The One Minute Rule

The one minute rule

I am definitely not into rules when it comes to food—with one exception. The one minute rule.

I used to take forevvvvvvvvver trying to decide what to eat. I would debate endlessly with myself. I would “weigh” all the options (mentally and often, literally--placing food in a measuring cup). I’d consider what I should and shouldn’t eat, and when I should and shouldn’t eat it. 

So much ruminating, fretting, and stressing about meals. It sucked up so much time. So much mental anguish. Totally exhausting. And honestly? So boring.

Nowadays, I give myself the one minute.  

I ask my body:

What do I want?  

What would taste good?  

What sounds nourishing right now?

If that’s not available, what’s the next best/closest thing?

I check in with my body for a minute or so. I wait for the answer. Which might be “chilled watermelon” or “pasta with pesto and sun dried tomatoes” or “chocolate” or whatever. Then I go with that. No second guessing. Done. Onward we go. 

If what my body wants is not available, then I go with the next best thing. No watermelon? An apple will be fine. No pasta in the cupboard? Guess we’re doing couscous tonight instead. Close enough. 

You can apply the one minute rule at home, at the grocery store, at restaurants, wherever you are. 

There’s no need for a two-hour Presidential Candidate Debate about what’s for dinner tonight! A minute is all you need. Tune into your body and whatever it tells you—there you go.

Taking five, ten, or fifteen minutes to decide what to eat isn’t productive and doesn’t lead to “better choices.” It just makes you stressed and miserable, robbing you of precious time that could be spent doing...literally anything else.

You’ll probably have over 1,000 meals this year. Make a quick decision and move on, so that you only spend 1,000 minutes thinking about what to eat instead of 300,000 minutes or more. The minutes really add up. 

Trust your body and get on with your day.

Spend fewer minutes in food-anguish, and more minutes savoring and enjoying your food, your loved ones, and your life.

xoxo, 

PS.  Stressing about what to do with Halloween candy for your kids? Join me this week on FB live at 2pm EST and we'll discuss!
PPS. Yoga on demand is waiting for you here.