intuitive eating vs calorie counting

pixie_please · February 2016

I’m posting this in the hopes that someone else has been through a similar situation and has some advice. About a year and a half ago, I was going through a bit of a rough time and ended up gaining about 40lbs. I haven’t been down to my original weight since. During this time I was tracking religiously so I could see that I was consuming way over maintenance every single day but I couldn’t seem to stop it. I think I was really apathetic and down to be honest. Anyway, around this time I found out about intuitive eating and started to research it extensively. I read books about compulsive overeating (Susie Orbach and Geneen Roth). Despite all this knowledge about intuitive eating and the desire to be a “normal eater” it just doesn’t seem to be working out. I’m stuck between wanting the mental peace of being able to eat when I’m hungry and stop when I’m full and actually getting to a healthy weight again. I’ve been swinging between calorie counting and attempting to eat intuitively for like a year now. I mean, I’m pretty sure my hunger signals are f*cked. I can go without food from the evening the night before and not feel hungry when lunchtime rolls around the next day, even when I’ve counted calories the day before so it’s not like my body would be compensating for overeating. For this and other reasons, intuitive eating doesn’t really feel right, but by reading books about it I’ve come across so many arguments against calorie restricting and dieting that I’m scared that somehow I won’t make any progress with that anymore either.

Tldr; have tried to eat intuitively for a year, have stayed at the same weight I had gained to and now I’m scared that calorie counting will not bring me mental peace AND will somehow result in long term weight gain or something.

rileysowner · February 2016

I cannot comment on how you will perceive calorie counting. I know I cannot eat intuitively which is not really surprising since I have almost 50 years of eating badly with a really ingrained messed up sense of portions and hunger. I did recently take the approach of no longer doing the lose this amount of weight per week. Instead I set my calorie goal on what would be maintenance at my goal weight. That is what I strive to eat every day now. It will likely take me longer to get rid of the fat, but in all that time I will be learning to eat at the level I will have to continue to eat at. For me, that works mentally. I am actually more focused on fitness and being able to do the things I want to than weight loss, although I would like the weight gone because it would make the things I like to do easier. That will come in time if I stay the course.

My only words of advice are you need to find what will let you mentally keep going. It might mean coming to realize that it is likely you will be counting calories for the rest of your life. Frankly, if that is the case is it really so bad? Tools like MFP are easy enough to use, and for that matter, probably will get easier over time. Maybe it is saying you will take your time to re-train your mind and body to eat the way you should to maintain at a lower weight.

CountessOCandy · February 2016

rileysowner wrote: »

I cannot comment on how you will perceive calorie counting. I know I cannot eat intuitively which is not really surprising since I have almost 50 years of eating badly with a really ingrained messed up sense of portions and hunger. I did recently take the approach of no longer doing the lose this amount of weight per week. Instead I set my calorie goal on what would be maintenance at my goal weight. That is what I strive to eat every day now. It will likely take me longer to get rid of the fat, but in all that time I will be learning to eat at the level I will have to continue to eat at. For me, that works mentally. I am actually more focused on fitness and being able to do the things I want to than weight loss, although I would like the weight gone because it would make the things I like to do easier. That will come in time if I stay the course.

My only words of advice are you need to find what will let you mentally keep going. It might mean coming to realize that it is likely you will be counting calories for the rest of your life. Frankly, if that is the case is it really so bad? Tools like MFP are easy enough to use, and for that matter, probably will get easier over time. Maybe it is saying you will take your time to re-train your mind and body to eat the way you should to maintain at a lower weight.

I think this is great advice.
I also cannot eat intuitively. Eating intuitively is what got me to almost 300 lbs. In the past year or so, I have lost 70 pounds by counting calories so I know this is what works for me.
If calorie restriction is scary for you, I think rileysowner's way of counting might be a great alternative for you

cwolfman13 · February 2016

Intuitive eating can work for people who aren't "broken"...if you've come to the point of being overweight or obese I'm going to go out on a limb and say intuitive eating probably isn't working for you (the royal you). I would suggest that most people who eat intuitively don't really have weight issues to begin with.

I don't log and haven't for almost three years and have been able to maintain...but I wouldn't call it intuitive eating per sei...I have scheduled meal times and snacks and essentially prescribed amounts of food for each which I have based on my needs and previous calorie counting. If I were to just eat "intuitively", my guess is that I would put weight back on pretty quickly...I am very capable of eating lots of food...I am very capable of eating even if I'm not hungry and just bored...I don't log, but keeping a schedule and a host of other rules I have for myself are pretty important for me to maintain.

