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I recently read Edward Espe Brown’s book, The Complete Tassajara Cookbook (very good lacto-ovo vegetarian cookbook because it contains a great deal of naturally low carb veggie recipes.) In it, he has an essay about conscious eating, which he calls the Eating Just One Potato Chip challenge. After he and his zen class did this challenge with potato chips, cookies and oranges, they came to the conclusion that a potato chip isn’t what it’s cracked up to be in terms of taste and satisfaction. Neither was the cookie (he reports that his class refused to take another bite of the cookie.) But the orange was satisfying and tasty.
Here are the steps for that 1 potato chip.
Concentrate: Remove all distractions from the room (no tv, no magazines, etc.) Clear your mind and concentrate on the food. No dip for the chip is allowed. No drink is either.
Attention: Bring your attention to the food: the appearance of the chip, how the chip feels in your hand, how the chip looks in your hand, the smell of the chip, how you feel about the intention to put the chip into your mouth, the sensations of taking a bite of the chip, how the chip feels in your mouth. Then slowly, pay attention to how the chip tastes---when it first enters your mouth, as it sits in your mouth and before you begin to chew it. How does the chewing sound. How does the chip feel in your mouth as you chew it. The sensations of swallowing the chip.
Mindfulness: What impression do you have about that chip and about eating that chip? Was it satisfying/not satisfying, tasty/tasteless, etc. And if you had to write about your impression about that chip for future generations, what would you write?
So I decided to try it. Eventhough my Pre-Maintenance menu would allow me to eat a potato chip, I didn’t because I don’t have those things in my house. But I did wrangle up a bag of pork rinds and my favorite snack----lightly steamed sugar snap peas.
After going through the challenge, I learned that 1. Pork rinds promise to deliver crunch, flavor, and expectations of satisfaction, but in reality they are full of air, little substance, predominantly salty (which luckily masks their real, disappointing flavor). One was definitely MORE than enough because it was a rather unpleasant experience and I would have liked to stop with that first bite. 2. Sugar snap peas deliver the crunch, flavor and satisfaction. But as I took more bites, the natural sweetness became more and more cloying to the point it was rather unpleasant by the time I got to the end of that pea.
Give it a try with your 5 net carb OWL food and report your findings. Does that potato really stand up to your expectations? What about that yogurt? And that popcorn?
Here are the steps for that 1 potato chip.
Concentrate: Remove all distractions from the room (no tv, no magazines, etc.) Clear your mind and concentrate on the food. No dip for the chip is allowed. No drink is either.
Attention: Bring your attention to the food: the appearance of the chip, how the chip feels in your hand, how the chip looks in your hand, the smell of the chip, how you feel about the intention to put the chip into your mouth, the sensations of taking a bite of the chip, how the chip feels in your mouth. Then slowly, pay attention to how the chip tastes---when it first enters your mouth, as it sits in your mouth and before you begin to chew it. How does the chewing sound. How does the chip feel in your mouth as you chew it. The sensations of swallowing the chip.
Mindfulness: What impression do you have about that chip and about eating that chip? Was it satisfying/not satisfying, tasty/tasteless, etc. And if you had to write about your impression about that chip for future generations, what would you write?
So I decided to try it. Eventhough my Pre-Maintenance menu would allow me to eat a potato chip, I didn’t because I don’t have those things in my house. But I did wrangle up a bag of pork rinds and my favorite snack----lightly steamed sugar snap peas.
After going through the challenge, I learned that 1. Pork rinds promise to deliver crunch, flavor, and expectations of satisfaction, but in reality they are full of air, little substance, predominantly salty (which luckily masks their real, disappointing flavor). One was definitely MORE than enough because it was a rather unpleasant experience and I would have liked to stop with that first bite. 2. Sugar snap peas deliver the crunch, flavor and satisfaction. But as I took more bites, the natural sweetness became more and more cloying to the point it was rather unpleasant by the time I got to the end of that pea.
Give it a try with your 5 net carb OWL food and report your findings. Does that potato really stand up to your expectations? What about that yogurt? And that popcorn?
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