Meditation is a great way to realign your mood, checking in with yourself and something that you can do any time of day including after eating.
Some people prefer not to meditate after eating because they feel too full and sluggish due to the meal. It all comes down to your personal preference, but here are some pros and cons that can help you decide if meditating after eating is good for you.
Pros of Meditating After Eating
Here are some of the benefits of sitting down with a guided meditation after your meal.
1. You Won’t Be Distracted by Feelings of Hunger
One of the goals of meditation is to clear your mind of all distractions, which is hard to do when you’re hungry.
Hunger is more than a mental distraction; it is a physical condition accompanied by a drop in glucose levels that causes stress, anxiety, and even feelings of faintness.
By meditating after eating, you guarantee that you won’t be distracted by feelings of hunger.
2. You Can Help Your Digestive System
Digestion is an important bodily process that takes up a lot of energy. When you rush around immediately after eating, you are using up energy that should be going toward digesting your food properly.
Meditating after eating encourages you to direct that energy where it matters. There are even guided meditations specifically for aiding digestion after meals.
3. Encourages Mindfulness
One of the problems of modern life is that we are so frequently distracted, even during meals. When is the last time you sat with your food and savored the taste, or felt truly grateful that you had food on the table?
Meditating after eating is a way to be mindful when eating and recognize the wonderful gifts in something as a good meal.
4. You Will Feel More Relaxed
One of the prerequisites for a good meditation session is a feeling of calm and relaxation. This is hard to achieve if you’re thinking about how hungry you are or how you still have to cook dinner.
Meditating after you eat, when your body is full of serotonin and other relaxing chemicals a meal releases, means that you will find it much easier to relax.
5. You Can Challenge Yourself
While many people report finding it harder to meditate after eating, that is a benefit if you want to challenge yourself to meditate more.
Meditation is a useful tool to help you relax, so you should be able to use it in all conditions, not just when the timing is ideal. Meditating after eating can help you build up that strength.
Cons of Meditating After Eating
Even the most spiritual people tend to avoid meditating after eating, finding it difficult to achieve their goals for many reasons. Here are a few reasons why people don’t recommend meditating after eating.
1. You Will Feel Drowsy
Have you ever felt like taking a nap after a big meal? Digestion causes you to become sleepier for a few reasons, including a spike in blood sugar, an increase in tryptophan uptake, and activation of the parasympathetic nervous system.
If you spend all your time fighting to stay awake, it will not be a very productive meditation.
2. Digestion Uses a Lot of Energy
You may not consciously direct energy toward digestion, but your body does. It is a complicated process, and to make it work, after a meal, your body directs more of your energy and blood flow toward the digestive organs.
That means there is less energy left over for focusing on meditating.
3. You May Feel Physically Uncomfortable
Depending on the size of your meal, meditating after eating may not just be mentally taxing; it might be physically uncomfortable as well.
If you feel very full, it might be harder to get into the sitting position you normally use for meditating or even to engage in deep, diaphragmic breaths to get into your meditation. Meditation can be challenging, but it should never feel physically painful.
4. It Is Much Harder to Focus
Drowsiness, lack of energy, and digestive discomfort can mean that it is much harder to focus on meditation after a meal than it is before it.
If you are spending all of your time fighting your thoughts to meditate instead of focusing on your breath or the guided meditation, then you are not reaping the benefits of meditation and will get up feeling frustrated instead of relaxed.
5. It is Hard for Beginners
People who have been meditating for years and know how to control their thoughts can probably meditate even after a massive feast. However, if you are just starting out with meditation, then you will probably find it very hard to focus after a meal.
It is better to ease into meditation by creating the conditions you need to succeed rather than frustrating yourself with something you feel is impossible.
Can Meditation Be Done on A Full Stomach?
Meditation can be done on a full stomach if you feel comfortable enough to sit or lie down. If you feel overfull it is better to wait for 1-2 hours before meditating.
It will be easier to sit still and focus if you are not over full. Meditating on a full stomach can make you feel sluggish and drowsy. Even advanced yogis and meditators don’t recommend meditating on a full stomach.
Are There Any Foods to Avoid Eating Before Meditating?
If the only free time you have to meditate is after a meal, you can make it easier to meditate by avoiding certain foods. Avoid foods and drinks that make you jittery, like caffeine and sweets. Meat or dairy-heavy meals are also bad for your focus.
Conclusion
You can meditate anywhere and anytime, even after eating. However, meditating after a big meal where you are over full can make it harder to focus, so try to meditate beforehand instead.