Eating mindfully can be challenging. One thing I find really helpful is noticing the little “wins” with food. This sounds simple, but it is a small thing that can make a huge difference in how we feel about our journey. I had a perfect example of this happen for me today. I went into Starbucks planning to order my typical drink when I saw that the pumpkin spice latte came out today. Now pumpkin spice lattes were a very forbidden thing for many years for me. I love them, but limited them to just one on my birthday every year. This was largely out of fear of weight gain. (One year I drank them every day through the fall and gained about 20 pounds during that time frame. Ever since, they had been tied together in my mind).

Today, I decided to order the pumpkin spice latte. Again, a seemingly small decision but it broke a years old food rule in my mind. Must have pumpkin spice latte only on birthday. Now, I certainly could have done this and gone about my day without giving this a lot of thought. That said, that would not do a lot to help me feel successful about my food journey. It’s important we take the time to notice our successes. This is what fuels us to continue on our journey! In my example from today, I took a minute or two when I got back to my office to think about what a big step this was for me and really relish the changes I have made in my relationship with food. By doing this, instead of feeling guilt for having this forbidden drink, I feel a sense of pride in my accomplishments. That is why focusing on these little wins really makes all the difference in continuing successfully with our mindful eating journey.