Intuitive Eating: What Is It and Does It Really Work?

I’m sure many of you would agree with me that diets always seem to overpromise and under-deliver. Plus, all the rules that accompany these diet plans can cause a lot of stress and frustration. If you’ve been thinking it’s time for a different approach while prepping for your wedding, allow me to introduce you to intuitive eating. It entails no calorie counting and no forbidden foods. Yes, really! If you’re ready to break up with dieting for good, read on to learn what intuitive eating is and how it can benefit you.

We’re all born as intuitive eaters

Babies are natural intuitive eaters. They cry to signal hunger, eat until they’re satisfied, and then stop eating. As we grow up, however, rules and restrictions are set around food, causing us to lose touch with our inner intuition. We’re told to finish everything on our plates whether we’re hungry or not. We learn that dessert is a reward that can be taken away if we misbehave. We’re told that certain foods are good and others are bad, leading you to feel guilty when you eat something on the “bad” list. Over time, we adopt these rules and follow them without questioning how they’re making us feel, physically and mentally.

What is intuitive eating?  

Intuitive eating is essentially the opposite of a traditional diet. It doesn’t impose rules, tell you to count points or calories, or label foods as “good” or “bad.” Instead, it encourages you to re-learn how to eat outside the diet mentality, putting the focus on your natural internal cues like hunger, fullness, and satisfaction. 

Learning to trust your body

Intuitive eaters give themselves unconditional permission to eat whatever they want without feeling guilty, whether that’s a salad or pizza. When many people hear that all foods are fair game, they think that they’ll surely just want to eat cake, pizza, and cheeseburgers for the rest of their lives. While it’s normal to initially go a little overboard on foods that were previously “off limits,” something really incredible happens if you continue to eat intuitively. You’ll eventually notice that once you’re given permission to eat these “taboo” foods and truly don’t feel deprived of them anymore, they lose their irresistible pull. With time, you’ll settle into this sweet spot where your eating naturally becomes balanced, intuitive, and stress free. 

The 10 principles of intuitive eating

Intuitive eating—as defined by its creators, dieticians Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch—is made up of ten core principles:

1. Reject the diet mentality
2. Honor your hunger
3. Make peace with food
4. Challenge the food police
5. Discover the satisfaction factor
6. Feel your fullness
7. Cope with emotions with kindness
8. Respect your body
9. Feel the difference with movement
10. Honor your health with gentle nutrition

I recommend you read about each of the principles here to gain a better understanding of the various pillars of this approach and how they relate to each other.

Does this approach really work?

While it might seem a bit nerve-wracking to give yourself permission to eat whatever you want after a lifetime of dieting, there are over 100 research studies that have demonstrated the benefits of intuitive eating. These include:

• Higher self-esteem
• Better body image
• More satisfaction with life
• More optimism
• Better coping skills
• Higher HDL cholesterol levels
• Lower triglyceride levels
• Lower rates of emotional eating
• Lower rates of disordered eating
  
  

The bottom line

Intuitive eating is about tuning into your body, listening to it, and trusting it to tell you when, what, and how much to eat. When you adopt this approach, many people find that they’re also able to let go of the idea that you need to lose or gain weight so you can look a certain way. It’s pretty incredible what happens when you learn to trust yourself and your body. Are you ready to take a leap of faith and try something new?