Intuitive Eating

jessicakels

I saw a post on here the other day from someone asking if anyone had success with intuitive eating. The census generally said no, the only successful way to lose weight is to count calories.

Well, I'm here to tell you no, it's not true.

Maybe it's just that I'm stubborn (Swedish heritage), but since I began my weight loss journey in August, I've refused to become a slave to my food or to exercise. I've lost 30 lbs since August, and while yes, it is slow, it is CERTAINLY a sustainable lifestyle.

Generally when someone comes on these boards and asks why am I not losing weight? Everyone jumps to 'Buy a food scale and count every morsel that enters your mouth.' Yes, this is effective for many, but I don't see this as something you can keep up every day for the rest of your life. And who wants to do that anyway? Spend more time preparing food by measuring it all out. Not being able to enjoy the occasional treat unless you put it on a scale and figure out its caloric content.

Not me!

I've been eating 'healthier' foods, smaller portions, and exercising. Fueling my body when I'm hungry and leaving the snacks when I'm just bored. But I've also enjoyed pistachio ice cream, beer, reuben sandwiches, all of my favorites within moderation. And no, I've never logged calories on those days. Because I shouldn't have to.

I use My Fitness Pal on occasion to log calories just for the fun of it. Most days are left unfinished, they are ALL estimated calories (gasp! no food scale), and I go a few days or a few weeks without logging.

Overall, I'm a much smaller person now than I was when I began, I'm much happier, and much healthier. I just think it's important to see things from another perspective. It is possible to make a lifestyle change and lose weight without stressing yourself out over calories or how much you burn on a treadmill.

I've read so many posts about TDEE and 20% cuts and 1200 calorie diets and all I'm trying to say here is you can make small changes to your diet, get moving, still enjoy the foods you love, and LOSE WEIGHT!

Hope this helped some of you who fret about eating too many or too little calories. Listen to your body. Be patient with your weight loss. I promise you WILL see changes when you make 'healthy' choices and eat within moderation.

I might get a lot of hate for this post, but I thought it was worth saying.

SuperSexyDork

I'm glad you found something that works for you!

Some people can do what you do and it works for them. I'm happy for those people.

What you do doesn't work for a lot of people. Some of us lack appropriate hunger cues. Some of us have serving sizes so innately messed up in our minds from years of childhood training that without a food scale we'd be way overeating. Those being advised to buy food scales are people that are logging food and have a desire to log food but are most likely doing so inaccurately. They aren't getting the most out of the tool that they have (MFP). Buying a food scale maximizes the potential of the tool they have chosen to use to lose weight.

And yes, some of us will do this for the rest of our lives but some of us may retrain ourselves to more appropriate portions and hunger cues. It really depends on the person.

I think that they way you eat is the healthiest. I want my children to grow up to maintain a healthy weight eating that way. However, once you've been morbidly obese, it's very difficult to eat intuitively.

EvanKeel

And what would you tell someone who uses a method similar to yours and isn't losing weight? Progressively eat less? Well, odds are they're going to be hungry that way, and at that point they're not really intuitively eating.

Certain problem-solving techniques don't have to be sustainable to be effective. Generally someone who starts measuring/weighing their food is going to develop a better understanding of portion sizes and calorie counts over time to the point that they may no longer need to use the scale once they reach their goal and are just maintaining.

I'm glad your method works for you, but there's a reason people jump to telling others to measure and weigh their food and count calories when other methods aren't working for them.

What we as individuals perceive as hunger can be a little tricky.

maddiejp

Finally, someone who gets it. Counting calories is a nasty obsession, but for those who are consuming WAY over the recommended amount, it's a good idea. But even then it should be a rough estimate. Intuitive eating is what we're meant to do. We should listen to our bodies and eat what the body wants. Of course, people who have struggled with binge eating/restriction (anorexia) should probably not start with intuitive eating right away, as the need to consume food (usually comfort food) or ignore hunger stems from emotional needs.

It's very hard to eat intuitively. But with work, it's the best thing to do. I mean honestly, who really wants to live life by the scale? Numbers don't mean anything. You should define success by how you FEEL, not how you LOOK. If your aim is to be fit, work hard until you feel strong. If your aim is to be healthy, work hard until you feel good in everything you do, and have a clean bill of health from your doctor. If you're hungry, eat something. But you need to learn the difference between ACTUAL hunger and EMOTIONAL hunger. That's the key. If you're angry, sad, lonely, depressed, stressed, anxious, panicked, etc, don't go for the food. Go talk to someone. Play with a pet. Watch a movie. Drink a cup of tea. One needs to recognize when they are hungry, and when they're looking to cope.

So if you don't have a strong/difficult emotion that you're trying to cope with, and a slice of pizza or a muffin sounds delicious when that tummy is a' rumbly, go ahead and chomp right in.

Spot on. Now, let the arguments commence.

sunshine1082

I haven't used a food scale at all either. It hasn't really been a problem for me until now, but I doubt I'll buy a food scale at this point. I'm only looking to lose about five more pounds and I really don't care how slowly it comes off.

