How is Intuitive eating different from mindful eating or are they the same thing?

Mindful eating is intentionally paying attention to your actual eating process without judgement. Though this seems simple, it can be fairly challenging, especially for those who are multi-taskers or distracted eaters. Intuitive Eating is a broader philosophy or practice which incorporates mindful eating but also principles of rejecting the diet mentality, joyful movement, body respect and using gentle nutrition.

ISN’T INTUITIVE EATING JUST EATING WHATEVER YOU WANT?

Well, sort of. When first starting the intuitive eating process, you do give yourself unconditional permission to eat. For some, this sounds great and for others, this sounds scary and uncomfortable. As you work through the process, you’ll begin to restore trust with your body and start listening to your own body’s cues. When you remove the moral value from food choices, become more in tune with hunger and fullness cues and respect your body then you’ll be able to begin to use the principle of gentle nutrition to make more informed nutritional choices. The end result is a balance of good nutrition and foods that bring you pleasure and satisfaction!

IF I GIVE MYSELF FULL PERMISSION TO EAT ALL FOODS, WON’T I ONLY CHOOSE JUNK FOOD?

This might come as a surprise, but after you’ve given yourself full permission to eat previously “off limits” foods, they tend to lose their novelty. Habituation is the process that occurs—simply put, you get used to something after repeated exposure. The more available something is, the less urgency or need there is to eat it. It helps to introduce one “trigger food” at a time so as not to feel overwhelmed. Over time, your body will crave other foods and you’ll achieve a reasonable balance.

HOW DO I GET OVER FEELING GUILTY FOR EATING CERTAIN FOODS?

This is very common. The first step you can take is to stop naming foods as “good” or “bad”. We have a tendency to translate these feelings to ourselves for eating them. Remember that all foods have different things to offer in terms of nutrients, energy, satisfaction, staying power. The second step is to avoid deprivation which can then lead to you overeating those foods and then feeling guilt.

WILL I LOSE WEIGHT USING INTUITIVE EATING PRINCIPLES?

The short answer: maybe. Weight change is not the focus of intuitive eating and it is advised to put weight loss on the back burner when learning to practice intuitive eating and make peace with food. It could be that if you were over-exercising or restricting your intake before, you may see some weight gain with intuitive eating. Conversely, if you were overeating and binging previously, you may lose weight. And many people stay about the same size, just with much less food anxiety and guilt! Though intuitive eating is associated with an overall lower BMI, it is not meant to be used for weight loss.

CAN YOU PRACTICE INTUITIVE EATING WHEN YOU HAVE SPECIFIC HEALTH CONCERNS OR CHRONIC DISEASE?

Yes! Intuitive Eating is for everyone. The trouble with diets is that the restriction and deprivation often result in over-eating and binging. Rather than making things off limits, give yourself permission to eat all foods. When you can do that and build trust with your body then over eating slows down. After that you can use the concepts in gentle nutrition to make informed food choices that are both satisfying and feel good to your body!

IS THERE EVIDENCE TO SHOW THAT INTUITIVE EATING is beneficial in terms of health?

Intuitive eating has many positive outcomes both physical and mental. The science-backed benefits of intuitive eating include improvements in lipid profile numbers, lower rates of emotional eating, lower rates of disordered eating, improved mental health, improved body image, higher self-esteem, optimism and well-being, and proactive coping skills.