In a culture filled with nutrition advice, food trends and diet rules, it’s easy to lose touch with one of our greatest sources of wisdom, our own bodies. As children, we were naturally intuitive eaters. We cried when hungry, stopped eating when we were satisfied and trusted our body’s internal cues without overthinking them.
Intuitive eating is an evidence-based framework that helps you create a healthy relationship with food and your body. It teaches you to reconnect to your body’s internal cues of satisfaction, hunger and fullness — without relying on diets or rigid food rules. If you have a history of dieting, you may find it difficult to recognize when you’re truly hungry because you’ve learned to ignore those signals.
Overtime, delaying or restricting food can leave your body overly hungry, increasing the likelihood of overeating or binge eating later. Similarly, intuitive eating also encourages you to notice when you feel satisfied, giving yourself permission to stop eating, even if there’s food still left on your plate.
One way to practice intuitive eating is by engaging in mindful eating. Mindful eating encourages you to be present in the moment by slowing down and using all of your senses to experience and enjoy the food you are eating.
Use this guide during your next meal:
- Sit down, take a few breaths, remove distractions and give your full attention to your meal.
- Rate your level of hunger (0-10).
- Examine your food, noticing colors, shapes, textures and sizes.
- Thank the people and effort that went into preparing your food.
- Smell your food and notice the aromas.
- Taste your food, slowly chewing, noticing flavors and textures.
- Consider eating with your non-dominant hand or putting your utensil down between bites to slow down and savor the experience.
- Enjoy each moment with your full attention and each taste as if it were your first. Notice when your mind wants to rush or is eating without tasting.
- Rate your level of fullness (0-10). Observe how your fullness changes during the meal and when your body is comfortably satisfied.
Be curious about what you observed from this experience. With time, you will become more attuned to your body’s physiological cues, making it easier to nourish yourself based on what your body needs, rather than on a habit, emotion or food trend.
While diets will come and go, being attuned to your body and its messages will be a guide to you your entire life.
With intuitive eating, you’ll learn to recognize which foods help your body feel nourished, energized and strong. You will also notice yourself experiencing more satisfaction and enjoyment in food, rebuilding trust in your body, one meal at a time.
More information is found in the book “Intuitive Eating,” written by registered dieticians, Evelyn Tribole and Elyshe Resch.
