by Christine McDermott, MS, RDN, CDE, BC-ADM, CDN
Intuitive What?
Intuitive Eating is an evidenced-based approach of a body-mind connection that guides your eating habits by listening to and honoring your body¹. So, what does that actually mean?
It means no counting calories, no counting macros, no counting points, it means listening to your internal hunger and satiety cues, it means trusting your mind and body.
The Intuitive Eating model is linked with some very positive outcomes:
- Decreased weight cycling
- Lower Body Mass Index (BMI)
- Improved body image
- Less disordered eating
- Increased self-trust
This may sound farfetched, particularly in our DIET culture today; lots of counting, restricting or elimination of food groups. Wouldn’t it be lovely if we could trust ourselves, trust our bodies, trust our minds and not focus so much on the scale or our appearance? Perhaps, we need to focus on our insides; healthy body and healthy mind!
Intuitive Eating was introduced in 1995 by two Dietitians, Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch, and is based on ten principles²:
- Reject the Diet Mentality
- Honor your Hunger
- Make Peace with Food
- Challenge the Food Police
- Respect your Fullness
- Discover the Satisfaction Factor
- Honor your Feelings without Food
- Respect Your Body
- Exercise-Feel the Difference
- Honor Your Health with Nutrition
Of course there are times that we can benefit from some structure in our meal plan combined with Intuitive Eating Principles. If you have been “dieting” for a long time, we invite you to consider implementing the above principles. There is no perfect eating plan. Now is the time to take care of our insides and the outside will follow.
If you are interested in learning more about these principles or meeting with one of our Registered Dietitian/Nutritionist, give the office a call at 631-740-9330 or visit our website to schedule an appointment at EastEndNutrition.com.
References:
- Tribole, Evelyn, and Elyse Resch. Intuitive eating: a revolutionary program that works. New York, St Martins Griffin, 2012.
- Evelyn Tribole interview on Christy Harrison’s podcast Food Psych-Episode #73
Comments