First, thanks for landing here. I actually stressed over this blog post intro and then figured, “what if I just thanked them for landing here?!” So…just thanks for being here.
Perhaps you’re reading this because you’ve “tried everything.” You’ve done the points, you’ve done the tracking apps, you’ve calculated macros, or you’ve purchased the shakes and the programs. You’ve done the gym memberships, you’ve set goals, you’ve stopped and started countless times. Perhaps you struggle with an all-or-nothing mentality and find yourself ditching every program after the slightest pitfall.
And yet…something is nudging you that there must be more to the story than this. Perhaps something is nudging you telling you that there has to be more to life than just being at war with your body and at war with food your whole life.
I’m here to honor whatever it is that brought you here.
I’m also here to let you know that yes, that little nudge is right, there is more to life than being at war with yourself.
“Life is too short.
Too short to be at war with your body.
To be at war with food.
To be at war with movement.
To be at war with your thoughts.
To be at war with your negative self-talk.”
Maybe you’ve heard of “intuitive eating” but you’re not quite sure what exactly it is.
Let’s start there.
What is Intuitive Eating?
Intuitive Eating is a self-care based approach to nutrition that debunks diet culture, encourages one to reconnect with his or her appetite, and offers freedom from the traps of endless and cyclical dieting.
Think of Intuitive Eating as the ”undiet diet.” It is a pathway for you to reconnect with your hunger cues, to fuel your body with what you want and need, to check-in with how certain foods make you think and feel, and to ultimately live a life free from dieting.
Okay, cool – but like what is it?
Great question! I see you 😉
Intuitive Eating has, in a nutshell, ten principles. It’s important to note that these principles are guidelines and not “rules” for yet another diet. Plus, the ten principles can be implemented gradually or all or once – did someone say all-or-nothing mentality earlier?!
Here are a few of the principles of Intuitive Eating:
- Reject the diet mentality
- Honor your hunger
- Make peace with food
- Full your fullness
- Cope with your emotions with kindness
- Honor your health with gentle nutrition
A more detailed breakdown of Intuitive Eating, and the best in-depth book I’ve ever read on the topic is “Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionary Anti-Diet Approach” by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch.
“I want to lose weight” – will this help me lose weight?
This is also a great question! And one many of my clients naturally come to me with. You’re at a place in your journey where you’ve tried it all. Maybe you’ve even obsessed over the scale for years and years – and I get it. It’s what all of us, particularly women, have been told and taught to do.
What I say to clients asking this question is this (or some variation)…it is a process.
As a process and true lifestyle, Intuitive Eating debunks the overarching cultural goal of weight loss. Furthermore, it celebrates body diversity and rejects the “one-size-fits-all” mentality.
If your goal is to lose weight, do not lose heart. Many intuitive eaters, myself included, have experienced weight loss at a sustainable and maintainable rate. As one gradually challenges the way one experiences and observes diet culture, gets in tune with biological hunger and satiety cues, and embraces ways to honor their wellbeing (both emotional and physically, the intuitive eater becomes untriggered by diet culture, food choices, and the assumption that all we are put on this earth to do is look thin.
Is this right for me?
Wouldn’t that be great?! But the answer may not be what you expect here.
One thing that I love about Intuitive Eating is that it’s really shifted my perception away from how I look and onto how I feel. Which is something many people say they want but still have a hard time truly believing.
As an indoor cycling instructor, I’ve had to really embrace the fact that my body is utilized differently depending on my ride load and other planned movements throughout the week. The beauty of IE is that I am able to tap into my internal biological cues to truly give my body what it needs rather than deprive or go overboard with certain foods in the name of macronutrients. I’m able to feel my energy and gauge how I need to eat in order to execute life in general (& those runs out of the saddle too).
If you’ve got drastic (perhaps even unrealistic) goals for 30 pounds in 30 days – perhaps this isn’t the direction for you. If that’s the case, I would encourage you to challenge what external sources you are consuming and what is promoting things like this in your life.
If you’ve got some unfavorable blood work back from your physician and they want you to “work on it” – Intuitive Eating along with regular movement (another encouragement from IE) is a great way to focus your efforts on the lifestyle changes that you’ve been looking for.
If you’re seeking to establish a healthy relationship with food once and for all, Intuitive Eating has helped individuals unpack harmful food narratives, cope with their emotions without feeling the need to seek comfort via food, and truly gain a different perspective on food and wellness.
This sounds right up my alley – how do I get started?
A great way to get started is to do your own research – youtube videos and podcasts are great free resources that are introductory.
The book I mentioned earlier is also a great place to start if you’re ready to dive in. Plus there are plenty of other books on the topic you can find with a simple Amazon search.
If you’re in the market for a coach who will meet you where you’re at and guide you through what this IE can do for you – I’ve got you covered with 1:1 Coaching. I offer free discovery calls for all so we can see if we’d be a good match.
Lastly.
Intuitive Eating is a unique approach to food that empowers individuals to challenge and ditch diet culture, embrace natural hunger cues, learn to cope with emotions with kindness, and to invite gentle nutrition into the approach to food. Intuitive Eating can be done at any time of the day and at any time of the year. It offers grace and insights to the endless dieter who simply needs to get off the diet roller coaster once and for all.
Sure we can do all the tracking. We can do the points. We can do all the diet programs. But is that what you were made to do? Were you created to enjoy life and not stress about your next meal, not stress about your tracking app not having your lunch option, or not stress about starting over again and again.
You were made for more, my friend. Peace with food is available to you – keep leaning in.
Until next time.
Much Love
-NRP
Leave a Reply