Hello beautiful people! I know it has been a while since my last blog...but this one is SO important and so easy to apply to your every day life and tell your friends about it too! I want to tell you about INTUITIVE EATING. We all have stress in our lives and as humans we are emotional beings. Food should not be a means of coping with stress. Manipulating your food, either restricting or over eating, is unhealthy and dangerous for your body. Instead nourish your body and cherish it because your body is awesome! Here is the HOW TO on Intuitive Eating!
The purpose of intuitive eating is to "distinguish between physical and emotional feelings, and gain a sense of body wisdom". Intuitive eating eliminates the fear behind certain foods and the constant worrying/guilt that one may feel after eating. Making PEACE with your food is knowing that your self-worth as a person does not change because of what you eat.
The main concept behind Intuitive Eating is "Eat when your hungry, stop when you're full" which seems easy for some, however, for chronic dieters and or people with rigid/restrictive food choices this poses a difficult task.
Here are the
TEN INTUITIVE EATING PRINCIPLES:
1. Ditch that Diet!
Diets do not work. They might seem like a quick fix, but they fail long term. They can be unhealthy and dangerous to your health and may lead to yo-yo dieting. Toss out your diet books/mags and get pissed off at the diet that makes you feel like crap every time you break it. Free yourself from diets, and embrace intuitive eating.
2. Honor Your Hunger
Your body gets hungry every 3-4 hours. Listen to your bodies hunger and feed it. Food = energy which your body needs to sustain metabolic processes. If you exercise rigorously, you need MORE energy and carbohydrates to fuel your body. Otherwise, you can trigger your body to overeat. Honor your hunger and rebuild trust with yourself and food.
3. Make Peace With Food
Don't tell yourself "Don't eat that, You shouldn't have that". Give yourself permission to eat. The more you restrict, the more you want that particular food. Restricting eventually results in overeating.
4. Challenge the Food Police
Scream a loud HELL NO to the voice in your head saying that food is "good" or that food is "bad". News flash: there is no such thing as good or bad food. Every food regardless of what kind it is has a nutrients in it and therefore has a nutritional value aka energy. Block out negative thoughts about food and punch the Food Police in the face!
5. Respect Your Fullness
Listen to your body for signals when it says that you feel full. Pause in the middle of your meal or ask yourself how your food tastes and your current fullness level.
6
. Discover the Satisfaction Factor
Eating is an experience, it should be fun and comfortable! Eat in a pleasurable and comfortable environment and enjoy your meal.
7. Honor Your Feelings Without Using Food
Find different ways to cope without using food as a response to triggers of different emotions like anger, happiness, or sadness. Food won't fix your feelings. It may make you feel better short term or numb you, but it won't solve the problem. Instead, deal with the source of the emotion.
8. Respect Your Body
You are your own person. Love and accept your genetic blueprint. There is no one in the world that is the same as you. You are beautiful, cherish and love the body you are in.
9. Exercise - Feel the Difference
Exercise for health. Don't focus on calories being burned, focus on how it feels to move your body and the awesome energy that exercise gives you. How does it make you feel? Great!
10. Honor Your Health
You don't have to eat perfect to be healthy. There is no such thing as perfect anyway! Make healthy nutritious choices but remember that you can indulge and have that ice cream or cookie too! Moderation, balance, and variety of foods is the key to being healthy. ALL FOODS CAN FIT!
Love your body, you are beautiful :)
your in health,
L
References:
Evelyn Tribole, MS, RD and Resch, Elyse MS, RD, FADA. Intuitive Eating. St. Martin's Press, September 2003.
Hey beautiful people! If you're like me and are always on the go between work, class, the gym, and social hour with your homies, then you know it's sometimes hard to take down a healthy and balanced breakfast. So here is a delicious and healthy breakfast smoothie that's packed with protein, fiber, vitamins, and minerals to JUMP start your morning and your metabolism! It's so easy to make, you'll be walkin' out the door with a scrumptious smoothie in no time! Here's all you need:
