Start Slow: The Best Thing You Can Do For Your Children’s Health With Qi Gong Master Lee Holden

Set up lifelong healthy eating habits in your children using techniques inspired by Qi Gong and the Power of Slow with Lee Holden.

Photo Credit: Lee Holden

Raising happy, healthy children takes a lot of effort. Known as ‘the art of effortless power,’ the ancient Chinese art of Qi Gong can help remove some of the load. When it comes to showing children a healthy eating lifestyle and instilling a positive relationship with food, Qi Gong Master Lee Holden has the key to planting habits in your children that will benefit them for a lifetime.

Food, eating, and bodies can be rife with psychological issues that are hard not to pass down to the next generation. Even against their will, parents can pass on their insecurities to the absorbent little sponges taking in every nuance of tone and expression.

Disordered eating is a real problem for many and Holden’s new book, Ready, Set, Slow: How to Improve Your Energy, Health, and Relationships Through the Power of Slow, (available in January 2025) addresses this issue.

The Slow principles helped Holden create a bespoke ‘Qi Flow’ program in the ‘Beyond the Scale’ section for Weight Watchers, an organization focused on creating a happy, healthy lifestyle for individuals. “92 percent of the Weight Watchers members reported feeling better, more motivated, and able to make healthier choices. The program I ran using the Slow Principles turned out to be the highest-rated program the company had ever piloted,” Holden says in his new book.

Photo Credit: Lee Holden

Here are some examples showing how you can incorporate Slow principles into your children’s eating habits. The following exercises have been adapted from Ready, Set, Slow: How to Improve Your Energy, Health, and Relationships Through the Power of Slow by Lee Holden (January 2025). Reprinted with permission from the publisher, Sounds True:

Mealtime Mindfulness

1. Sit down at the table with your meal (yes, a table, not in front of the TV!).
2. Take a second to gaze lovingly at your food.
3. Take a sniff . . . what aromas can you smell?
4. Take a deep breath before taking your first bite.
5. Notice the flavors, textures, and temperature of your food, chewing thoroughly but enjoying the experience. Is it delicious? Allow yourself to let out an “Mmmmm.”
6. Put down your knife and fork (or spoon or chopsticks, whatever you’re using), and don’t be tempted to prepare your next mouthful while eating. Always put down your cutlery between bites.
7. Swallow.
8. Take another deep breath.
9. Pick up your cutlery again and repeat until you feel full.

32 Second Chew

According to Intestinal Labs and the most recent science, the optimal number of chews is 32 over a 32-second period. That’s 32 chews per mouthful of food.

Holden recognizes it is not always possible to chew that many times so in certain cases, advises that you encourage your child to chew slowly on the first bite. This helps encourage the body to begin the process of digestion and send satiety signals.

Taking time to slow down can enrich your life in multiple ways, as well as transform your relationship with food and eating. With his new book as a practical guide to the Power of Slow, Holden is energizing the world, one reader at a time. 

To discover more about Lee Holden and his exclusive Qi Gong healing programs, check out his website. You can pre-order his book here.