By Rachel Baker, MA, LPC
Let’s
talk about intuitive eating. We all know what “eating” is. We get that part,
but what about the “intuition” part? Dictionary.com has several definitions for
“intuition.” Here are two of my favorites:
Intuition
1.
direct perception of truth, fact, etc., independent of any reasoning process;
immediate apprehension.
2.
pure, untaught, noninferential knowledge.
There are a few things that stand
out for me in these definitions. First, intuition allows us to perceive
“pure“truth.” Second, intuition happens without any “reasoning process,”
meaning it’s not a cognitive or thinking activity. Finally, intuition is
“untaught.”
Now, for those of you thinking, “If
intuition can’t be taught, and I can’t think my way through it, how will I ever
learn intuitive eating?” Fear not! The beauty of intuitive eating, is that we
were all born with this skill.
As toddlers, we all intuitively knew
when we were hungry, and we let our hunger needs be known. We did not pause to
think about what we’d already eaten that day or if we should wait until we felt
hungrier. Once we got our food, we also intuitively knew when we were satiated.
We did not feel compelled, unless taught to be, to clean our plates. When we were
done, we were done. It wasn’t until we got older and societal messaging told us
to ignore our bodies’ hunger and satiation cues that we lost our sense of
intuition.
So, how do we find it again? Two of
the most important concepts in intuitive eating practices are rediscovering our
bodies’ hunger and satiation cues and trusting ourselves and our bodies to seek
satisfaction in our eating. There are many ways to explore these concepts, but
for now, I’d like to share one activity or practice for each concept.
Let’s start with rediscovering our
bodies’ hunger and satiation cues. I like to think about hunger and satiation
on a Scale of Fullness from 0–10, 0 being, “I’m empty. I’m starving,” and 10
being, “I’m so full it hurts.” One way to begin to relearn our bodies’ hunger
cues is pause periodically throughout the day, turn our attention inward, and
genuinely ask out bodies, “On a scale of 0–10, how full am I right now?” The
key here is to remember that intuition is NOT a cognitive or thinking process.
Instead, of thinking about our
fullness, we must practice asking our
bodies and listening for their
responses.
Once our bodies’ respond with a
Scale of Fullness number, it can be useful to ask our bodies, “How do you know
that’s the number?” Your body might respond with anything from, “We have a
headache,” “Our stomach has started to gurgle,” or “We’re having trouble
concentrating,” on the low end to, “I feel comfortable and content,” in the
middle to, “Our stomach feels full,” or “No more food,” on the high end. With
practice, you may begin to notice patterns or typical ways your body let’s you
know how hungry or full it is.
Another important intuitive eating
practice is seeking true satisfaction in eating. This may seem daunting, but as
you practice, you will begin to discover that your body usually craves what it
needs nutritionally. So, imagine that you’ve asked your body for its Scale of
Fullness number, and it has become clear that it would like something to eat.
Here is where the seeking satisfaction practice comes in.
Before heading to the fridge, ask
your body what kind of food would feel satisfying. I like to ask three main
questions: “Body, would you like to eat something hot or cold? Sweet, savory,
salty, bitter? Smooth and soft or chewy and textured?” Let’s assume your body
said it wanted something hot, salty, and smooth. It might then find
satisfaction in a bowl of miso soup or soft scrambled eggs, or anything else
that meets those criteria. Your job then is to work to satisfy your body’s food
desires as closely as you can with the foods that are available to you at the
moment.
Learning to eat intuitively can be a
truly enjoyable exploration once you start. Remember, this is NOT about doing
it perfectly. Instead, it’s about experimenting and staying curious. Getting
support from a therapist or nutritionist can be helpful on this journey. Cheers
to you intuitive eating explorers! Bon apetit!
Rachel is a staff therapist at The
Awakening Center. In addition to seeing clients for individual therapy, she
also co-leads the Yoga-Informed Therapy Group. You can reach Rachel at
773.929.6262.
Posts
