Being aware of what you’re eating is important to stay healthy. Being aware of your body’s natural signals and hunger/satiety cues is just as important. Essentially being in tune with your body takes some practice but is possible for everyone. 

What is intuitive eating?

Almost everyone can describe what it feels like to be hungry. Take a second to think how this may feel to you. This type of intuition is one of the strongest and easiest to understand what it means. Everyone gets hungry otherwise we would starve. 

Now think about what it feels like when you are satisfied but not full. This type of feeling is more subtle and more difficult to pick up on. Not being as important as the drive to eat, being satisfied during eating often gets ignored. Being satisfied means that we still have physical space for a little more food but don’t feel like eating anymore. Being full means that we are physically unable to fit any more food in our stomach without pain. Most of us tend to eat until the whole meal is gone or we are so full that we can not eat anymore.  

Intuitive eating allows you to be more aware of when you are satisfied during a meal and stop eating at that point. This may mean eating less of a meal then you had portioned out. It may also vary from day to day based on your activities and other factors.

Intuitive eating also allows you to choose the foods that will satisfy you the most in a given day. Everyone has had a craving for a specific food and knows what it’s like if it’s ignored. By not ignoring your cravings you won’t have to fight your body, which can be exhausting in addition to our daily stressors. You may crave more rice or pasta one day and more meat on another day. Although this is not a reason to eat ice cream or chips all day.

How to start eating intuitively

Eating intuitively is not hard but takes some practice and key steps. One of our greatest hurdles is the speed at which we eat. Most of us tend to eat too quickly and unless we portioned everything perfectly, we are now full. It takes about 20 minutes for the brain to get all the messages from the stomach that we are satisfied from a meal. Setting a timer for 20 minutes and pacing yourself is a great place to start. You can also try setting your fork or spoon down every bite and taking time to chew your food, making sure to really enjoy each bite. 

Think of a time you ate something so fast you didn’t remember even eating it and now it’s gone. You may even feel like you didn’t even eat it. By slowing down and enjoying each bite, a little can go a long way. Try not to eat on the go or if you’re in a hurry. If you are short on time, take a 5 min break to enjoy a quick snack. This quick 5 min break will leave you feeling fuller than eating while distracted and on the go. 

Follow these key steps to start practicing eating intuitively 

• Set a timer for 20 min for each main meal and then put the phone down (don’t check your social media pages)

• Sit at a table and avoid distractions like TV, magazines, etc.

• Set your fork/spoon down between bites

• Chew well and enjoy each bit to increase the satisfaction of every bite

• Focus more on what you may be craving at a given meal

• Use a smaller plate/bowl and take 5 min before you go back for seconds. If you still feel you need another serving after 5 min, allow yourself the extra food your body may need.

• Allow yourself to not finish your plate (it’s better to throw the food out then store it in your body)

We’re all born with it

Intuitive eating is an innate sense that we all had as babies and slowly lost as we grew older. My 9 month old baby will eat with no problem and all of a sudden will start to smack the spoon away with her hands. No matter how many times you try to give her another bite she’ll refuse each one. I’ve had many spoons go flying from well-placed smacks. Talk about great hand eye coordination at 9 months, ha-ha. 

What is important to notice is that she knows when she is hungry and when she’s satisfied she knows it. As we grow up we tend to change our eating habits based on our culture at home, work, community, and society norms. Eating everything on the plate was a common family standard in past years that led to many people over eating later in life.

We all need to take a minute to get back in tune with our natural ability that we all had from birth. If you have more questions about intuitive eating or want help getting back in tune with your body’s cues, schedule your free consultation with me to get started! 

Written by: Adam Skowyra MPPD, RDN, LD