Intuitive Eating Check-in 3/18-24

G

getyourfreakon0402

New Member
Hi Jillybean, Sarah, Hollycat, and all others interested,

This check-in was started from the discussion about nutrition books that encourage healthy eating but maintain a healthy relationship to food. The book "Intuitive Eating" came up and, well, the book is amazing. It gives eight steps of intuitive eating and the first is rejecting the diet mentality and the second is honoring your hunger. Personally I'll be focusing on these two things for the next week. Feel free to post about any of the steps or follow them in order or anything about intuitive eating. Next week I'll post the next step in addition to the first two. I'm so glad you all were interested in this check-in and look forward to hearing your thoughts and experiences. I'm thoroughly convinced that this will lead to a healthier, happier me. Heck, I'm already much happier! Thank you so much to who suggested this book!

Jen
 
Hey! Well I have come so far... no longer looking at foods as good or bad, and learning that food is not the enemy. I'm learning that if you eat when you're hungry and stop when you're full, you can't go wrong. Easier said than done for sure, but we're all human and can't be perfect all the time... IE has changed my life more than anyone will ever know! I was 88 lbs and am now around 100-105, and likely to gain... at 5'5" I can stand to gain. Most important to me, though, is that IE helped me to break out of my food hell and free myself from the restrictive way of thinking. Now I strive for health and food that taste's good! And I look at my set backs as learning experiences rather than as failures. Everyday is a new chance to learn about your body and practice the principles of IE... some days are better than others, but we must remember that WE are in control, NOT THE FOOD! Eat well to live well!
Healthy regards to all,
Sara
Remember, if you don't love it, don't eat it, and if you love it SAVOR IT!
:0)
 
I've been trying to incorporate IE for a couple of weeks now, and am finding that I'm fluctuating between progression, and degression. Some days are good eating days, some days are still restricting days, and at moments, I've overindulged (not really binged though) on my food obsession, Peanut Butter and pretzels, when I'm not even hungry!! I'm trying to stay focused on my goal, which is to just feed my body. I'm a recovering anorexic, and have been restricting to probably 500-700 cals a day for over a year. Now that I'm increasing, I'm scared that I'm going to gain a ton of weight, which I think is to some degree, hindering me from following IE more strictly!! Gosh ... the world must've been WAY more fun before some idiot invented diets!! My goal is to just flip the finger to the diet mindset, and live well, eat well, and enjoy all of God's blessings.

Hope everyone else is doing FAB!!
Lots of HUGS!
Nic14
 
Thanks for this thread. I just checked this book out of the library because I saw it mentioned on one of the fitness forums. (Maybe here?) I've been lurking here occasionally since the Firm Forum went down. (Also FitPrime and VF)

Anyhow, I had read a very similar book about 9-10 years ago, "Overcoming Overeating: Living Free in a World of Food."

It really helped me, but it's amazing how easily a person can slip back into the diet mentality. I will never diet again, and haven't for years, but I can easily get into a variation of the good food/bad food mentality because I worry about eating enough fruit and vegetables. The book helped a lot, just to ease up on myself. I actually do pretty well, because I like cereal and fruit, and my suppers usually have veggies in them. But when I start looking at things in terms of "shoulds" and "wants," that's heading down the wrong road again.

I've had IBS problems for a while now, and I was kind of searching for a magical food solution, but just relaxing about what to eat is helping! Good luck to all of you. My tip for the day is NOT to look at any of the Nutrition or so called "clean eating" sites or posts!! Be gone, you have no power here!

Kathy
 
Hi everyone,

Okay, so I haven't checked out the book yet, but I will probably order it from Amazon.com today. I don't know how to even begin to start rejecting the diet mentality. It seems like second nature to me. And I also need to figure out what hunger means to me. I've denied my physiological appetites for so long, by either starving myself to the point of losing hunger, or eating when I'm not hungry, that I don't know when I'm physically hungry. I know what starvation feels like, but I've always gotten confused on what "hunger" to a normal person is. Is it the start of beginning to feel peckish, or when the stomach starts growling, or is it the point at which you feel you can't do another thing without eating? Probably somewhere in between.

I am looking forward to reading the book and sharing ideas with all of you.

And for those who are recently recovering from anorexia...hang in there. Being a normal, healthy weight is well worth it!

Take care,
Holly
 
Hi guys! Well I completely understand how easy it is to slip back into the restrictive way of thinking! The thing is you have to catch yourself and recognize those thoughts, and then flip them the finger! It takes practice but the more you do it, the easier it becomes. And I, too, ingored my true hunger for years and had the hardest time tuning into my body's signals when I finally "broke free", but it gets easier every day. I was so accustomed to certain "set meal times" where I was allowed to eat a certain number of calories, and ingnored both hunger and fullness. I ate the measured and portioned food on my plate... if I was still hungy, too bad, and if I was too full, oh well... I forgot how to enjoy food! But with the help of IE and my very good friend Nicole, as well as family and friends and a great nutritionist, I am kicking this thing in the ass! I'm getting it down, and soon it will be second nature to me. I still exercise because it makes me feel good, and most times I naturally reach for more healthful fare... I love tofu, fruit, veggies, whole grains, etc... but, if I want some ice cream, I'll have some! And for the first time in years there are no guilty feelings attached. My goal now is to eat more slowly and enjoy my food more. One day at a time, one step at a time, we can do it! Good luck, and happy eating and living to all!
Sara
 
"the world must've been WAY more fun
before some idiot invented diets!! My goal is to just flip the finger to the
diet mindset, and live well, eat well, and enjoy all of God's blessings. "

LOL!!!! Nic14 you are so on the money. Ya know, I've got this growing belief that the more we can just forget about weight, focus on feeling really good, then the weight will actually take care of itself...but you can't think about it. Crazy. I think we're really onto something here!! Keep flipping those diets off, girl!
 
feeling hunger

Yeah, feeling hunger is weird and they talk about it in the book A LOT. Like how dieters are used to ignoring it and can even be afraid to feel it. To me, hunger is when my stomach just starts to feel a bit hollow. If I ignore it for an hour or so then it starts to affect my mental energy. I get confused when my mental energy is low, but there's no rumbly in my tummy and it's a tough call whether to eat or not...so I'm much better off answering the first call of my stomach for food. It's a leap of faith that I think we're all so worth!
 
