This week, I wanted to touch base on something that I was inspired by from my child. And that is because healthy children have the full ability to do this. This is also something I firmly believe in:  Intuitive Eating. What is intuitive eating? Well, it’s not a diet plan (it’s more method eating) at all, it’s more or less listening to one’s own body and what it needs, whether physical, emotional, or other influencers; and recognizing the needs to determine your food choice. Basically, this is based on individual’s needs at one moment in time, it does not focus on specific foods, a calorie level to reach, or even eating at certain times.

So, how does one intuitive eat? Because you are not restraining and controlling what you are eating as opposed to commercial diets that follow rigid models and control. For this to work you need to listen to your body cues such as hunger and fullness, which may be physical hunger and fullness from an empty or filled stomach, or cues caused by emotional or external triggers (i.e emotional eating).  The basics here are that you learn to eat when you are hungry and stop when you are full.

Keep in mind this kind of eating is not dieting for weight loss but focusing on what your body needs. That being said let’s look at come consequences of intuitive eating

• May not cause weight loss. 
• Fear of weight gain. 
• May not improve health outcomes related to weight gain or chronic disease. 
• Does not address the concept of food addiction from “hyper-palatable” foods, which can lead to food cravings. 

Overall, this is about listening to you body and what it wants, nothing more.  If you don’t want to finish the huge plate of food, then don’t. It sucks to waste food, but you shouldn’t be forcing yourself to eat more than you need too. Just something to think about next time you sit to have a meal.