my body, and I also discovered this:

“Above all, the food you eat is life. Other forms of life are giving up their life to sustain us. If you eat with enormous gratitude for all the living things which give up their life to sustain your life, food will behave in a very different way within you.” Sadghuru

After reading this, how can you not change the way you eat? Please do your part, and before eating next time, choose consciously, listen to your body and see how it reacts to the food you put in. Why is so important? Because what and how you eat will influence how you will feel.