This is quite a big subject but one I feel we should cover as I am guessing that many of us have been on diets right?
And I am also betting that each time you have hoped that this time it will be different. Unfortunately I am gonna be the barer of bad news, it won’t.
When we go on a diet there are always a set of rules and usually quite extreme, black and white, all or nothing and mostly good or bad, whether its good or bad food, or you being good or bad, eating what is considered to be good or bad food OR not exercising enough to burn off that so called bad food. The diet is a way of being in control and there are no middle or grey areas.
This cycle takes a lot of our mental and emotional energy to keep going and your body will use whatever fuel you give it to keep you going through working, playing, movement and rest. The dictated diet rules are from either an expert, a book or magazine or even self imposed and your decision is not an intuitive one its very much rigidly controlled and the diet rules dictate down to even how you feel on a certain day (I kept to my diet, I feel good!)
A LOT of your time is spent thinking about food, sticking to the rules and your whole life is revolving around food, exercise and weight, and, instead of being enjoyed exercise is often used to earn your right to eat or as a penance for eating that ‘bad’ food.
The rules of a diet focus on food, which does not give you the full picture of why you want to eat in the first place and when your being ‘good’ you feel deprived and when you ‘cheat’ you feel guilty. Either way you’re very rarely at peace with the choices you make.
This is what causes a common diet cycle, yo-yo dieting, from one extreme to the other diet, or binge. You’re either so tightly bound up with the diet rules or you are unraveling and overeating, hitting that emotional bottom again.
I can honestly say intuitive eating is the opposite. There are no strict rules to follow, instead YOU are the expert as you determine when, what and how much you eat, but not only that you instinctively know what foods are best for you when you want to eat too, with no guilt attached.
You begin to understand the reasons behind your overeating and what you can do about it. And you discover that its possible to balance your eating for nourishment and for enjoyment – honestly you’re not always eating salads as you are the one in charge here.
There isn’t a need for an endless supply of willpower or self – control, you learn the what triggers you to reach for food in the first place, and most importantly you will understand what your other needs are that you have been trying to satisfy by eating.
Intuitive eating is eating what you love, without obsession. A natural trust in your body which guides you to let you know what, when and how much to eat and lets you see food in its proper function, to nourish and fuel you in your wonderful fulfilling life.
That feeling of being out of control or the feeling to be in control is no longer apparent as you are in charge.
Learning to trust your own primal instincts can be a scary prospect and there are a lot of reasons that can have disconnected you from your bodies own wisdom. Reconnecting with such a powerful source of information is so crucial to resolve your eating issues so that you’re able to respond to your true needs without using food and most importantly, healing your relationship with your body.
Intuitive eating is how we can reconnect mind, body and soul, creating that trust in our own selves, giving our body the love it deserves, without judgement, just care.
So why do I practice mindful eating? For years I was an emotional eater – for over 20 years in fact, whether it was binging, restrictive eating or even thinking that I didn’t deserve to eat, food had that control and I knew another diet wasn't the answer as if it was, it would have worked and I wouldn’t need another diet.
Diets weren’t working and that’s not because I was a bad person, diets don't work fundamentally for 98% of the population as they are a tool for judgement and put food on a pedestal when lets be honest if anyone should be on a pedestal it should be us, right?
Intuitive eating just made sense, understanding to eat when my body is hungry, getting to know exactly what food it is that my body needs, tuning into what movement brings me joy and relaxing my body and mind to replenish.
So in my coaching we start by taking you on your intuitive eating journey and giving you, excuse the pun, some food for thought.