BoxerBrawler · February 2016

It took me a little over two years of strict calorie counting, restriction, discipline and research before I could attempt to eat intuitively. Eventually it will come back to you. I am not saying it's easy now, it's not! But I make it a strict habit to push everything else aside when I eat. No distractions... I use all five senses. I look at my food, smell it, think about the texture, the taste, chew for a long time and eat slowly. The minute I begin to feel about 80% full I put it away... regardless of how good it tastes! For now I would say to stick with calorie counting until you've created new healthy habits for yourself.

coreyreichle · February 2016

I intuitively ate myself into class II obesity.

toe1226 · February 2016

"Calorie counting" makes me think that I am literally watching every calorie that comes through my hands and into my mouth- I think that would drive me insane. I prefer to think about it as "meal planning" - Instead of going with the flow of my friends, or waiting until I'm starving and grabbing whatever I can, I plan my meals in advance, and therefore have the ability to know how many calories are in them. When I am actually sitting and eating, I'm not staring at my plate wondering how many calories are in it, because I handled that earlier. I plan a lot of (but not all of) my meals in advance, and often I do end up weighing food pretty close to before I eat it, but sometimes I have tupperwares all set. It doesn't have to be restrictive, but yes, it is more time consuming (it's also a lot more rewarding when you feel great and like the way you look!)

It takes a while to get in your rythym and system but you'll get there and then it will be autopilot!

hopeandtheabsurd · February 2016

When I am super busy and happy, I can eat intuitively and lose weight. This has happened during several different periods in my life.

But usually, no. The circumstances surrounding those busy&happy time periods were largely outside my control and as such cannot be duplicated. Working with my current reality, calorie counting definitely has serious drawbacks for me but it's the best I've got to work with at the moment, so that's what I am doing.

murp4069 · February 2016

Sometimes the thought of counting calories for the rest of my life seems exhausting, but, I don't think there is a good alternative for me. I have lost weight before, and once the weight was off, tried to eat more "intuitively" and following portion/serving sizes I followed during weight loss by just eyeballing it. Inevitably and without really noticing it, the portions/servings got bigger and snacks became more frequent as time went on.

pixie_please · February 2016

Thank you all! This has really confirmed what I've been thinking about intuitive eating just not being for me.

kshama2001 · February 2016

I sometimes use intuitive eating to decide what to eat, but calorie counting to decide how much of it to eat. I know that I will be full on well balanced 400-500 calorie meals, but that I can easily stretch them to 1,000 calories if I'm not paying attention.

For example, my intuitive eating tells me I want wine, bread, and butter with pasta meals, but calorie counting tell me to leave that out and I will be perfectly satisfied with just the pasta, veggies, and protein.

sarahfeelingood · February 2016

I HAVE STRUGGLED SO LONG WITH THIS!! I have recently come to the conclusion that I personally cannot make intuitive eating work. I feel to strong a pull to eat for other reasons. I do try to incorporate it a little bit such as asking myself if I'm hungry yet before a meal and if possible eat my meals and snacks when I'm hungry for them. Sometimes lifeis too busy for that and that's okay too. Good luck to you and feel free to add or message me

soulofgrace · February 2016

kshama2001 wrote: »

I sometimes use intuitive eating to decide what to eat, but calorie counting to decide how much of it to eat.

That's a good way of thinking. I do the same.

I guess I don't know the protocol the intuitive eating authors are prescribing, but for me, using my intuition to lose weight would be like asking a toddler to intuitively solve for X. I had no idea the calorie density of foods, ever until now. And I don't have it memorized, now 8 months in, but I have a better understanding of what a meal or snack looks like. That puts me on the map, but I imagine I will have to measure for quite some time yet.

It's good you're discovering what works for you. You do have to devise a plan that works forever. So don't torture yourself with restriction. That's a sure fire way to frustration.

daniwilford · February 2016

I have read Geneen Roth, I think she has some good points, but to me they are just tools. I think it is good to think about what I am feeling when I want to eat, frequently it is not hunger. I need to use every tool in the box to keep myself at a healthy weight. Calorie counting, macro percentage adjustments, eating only when I am hungry, staying hydrated and exercise are tools I use almost everyday. Limiting myself to only intuitive eating as a strategy has not worked for me in the past.

lemurcat12 · February 2016

cwolfman13 wrote: »

I don't log and haven't for almost three years and have been able to maintain...but I wouldn't call it intuitive eating per sei...I have scheduled meal times and snacks and essentially prescribed amounts of food for each which I have based on my needs and previous calorie counting. If I were to just eat "intuitively", my guess is that I would put weight back on pretty quickly...I am very capable of eating lots of food...I am very capable of eating even if I'm not hungry and just bored...I don't log, but keeping a schedule and a host of other rules I have for myself are pretty important for me to maintain.

This is exactly how it is for me. It works for me to maintain doing this, and I've lost in the past doing it too (although I was more restrictive than I really needed to be to compensate for not really knowing the calories).

My current view is that I do better logging to lose, and that eating mindfully and to habit, with an eye to amounts and food choice, works for me to maintain. Not only does intuitive eating not work for me if it means just eating whatever and letting hunger guide you, but I am skeptical that it does for most humans. If you think about it, it's been rare that our eating times and amounts haven't been regulated (by scarcity or by standard eating times and customs) and evolutionarily it was advantageous for people to be able to eat when food was available.

markrgeary1 · February 2016

When I ate intuitively, I became obese. Just saying...

intuitive eating vs calorie counting

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