Sarah, I love your attitude :) It's funny, I do find myself saying more and more loudly to myself "#*$@! dieting" and now after doing this for a little bit I'm already starting to feel the trust grow. Of course, a couple hours ago I started to feel hungry and was just like oh no! What in the heck am I gonna eat! It's just so weird not dieting and not having a diet tell me what to eat. How lame is that? I don't let anybody tell me what to do but I was letting diet do that? Sheesh.

Again, I can't say how glad I am to be stepping off of the diet train. Thank you all of you.

Kathy, good idea not checking the diet/nutrition related posts - not to say that they're wrong for everyone but oh yeah, they are so wrong for me and anyone doing IE.
 
RE: feeling hunger

I just ordered IE from half.com for $7.50 including shipping. Here's a link for all the copies at half.com http://www.half.com/cat/buy/prod.cgi?cpid=102890&domain_id=1856

I also ordered Power Eating and one other about eating to fuel your training. I love that! I struggle sometimes, not to feel guilty and anxious about eating of all things! I continually equate my food intake with my exercise output but I work it all out and I know I am healthy. My diet is rich in foods that give me energy and keep me healthy and ward off cancer and disease! If I am occassionally obsessive about healthy eating, I can live with that! You have to train smart to train long and you have to eat well to train well.
Happy Training!


Bobbi http://www.plaudersmilies.de/chicken.gif Chick's Rule!
 
Jen, your plan for an IE check-in is wonderful! I've followed this general idea for a while and it helped me lose 20# and keep it off for over 2 years (I even had a baby in between but the baby weight came off within 6 months). In HS I was borderline anorexic but gained tons of weight during college and has problems keeping it down in spite of constantly exercising. IE helped me get back in touch with my body. Sorry if this sounds too touchy-feely but it's true :)

I haven't read the IE book but Debra Waterhouse is a big proponent of listening to your body (her book, "Outsmarting the Female Fat Cell" is where I discovered the whole concept). The ironic thing for me is that all diets honestly didn't work -- even when I followed them perfectly -- and this was the only thing that did. I found that my body has an amazing ability to "tell me" when it is hungry and how much it wants. Dieting messes that whole process up. So good luck to all and I know you'll find success!
 
Holly,

Did you ever post to the Firm Forum? Your name looks familiar. As far as what hunger feels like, I think it's different for everyone, so you'll probably need to experiment a little. It may take a little while to figure it out. I usually get a little rumbly in my tumbly. I used to hate and fear being hungry because in high school (I'm 44 now) I just brutalized myself when it came to the binge/starve cycle. Now, when I start to feel pangs, I think, "Oh, goody. Time for something yummy!" I'm in a date bar phase right now.

This is a great discussion! For those of you who are new to this, and are worried about being able to quit the diet mentality, you can do it. If I can, anyone can! I actually pretty much ended the diet/binge cycle when I was 30, but in times of stress, it's easier to focus on something that seems like it can be "controlled." The thing that got me started down the antidiet road was when I started running. I felt so good about myself that I decided I deserved to never have to diet any more.

Take care!
Kathy
 
Hi Missys_mom,

Thank you! It's great to hear these success stories of a different sort, supporting the idea that we don't need to be on a diet. It's ironic, one of the reasons I've been using in past months and diets for dieting was because I wanted to learn healthy eating so that if/when I had children I would be able to help them so they never had to deal with it. I was well on the road to cementing an obsessive, bad relationship with food that definitely would affect any child I raised. In fact, I'm becoming more aware of how my diet mentality has encouraged a diet mentality in others. Boy, do I feel bad about that. Sad but true how it's easier to see things in others. Watching people eat, how they choose and what they say has taken on a new dimension. So many just seem full of guilt and I know I've been that way. No more. Thank you for the support and the vote of confidence.

Have a good day!
Jen
 
Hey Kathy,

I'm 30 right now...I guess it's time!!!! Wooohooo, no more dieting, that's all I gotta say ;)

J.

p.s. I love that "rumbly in my tumbly" description :)
 
Jen,

I had to reply to your thoughts about good eating habits for kids. I started running/stopped dieting just after my 14 year old was born, so neither one of my kids got brainwashed about dieting. Anyhow, my 14 yo went through a long period of being overweight. She is quite big boned, and just really loves to eat. My husband used to get on her case A LOT and it caused numerous arguments (between him and me.) I knew it would just make matters worse. She went through a growth spurt, as all girls do, slimmed down considerably, and I think she looks great! She's very tall, about 5'9" and is probably heavier than average, but she's curvy and purportionate, (sp?) and as far as I can tell, quite happy with her body. Quite the clothes horse. She does eat a lot of junk, but doesn't every teen? I hope she never gets caught up in the diet mentality. I talk to both of my girls about how damaging it is.

As for me, I still have to learn to stay off the scale!
 
Hi Kathy,

Yes, I post on the Firm Forum (when it was up and running, anyway).

Thanks for the feedback. It sounds like a lot of us have similar stories.

I would love to write more but I'm at work and it probably wouldn't be prudent.

I'm looking forward to receiving IE any day now in the mail. I read the intro on Amazon.com and it sounds like just what I need.

Take care,
Holly
 
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