Mindfulness Is a Piece of Cupcake

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IMAGINE SOMEONE'S GIVEN YOU a chocolate truffle cupcake with black raspberry frosting. Now picture taking 20 minutes to enjoy it.

Holistic health counselor Jennifer Moore Howe knows how to do it, and she's teaching a "Mindful Eating" seminar in Alexandria to share her techniques (Oct. 28 at 7 p.m., $15, register to get address at Howetoeat.com). Her method doesn't try to sell applesauce-and-carob desserts or claim that chocolate frosting is health food. "I think it is important for people to minimize their sugar, but it's also important to be practical here on planet Earth and know that people are going to indulge in sweet treats," says Howe. "I'd rather teach people to be mindful about this and have a way to really indulge."

Being told to eat slower is not exactly news — diet experts have been lecturing about this for years — but putting it into practice is a different story. Howe says she'll be sharing five to seven strategies, including the age-old advice "put your fork down between bites" and more meditative suggestions like seeking closure after a meal. "Some people aren't going to like the idea of chewing 32 times, but perhaps they'll like the idea of focusing on discerning the different tastes within each bite," she explains. Then she'll give each participant one "regular-size cupcake" — that means not "as big as your head." "We're going to really spend some time with those cupcakes," Howe says.

The result will be more satisfying interactions with food in general, and not just dessert. "We eat on the run; we eat on the go. It doesn't serve us at all," Howe says. "Really, eating merits its own time."

Written by Rachel Kaufman for Express
Photo courtesy iStock