Intuitive eating can be a big problem though for people who really have no idea how much they're eating. Not everyone knows what "eat within moderation" really means for them. For many people, counting calories by using a food scale is the only way for them to really learn how much energy they are consuming and to get a better handle on how much their bodies actually need. You will see many questions from people who say they are eating clean/healthy and exercising, and can't understand why they aren't losing weight. It is usually because they are not accurately accounting for the calories they've consumed and don't realize their portion sizes are bigger than they should be.

It's great that intuitive eating has worked for you, but for many others who are trying to lose weight, calorie counting really is the best option.

sunny4art

I'm new here and I guess that's what I was doing before I came. I still don't have a food scale. I started just writing down everything I ate to keep myself accountable but when I started here I found out I was doing pretty good intuitively-less calories than allowed and still mostly satisfied. I was judging by less portion & my sugar levels(diabetic) and trying to avoid those carbs that make my sugar crazy. Still doing that-just logging it. I don't log my coffee w/creamer cuz I always have calories left and if that's cheating`oh well. Part swedish here too!

IndigoFlowers

Thanks for sharing, I think it was definitely worth sharing!! I loved reading this and hearing your story... great job with your progress :flowerforyou:

I agree with you that weighing food and adding up every single calorie is not something I want to do for the rest of my life. I have been seriously considering switching over to intuitive eating after 2+ years of weighing food.. It just sounds so freeing and natural. Weighing food and constantly having to enter every thing into MFP has been a tool, but it has also made me become obsessive at times. Listening to my BODY'S cues, not my MIND'S minute-to-minute cravings is key, and I believe that... I just need to trust my body.

Thanks again for sharing!!

nebraskalaska

I started IE last year after one too many yo-yo diets. It taught me so many invaluable skills, such as how much food I really need, and to love exercise. However, I didn't lose any weight. I don't mind because what I learned while not dieting was so important.

Earlier this year I started doing TDEE-20%, and because I am exercising daily I have a very large calorie allotment which I never feel tempted to go over. I am losing weight in a healthy way and I have not once felt deprived or like I'm "on a diet". IE gave me the tools I needed to have success this time around, but I couldn't do it without counting calories. It's far too easy for me to accidentally go over my large calorie budget by just having one too many tablespoons of mayo on a sandwich.

I think it's awesome that IE works for weight loss for some people, but it's not going to be for everyone. I would also like to add that in the book Intuitive Eating it states over and over that it is not a weight loss plan. It is about learning to love yourself at any size and adopting a healthier lifestyle and eating habits.

jessicakels

I completely agree that for some people, weighing and measuring is the way to go! I'm not saying my way or the highway. I just wanted other people here to know that you can eat what you want and eat intuitively and still lose weight (so long as you have a handle over yourself and your hunger, etc).

Coming onto these boards, it can seem that counting calories is a must and the only way to lose weight. But I feel like it's valid to know that sometimes roughly estimating or just choosing 'good' foods and eating appropriate portions can also work!

jessicakels

I also feel that it's worth mentioning this is coming from a girl who is 22 years old, 190 lbs (at the moment!), and who previously would eat a honey barbecue chicken sandwich with bacon and ranch dressing and a huge side of waffle fries in one sitting and still have ice cream on top of it (holla if anyone knows what Friendly's is).

It's not that I didn't know what a regular portion was, it was that I didn't care. I've been overweight my entire life, so I decided to make a change and it definitely does take some getting used to. Listening to when I'm full is the hardest part!

bajoyba

I'm glad you found something that works for you!

Some people can do what you do and it works for them. I'm happy for those people.

What you do doesn't work for a lot of people. Some of us lack appropriate hunger cues. Some of us have serving sizes so innately messed up in our minds from years of childhood training that without a food scale we'd be way overeating. Those being advised to buy food scales are people that are logging food and have a desire to log food but are most likely doing so inaccurately. They aren't getting the most out of the tool that they have (MFP). Buying a food scale maximizes the potential of the tool they have chosen to use to lose weight.

And yes, some of us will do this for the rest of our lives but some of us may retrain ourselves to more appropriate portions and hunger cues. It really depends on the person.

I think that they way you eat is the healthiest. I want my children to grow up to maintain a healthy weight eating that way. However, once you've been morbidly obese, it's very difficult to eat intuitively.

Basically all of that.

It's not that intuitive eating doesn't work. All that's needed for weight loss is a calorie deficit, and that can certainly be created without counting calories.

But the reason why calorie counting websites like MFP are so popular and so successful is that for many of us, especially those of us who have been significantly overweight, our hunger cues are not dependable. Most of us spent the majority of our lives relying on our brains and bodies to tell us what to eat, and it didn't work out so well. On top of that, when I first joined MFP, I had very little knowledge of how to maintain or lose weight. The site gives clear, individualized guidelines that make sticking to a plan relatively simple, and weighing and logging my food every day has taught me a lot about proper portion sizes.

