My Experience with Food

When I look back to my younger years, I fondly remember a deep love for food. It’s not that I don’t appreciate a good meal anymore, but these days, my approach to food is much more selective. This transformation didn’t happen overnight; it was a gradual shift that began when I started to truly value my conscious and awake time.

I soon found a rather interesting correlation between my eating habits and focus. While a good meal brought temporary pleasure, the resulting fullness often blurred my focus, stopping me from committing my entire attention to the tasks at hand. This was particularly true when the meal was rich, filled with captivating flavors and spices that could linger and distract me for hours.

Life is an adventure with an unknown end date, and there are countless things I want to achieve. To allow for that, I realized that I shouldn’t squander too much of my time in a semi-conscious state induced by overeating.

My journey led me to a new dietary pattern that consists of less food. I would often skip breakfast or replace it with a light smoothie, keeping lunch and dinner modest, hovering around 600 calories each. Anything more and I’d start to feel the heaviness in my stomach.

In my pursuit of a balanced diet, I make it a point to reduce salt and sugar intake. I’ve observed that too much sugar can cause energy crashes and excessive salt often results in unpleasant bloating, especially during the night. As the day wears on, I find that my tolerance for tougher foods dwindles.

I am now inclined towards natural, unprocessed foods, avoiding those that are either too easy or too challenging to digest. The authenticity of food matters to me.

An interesting measure I’ve discovered to check if I’ve eaten too much is to put on noise-cancelling earbuds without playing any music. If I can hear my own breathing, I’ve probably overdone it. Perhaps my meditation practice has something to do with this unique technique.

Snacking doesn’t fit into my routine anymore. I’ve found consistency in what I eat daily or weekly. Through a lot of trial and error, I’ve developed an understanding of what works for me, eliminating the need for unnecessary snacking or consuming calorie-rich drinks after 11am.

To some, my approach might sound like a compromise on life’s simple pleasures. But let me assure you, I’ve had my days of indulging in all sorts of food when my values and goals were different. Those times were not just enjoyable, but also devoid of regrets, and they played a vital role in leading me to my current perspective on food.

Now, I see food as fuel, a means to replenish my energy in a consistent manner. To streamline my life and free my mind for the bigger tasks, I prefer to put as many daily routines as possible, including food, on autopilot.

This wasn’t an easy transition, I’ll admit. The journey was filled with ups and downs, bouts of overeating, and instances of eating excessively flavorful food that took a toll on my mood and productivity. But eventually, I established a steady routine.

One last thing that I’ve learned, and that I believe is worth sharing, is that food genuinely tastes better when I’m hungry. It’s a simple realization, but one that carries a great deal of weight in how I approach food today.