my first month of intuitive eating

so to start 2018 off i decided i was going to stop dieting, stop counting calories, stop counting macros because 1) i was tired and bored with it, 2) i didn't want to be constantly promoting a dieting lifestyle to my sister and her friends, 3) i don't want to be constantly promoting dieting to clients cause who knows what they've been through and 4) i really, genuinely needed a change in my life. 

so here we are at about a month down of intuitive eating feeling pretty good! so i thought i would talk about what i've changed from what i was doing before and how that's effected me and my training and life. 

first off, what the heck is intuitive eating?? 

intuitive eating is basically "normal" eating. no tracking, no guilt, no values attached to foods, no rules. the official definition is: an approach developed to help people heal from the side effects of chronic dieting, an intuitive eater is a person who makes food choices without experiencing guilt or an ethical dilemma, honors hunger, respects fullness, and enjoys the pleasure of eating. (via benourished.org). 

which seems pretty simple at first glance but most people have had various food rules for their entire life. what foods are "good" or "bad" and have never not had some sort of rules attached to eating. for me, i don't remember a time where there wasn't some voice in the back of my head telling me that i should/shouldn't eat something because of whatever rules i had created for myself. and for almost for the last three years I was actively tracking every calorie, then every macro i was eating almost every single day. 

so here are the changes i made when i switched over to intuitive eating: 

1.  stopped tracking my calorie intake. 
   1. Obviously. No logging food. Which was weird cause I typically just did it on habit/routine. So I had to stop myself a few times. 
2. stopped logging my exercise
   1. this was a big one for me. i really like seeing that big calorie burn number so i think this was the biggest adjustment and also the best change i made. i would keep working out just to keep burning calories even when it wasn't productive anymore. so this has been such a positive change in my life. 
3. listened to my body's cues and cravings
   1. though i had been listening to my hunger cues before, it was a little different in this case. like, i almost always listened to my body and only ate when i was hungry throughout the day but i would also stop eating even if i was hungry towards the end of the day. so with intuitive eating, i allowed myself to eat food later in the day if i was hungry 
   2. cravings~ one of the biggest things about dieting is constantly fighting your cravings. and so now i just ate the foods i wanted without stressing about the calorie intake. i ate regular ass pancakes, chili dogs, snow cones, pizza,  regular ice cream, french fries,  and didn't feel bad about it. but also, i ate lots of nutritious regular foods. eggs, avocado toast, chicken, veggies, and rice. it all balanced out real quick. 

and what changes did i feel? 

1. my workouts felt better. i have been eating more carbs than i was previously. like, i wasn't ever restricting carbs, but i found that i have been eating more than i was before and that it felt great. ALSO - i have been eating less cheese and dairy and fats in general. i noticed that it wasn't making me feel as great so i stopped eating them as much. and i have felt the difference. 
2. i have been less stressed about food. (obviously). i used to spend a lot of time thinking about food... and i do still tbh, cause i like food, but i'm not thinking about how many calories are in food... i'm more excited to get to eat tasty foods! 
3. weight. i am pretty sure i have gained weight over the past month... but i have also basically stopped weighing myself as often. so i am not stressed about it, like i have been in the past. mind you, i would like to stay lean... but listening to my body may mean there is some weight gain involved until i get this all figured out and learning to be okay with that is really cool and gonna be better for my health long term way more than pushing my body to a lower weight just cause i see a number i don't like on the scale.

so that's my first month of intuitive eating down, and a lifetime to go. i am very happy i made the switch! i have a lot more to learn, but i feel like this can get me in a better place to help more people with their health and fitness goals in a productive way. it's tough to relearn your eating habits, but these are skills that are needed to last a lifetime and i'm looking forward to how this can help me grow and help me help more people in achieving their goals in a healthy way. 

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