Eating at table and chair might not be good for health! But the age old Indian way of sitting on the floor and eating is all scientific and the right way to eat as well. When we sit down to eat in India we generally sit cross-legged which is also a posture in yoga known as sukhasana or padmasana.
1. You don't just sit on the floor, you do yoga.
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So when you sit in Sukhasana and eat, not only you are eating but you are multi-tasking and doing yoga at the same time. The posture allows you to calm the mind and applies pressure to the lower spine which may facilitate relaxation.
2. Helps in digesting food.
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When you sit on the floor and bend forward to eat and go back to your natural position. This back and forth movement helps muscles in the abdomen to secrete digestive juices, and helps in digesting the food properly and quickly.
3. Makes your body stronger and flexible.
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When you squat or sit in Padmasana, the muscles in your lower back, pelvis and around your stomach stretch reducing pain and uneasiness. The regular stretching of these vital muscles also helps make you flexible and fit.
4. Helps in managing weight issues.
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Doing some sort of physical activity is advised by doctors, but when it’s time to eat, the best thing to do is to sit on the floor. This also involves exercise when you sit down and get up.
5. Improves family bonding.
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Eating in India is a family activity with everyone sitting together to eat. The ritual improves the bonding with the family. Also the posture relaxes the body and is actually good to have a happy and relaxed family get together.
6. Improves the body posture.
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This posture is good enough to stay healthy and fit. When we sit on the floor our body posture is automatically corrected with our back straight, expanding our spine and pushing our shoulders back, beating all the frequent pain and aches that are caused due to bad posture.
7. It improves blood circulation and makes the heart stronger.
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Sitting cross legged improves the blood circulation in our body as it relaxes the nerves and the pressure on it. One of digestion’s most important element is sound blood circulation. To keep up with this process, our heart tends to work overtime to help out our digestive system. Here is where sitting on the floor and eating can help out.
8. It makes you more humble.
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There is a reason monks meditate on the floor and not on chairs! According to many religious and spiritual beliefs when you sit on the floor at the same level as children and animals, it is easier for you to connect with the spiritual side. If other reasons haven't made you slide off your chair then you might just consider this one!
9. Humans were not conditioned to sit on chairs.
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Sitting and eating is a recent phenomena in India. Even maharajas used to sit on the floor and eat! In so many parts of India and Asia chairs are still not common. That humans can sit on the floor with such ease, is a clear evidence that our bodies have been taking up these positions for a long time.
10. Relaxes the mind and calms the nerves.
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Sukhasana and padmasana postures calm the mind and relaxes tensed nerves. In Ayurveda, eating with a calm and peaceful mind helps aid in better digestion.
