What Even Is Intuitive Eating?

I’m a big believer that it’s not just the food and it’s specific nutrition facts that make up a healthy meal- but also the mindset in which you approach eating.

Studies show that 100% of diets fail over time. Even diets that market themselves as ~lifestyle shifts~. The only eating practice that is shown to  be sustainable ing term is intuitive eating- and anyone who uses intuitive eating as a diet is missing the point. When you restrict, your body is going to experience excess stress (which can cause you to hold onto fat bc it’s afraid of starving) and psychologically, it’s going to make you so obsessed with the food you’re depriving yourself of, that you end up binging on it later. 

Intuitive eating is a method developed by Evelyn Tribole l and Elyse Reisch, authors of the ultimate guide: Intuitive Eating, which is the very first book on intuitive eating you should read- but for further investigation, check out the rest of the recommendations in my Prop Shop. The following principles are taken directly from this book- but explained in my own voice.

1. Reject The Diet Mentality

The sooner you let go of the idea that diets work and let yourself feel angry about the fact that popular culture pushes them constantly- disguised as health. Take your time with this- because if you keep the notion that you just haven’t found the “right” diet yet lurk, it’ll be difficult to actually practice intuitive eating or listen to your body.

2. Honor Your Hunger

Stop trying to quell hunger- it’s a biological tool that we need to function. If you deprive yourself of energy and carbs, you’re likely to activate a primal (aka you have no control over it) urge to overeat. This creates a restrict/binge cycle that you feel helpless about. Responding to your hunger with nourishment also communicates to your body that you’re paying attention, and helps build your intuitive skills and your self-trust.

3. Make Peace With Food

Similar to trying to force yourself to not feel hungry, when you label foods as “good”, “bad”, “clean”, or “dirty”- you’ll develop intense cravings for “forbidden” food that gets in the way of your body’s ability to stop when you’re full, not to mention the guilt cycle that comes afterwards.

4. Challenge The Food Police

Remember that food is inanimate and doesn’t have a moral value. Don’t beat yourself up for eating fear foods, and don’t let yourself feel superior for eating a low calorie count or adhering to a strict menu. Our inner judgemental voice is a product of our conditioning- so taking some time to suss out where you picked up your beliefs about food and weight can be invaluable in unpacking them.

5. Discover The Satisfaction Factor

Eating purely to make your body run vs. eating to experience the sensory pleasures of foods are two different things- and pleasurable food doesn’t inherently = unhealthy. When you eat the food you actually want, instead of only letting yourself have the “healthified” version or trying to convince yourself you really want celery instead- you experience real satiation and feel emotionally fulfilled enough to know when your hunger has passed.

6. Feel Your Fullness

Circling back to the idea of self-trust, when you consistently reaffirm to your body that you’re paying attention to it’s cues, the cues get louder. Figure out what your individual fullness cues are, what being overly full feels like, and what your hunger feels like, as physical sensations helps clarify this. Pay attention to your food using all your senses.

7. Cope With Your Emotions With Kindness

As human beings, we’re excellent disassociators when things get tough. It’s much easier to find comfort in food (or alcohol, or drugs etc;) than it is to feel difficult emotions. Creating a game plan that allows you to feel the hard stuff will make it easier to not turn to food as an emotional crutch. Comfort food is called comfort food for a reason, because food is a powerful way of self- soothing, and it has its place- but without dealing with the source of the issue, it won’t help.

8. Respect Your Body

Understand, accept, and even celebrate your genetic predisposition. Intuitive eating uses the example that a person with a size 8 can never have a size 6 foot. Body size is similar. You can suffer and restrict and force you way to a smaller weight, but it will never be natural or sustainable. Honoring your genetic blueprint, or the size you live at without extraordinary measures like crash dieting and overexercising, and being your healthiest self at that size, is where you’ll thrive. Traditionally, the wellness industry has made us believe that the beauty ideal is what true health looks like, exclusively. While models and celebrities certainly can be healthy at those standards, it doesn’t mean that health doesn’t exist in all forms, in all sizes. It looks different on each of us.

9. Movement- Feel The Difference

This is my specialty, and the reason I created Helen Phelan Studio. Let go of the idea that you have to punish your body to be strong and healthy. While I adore pilates, movement doesn’t always have to look like a boutique fitness class. Walking your dog, cleaning your house, having sex, that all counts. Focus on how movement makes you FEEL- and not how many calories you’re burning. (You may have to lose the fitness tracker for a while as you get more skilled at this). When you change your intention from exercising out of food guilt or punishment and start doing a modality you enjoy, the mental health benefits (increased energy, better sleep, improved mood, better resilience in times of stress) and the physical benefits (better balance, stability, mobility, increased strength, pain relief, longer longevity) become more apparent… and intrinsic motivation to make exercise a regular part of your life becomes painless. Make sure the teachers of the classes you take understand this and don’t use any body shaming as motivation- as it will take away from the benefits!

10. Honor Your Health With Gentle Nutrition

There’s a reason the nutrition part comes last- because if you fixate on superfoods and supplements in the beginning of this journey, it’s much harder to build your intuitive skills. A phrase that changed it all for me, is the idea of it being about what you add IN, not about what you take OUT. Make nutrition choices that feel good- and that sometimes looks like apple pie on a Tuesday. Always remind yourself of this: one snack or meal or weekend is not going to make you “unhealthy” or ruin a “streak” of authentic self-care. Making consistent choices that satisfy you and nourish you over time is what constitutes health.

If you’re looking for classes to practice intuitive exercise that are body shaming free and will help you build strength, stability, and confidence in your body, check out Helen Phelan Studio for 10 days totally free to see for yourself!