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Mindfulness after Lunch
Bunks
Australia Veteran
in Mindfulness
Hi all
I always struggle with keeping a clear mind and remaining mindful after lunch for some reason.
I do reasonably well in the morning but for some reason after lunch it all goes out the window.
Any thoughts on what can be done to remain mindful post this meal?
Thanks!
0
Comments
Have a bigger breakfast, eat less lunch, have tea ... Go for walk ...
Thanks @lobster - maybe my portion sizes are the issue.
I drink a fair bit of caffeine too which I think probably affects me more than I realise.
It is the middle of the day. You've been busy the entire morning and now have the whole afternoon/evening too. Maybe write down all your concerns and thoughts so they'll be out of your system and you can refocus.
I'm always more focused in the morning as well. I think as the day goes on there is more and more things that go into our monkey minds to think about on top of what we were thinking of already in the morning. I think @eggsavior has a good idea, writing a journal may help you get them on paper and out of your mind.
What are you eating for lunch?
@bunks -- Just curious -- Did it occur to you that when things go out the window they are more on track than when so-called mindfulness is well in hand?
Also, the human diurnal rhythms are meant to work within nature, not the artificial worlds we have built. It is quite common for our alertness to be the highest between around 10am and 2pm and that carries through our lives now even though perhaps we aren't needing to be alert to catching prey or dodging enemies. Sometimes it's best to work with it rather than against it. Channel it into your job, into being productive in other ways. Making a list for tomorrow, doing taxes, making phone calls etc. It is also the time our bodies are digesting what is often our bigger meal of the day, so our body is busy doing that which keeps our body from doing physical activity well (going for a run after lunch is usually a bad idea for this reason) but frees up your mental capacity to take care of mental chores.
But, depending what you eat your food choices can have an impact on things as well. More carb-heavy meals have a tendency to increase our heart rate which makes our who body feel a bit more frantic. You can try changing up what you eat and see if it makes a difference.
I am totally dependent on 'mood regulation by food'. My mental state is more rational in the morning, more intuitive in the evening. If my blood sugar goes low I get aggressive, probably preparing to catch an antelope. After food I am pacified.
My mind seems very much attached to my body
I also have to be wary of being too mindful and spiritual and shit
Nobody needs another platitude lama, wise guy or crazy dakini ... 
@Bunks. I found that eating too much carbohydrate at lunch made me sluggish. So I switched to salad and a piece of fruit. Much better. It requires a bit of experimentation to find not only the class of food but how it affects us. For me aging has also been an influence.
There is a lot of information on the internet about what foods are good to eat throughout the day to avoid being tired and sluggish and to have more energy, to make sure you get enough sugar but not too much etc. I've included a link to one of them.
http://www.shape.com/lifestyle/mind-and-body/best-foods-all-day-energy
Glad you found a piece of the puzzle, sounds good. Two other reasons that crossed my mind is (1) in the mornings, the tablet is clean; at noon, you've had a full morning of work situations traipse through your psyche; and (2) I'm a morning person...maybe you are, too.
@Bunks try to be mindful when eating your lunch
@Bunks Stream the AFL when the season starts
Seriously though, I find the same thing. Even moreso with this heatwave (32C today). My main bad habit is not enough water during the day. I'm also a MASSIVE caffeine fiend too. (Coke Zero sales in Australia are solely because of me
) I eat a banana around 2pm and that helps perk me up a bit too.
I am usually pretty good @karasti - a sandwich or left overs from dinner the night before (stir fry, pasta, etc). Sushi sometimes.
Yeah - you may be right. I tend to have bread, rice or pasta at lunch time. I might experiment with salad.
My only problem with that is that I need to eat again two hours later. Maybe some nuts or something could help get through.
@Bunks I added a salad idea in the recipe thread. It's super low G.I. so your blood sugars will be stable, plus it contains plenty of omega 3's for brain health.
@Bunks Theravadin monks traditionally eat once a day, which means a seista after lunch. We lays often do not have that luxury. An after two hours 'nut snack' seems a possible solution. A large meal can make one drowsy ...
You could try eating a healthy lunch, like ice-cream with a bit of lettuce.
But seriously, I have a very small lunch, otherwise I get very sleepy in the afternoon.
@Bunks our digestion is strongest at the height of the afternoon, so it's not uncommon to end up hungry a couple of hours later. Nothing wrong with a snack! I add sesame seeds and pumpkin and sunflower seeds to my salads and that does help. A little cheese for some fat and some veggies other than the really low calorie greens. Buddha bowls can be amazing and are easy to reheat or you can have cold ones. I make them all the time. Or you can prep the ingredients in containers and mix when it's lunch time (if that is something that works for your job). Adding in some sweet potato or chickpeas makes a big difference in how long it takes to digest without making you drowsy.
http://www.yummymummykitchen.com/2016/01/30-best-buddha-bowls.html
I always eat a moderate sized lunch, and I take my time eating it. I read while I eat if it isn't messy food as well. Try carrying around a small book with mindful poems and every time you are feeling off, read one.
It's not just the food that goes into your mouth that is important, but also what kind of food your brain gets.
Think of what activity you expose yourself to. Are you sitting on your iPad all day or do you spend some time in nature? Monkey mind loves job and you should give it simple jobs after lunch, then it will calms itself. Go for a walk, clean up the house, and stay away from internet.
Thanks @Namada. I work in an office so I sit and stare at a screen for at least 7.5 hours a day.
I love the idea of getting out in nature but unfortunately I don't often get the chance.....there are other ways I find to calm the mind though.
I guess thats reason, office work can be very hard for the mind, its a lot of multitasking.
I sit in the control room infront of 7 pc monitors (not everyday, but very often), phones ringing, people on the radio, emails must be answered, and alarms beep. So Im being boiled alive, but when Iam finish,
I bicycles home and it takes about 45 minutes each way, then my mind can finally calm down.
Can you bike to work? If you can, I will absoulte recommend it, it is quite refreshing
Thanks but no. I actually live almost 100km from where I work so train is the only option.
Plus I wouldn't ride on the roads here. Know too many people who have been hit by cars or had near misses. Too dangerous.
Ok thats too far away, biking is risky sport if you do not have sidewalks to bicycles on, I almost never use the main road so I feel kind of safe.
We often think of nature as needing to get out on a hike in the woods or something. But nature is everything around us, including the ground, the plants, the trees. Even putting a houseplant at your desk brings benefits. If you have time on lunch, eat outside. Take your shoes off and put them in the grass at a park. It makes a big difference. Fresh air and sunshine is required for our health every bit as much as food is.
@Bunks when you say "Struggle to remain mindful" What exactly do you mean ?
Is it just a matter of the mind wandering/meandering ?
One can't get (or take) back so called unmindful moments, one can only becoming more aware of it happening ie, be mindful...
More often than not the mind becomes charmed by its own thoughts , however if one becomes accustom to the fact that thought itself is the thinker, ( spending time on the cushion, will help with this) awareness will eventually become the observer and the mind will not be dragged into the experience ... (when one overcomes the delusion within, the illusion without will subside)
If you are aware that this is happening...What would you call this awareness ? (clue it begins with "M"
)
What to eat and what not to eat may be of some importance, however "training the mind" (cushion time) is the key to maintaining an ongoing mindful state...But then I could well be just talking through my ass ( pun intended)
