I’ve been reading, and reflecting and trying some "intuitive eating" out – you might have read about it in my other posts. I have been paying much more attention to my hunger signals, and started to get into a habit of checking in with my self before, while and after eating. Trying to be more aware of my food related thoughts and behaviours using simple, non-judgmental observing. I think I’ve made quite some progress.
The other focus was on re-examining some of my food-related attitudes, as advertised by the first and the third principle: reject the diet mentality and make peace with food. With more or less success, I’ve been trying to give my self an “unconditional permission” to eat food I crave, realizing that having forbidden foods can backfire on me. Rejecting the diet mentality has been difficult as I have gained a couple of kilos since this summer, and I do want to loose them (eventually). Seeing my self indulge in foods I associate with gaining weight did not help.
 
But as I reflected on the “respect your fullness” principle, I started to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Yes, I can accept – be very happy even – about giving myself the permission to eat anything – as long as I know I will be able to control my self. Getting in touch with my intuitive “stop button”.
 
It’s like all these principles need to work in orchestra before they deliver the promise.
 
So I tried to see if I can stop eating when full. It was difficult. Then, I discovered another principle to add to the concert: “discover the satisfaction factor”. To increase the satisfaction from eating, I tried to pay more attention to how the food felt as I ate it. In addition, I tried to have diversity of tastes and food kinds in my meal. This helped.
 
But somewhere I felt it was not enough. After some reflecting and reading, I concluded that:

  • I am still missing a principle “honor your feelings without using food”. The other day I felt down – I think my body was fighting a virus or some bacteria. At the end of the day I felt mild depression. And I ate a lot of comforting foods to cope.
  • I do need some focused practice. Reflecting is not enough. I have years of dieting behind me, I need to take time to unlearn some of the damaging thinking and behaving and learn the new habits. This worked with moderation, I think I’m now armed with enough principles

This is what I intend to do:

  • Continue to keep a hunger/fullness log (as described in this post)
  • Pay extra attention while eating and try to stop when feeling full
  • Pay attention to how I feel. If I start feeling some negative emotions, try to use different coping mechanisms, such as self care, or talking or writing about how I feel

Today is day 1. Let’s try doing this for 7 days.