Intuitive Eating is a self-care eating framework. It was created by two dietitians, Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch in 1995. Intuitive Eating is a weight-inclusive model, meaning it aims to eradicate weight stigma and support equality in health for people at all points along the weight continuum (1). Intuitive eating is evidence-based with more than 100 studies to date and has been found to improve psychological health (body image, self-esteem, wellbeing), disordered eating behaviours and binge eating (2, 3).

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Principles of Intuitive Eating:

1. Reject the Diet Mentality: let go of the dieting mindset and all its associated restrictions, rules, and judgments about food and body.
2. Honor Your Hunger: tune into your body’s signals to recognise and respond appropriately to feelings of hunger, ensuring you eat when your body needs nourishment.
3. Make Peace with Food: give yourself unconditional permission to eat all foods without guilt or shame and stop labeling food as “good” or bad”.
4. Challenge the Food Police: question and challenge internal and external negative thoughts and beliefs around food, allowing yourself to enjoy eating without judgment.
5. Respect Your Fullness: Become mindful of your body’s signals to recognise when you’re comfortably full and respect this feeling.
6. Discover the Satisfaction Factor: focus on finding satisfaction and pleasure in eating by choosing foods that make you feel good physically and emotionally.
7. Honor Your Feelings without Using Food: learn alternative ways to cope with emotions, stress, and feelings without turning to food for comfort or as a coping mechanism.
8. Respect Your Body: Accept and appreciate your body, regardless of its shape or size, and treating it with kindness and respect.
9. Move and Feel the Difference: Engage in physical activity for pleasure and how it makes you feel, rather than punishment or calorie burning.
10. Honour Your Health with Gentle Nutrition: Make food choices that honour your health and preferences while not obsessing over perfect nutrition, aiming for balance and flexibility in your eating habits.

If you would like to try this innovative, liberating approach, I’m available to support you every step of the way!

References:

1. Tylka TL, Annunziato RA, Burgard D, Daníelsdóttir S, Shuman E, Davis C, Calogero RM. The weight-inclusive versus weight-normative approach to health: evaluating the evidence for prioritizing well-being over weight loss. J Obes. 2014;2014:983495. doi: 10.1155/2014/983495. Epub 2014 Jul 23. PMID: 25147734; PMCID: PMC4132299.
2. Hazzard VM, Telke SE, Simone M, Anderson LM, Larson NI, Neumark-Sztainer D. Intuitive eating longitudinally predicts better psychological health and lower use of disordered eating behaviors: findings from EAT 2010-2018. Eat Weight Disord. 2021 Feb;26(1):287-294. doi: 10.1007/s40519-020-00852-4. Epub 2020 Jan 31. PMID: 32006391; PMCID: PMC7392799.
3. Linardon J, Tylka TL, Fuller-Tyszkiewicz M. Intuitive eating and its psychological correlates: A meta-analysis. Int J Eat Disord. 2021 Jul;54(7):1073-1098. doi: 10.1002/eat.23509. Epub 2021 Mar 30. PMID: 33786858.