Some of us do need to make the time and effort to pay close attention to what we're putting in our mouths so that we learn how to fuel our bodies appropriately. I don't view it as being as slave to my food - I see it as an opportunity to educate myself and create habits that I can use for the rest of my life. Because I've now spent over a year counting my calories, I am able to go out to a restaurant, have an indulgent dessert, or drink a few beers without stressing about whether or not I've perfectly accounted for every single calorie, because I now I have a solid understanding of my body's energy needs. It has worked for me, and I feel much more liberated now than I did when I was in a bigger body and struggling to understand why I continued to gain weight.

If someone can lose or maintain their weight in a healthy manner without counting calories, that's great for them. Lots of people do it. But some people can't. Either way is fine. You just have to do what works for you.

spirit095

That's what I did in the beginning of my weight loss. I just ate less junk food and filled up with healthier options and exercised. I managed to lose weight on my own without MFP. I have learned a lot from here though, and use the food tracker as a simple recording of what I ate. I don't want to go out and spend money on a food scale, since I have other things I need to save my money for. What works for some isn't always going to work for others. It really involves a lot of experimenting to find what fits your lifestyle, personality, and budget.

jessicakels

Thanks for sharing, I think it was definitely worth sharing!! I loved reading this and hearing your story... great job with your progress :flowerforyou:

I agree with you that weighing food and adding up every single calorie is not something I want to do for the rest of my life. I have been seriously considering switching over to intuitive eating after 2+ years of weighing food.. It just sounds so freeing and natural. Weighing food and constantly having to enter every thing into MFP has been a tool, but it has also made me become obsessive at times. Listening to my BODY'S cues, not my MIND'S minute-to-minute cravings is key, and I believe that... I just need to trust my body.

Thanks again for sharing!!

This is why I stopped counting calories! I used to at the beginning of my weight loss, but I found that I was ALWAYS confused on how many calories a day I should be consuming and if I was under or over, it would stress me out. I too became obsessive. That's not the way I want to live and it's not a healthy mind set for me.

Francl27

We all have something different that will work for us. For me, I love snacking, and I have to control it... that's why intuitive eating would never work for me. At least with calorie counting I can track my snacking to keep it manageable, otherwise I would just fail.

zyxst

I also feel that it's worth mentioning this is coming from a girl who is 22 years old, 190 lbs (at the moment!), and who previously would eat a honey barbecue chicken sandwich with bacon and ranch dressing and a huge side of waffle fries in one sitting and still have ice cream on top of it (holla if anyone knows what Friendly's is).

No, but I would like to subscribe to your newsletter. :drinker:

I'm glad IE works for OP and others. It doesn't work for me, at least what I think IE is.

elisa123gal

Amen to this poster..thanks!

I left my fitness pal a few months ago. SOOOO burned out on counting calories. So tired of the posts of "not losing" people struggling to "maintain"… depressing. And the thought of living the rest of my life doing that? No Thanks.

I too am back. I log estimated stuff…and at the end of the day. I know how to eat healthy and exercise. It works without the mental strain of having to count F O R E V E R.

I think we should look at "dieting" more as being at maintenance. Do what you'd do to maintain your goal weight..

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

I completely agree that for some people, weighing and measuring is the way to go! I'm not saying my way or the highway. I just wanted other people here to know that you can eat what you want and eat intuitively and still lose weight (so long as you have a handle over yourself and your hunger, etc).

Coming onto these boards, it can seem that counting calories is a must and the only way to lose weight. But I feel like it's valid to know that sometimes roughly estimating or just choosing 'good' foods and eating appropriate portions can also work!

It's likely that it seems that way because this is a calorie counting site, so most people here are going to be taking that approach.

I did it the way you are for the first few pounds. I was frustrated with it though. "Eat less" seemed really vague and kind of stressful for me. I do much better with counting. It takes me less than 10 minutes per day and I don't mind it at all. And if I have to eat out or don't have a scale I just estimate. It doesn't cause stress. And, like you, I eat any kind of food I want.

I can maintain using intuitive eating, but I'm not good about getting enough protein. Also I plan to do cutting and bulking in the future, so that will be much easier when actually counting.

wheird

I am not a fan of intuitive eating or even the concept. But I am glad that it is working for you.

ItsCasey

When you start with 90 lbs to lose, of course it's easy to do it without counting calories. Just decreasing your portion sizes will cause you to lose weight.

But there are actually people who have already lost most of the weight they need to lose and are struggling to lose more. There are even people who aren't eating enough and have no idea. For those people, weighing and measuring food and counting calories are often the best ways to start losing again.

It's great that you've lost 30 lbs without counting calories and that you haven't given up the foods you love in order to do it. That's a great start. But, as someone who also started with a lot of weight to lose, I predict there may come a day when not counting calories is no longer giving you the results you're getting now.

Ideally, yes, people will get to a point when they don't need to use a food scale or count every calorie. But that doesn't mean these things never serve a purpose.

vjohn04

Awesome for you. Maybe you should go find an intuitive eating website to post on and not a calorie counting site.

PetulantOne

I used to eat intuitively. I got fat.

Like others said, the goal is to get to a place where you don't have to track/weigh/measure everything, but it's a great starting point for the majority of overweight people.