6+ months of intuitive eating

so ~ starting in January I began intuitive eating and a month later i wrote a post about my struggles and successes with intuitive eating, but since I have been going for almost 7 full months now, I figured it was time for a follow up post. 

Struggles:  

 There have been MANY days where I've looked down at my stomach and been not pleased with myself. Especially because Facebook and Google like to remind me that I was 10-15 lbs lighter a year ago. 

I have thought about restarting dieting multiple times throughout this process because I know I could do it and diet my way back to the weight I was previously. 

but that's not the point of intuitive eating, it's supposed to be food freedom, not a weight loss gimmick. which is definitely a shift in reasoning from how I was eating before and it's something I'm working on changing my brain around on regularly. 

Honestly, most of my struggles with intuitive eating has been with my own body image and weight . Which is an ongoing struggle, and I don't think it's gonna be fixed in 6 months. And even when I'm doing well with this all the time, there will still be bad days. Body image isn't something that's fixed overnight. But I do think that I am starting to have slightly more good days than bad days. Which is something.

Successes:

Most of my experience with intuitive eating has been good though! i have really enjoyed the freedom around food that I've had. And to be frank, my eating didn't drastically change. I eat a lot of the same foods because I like those foods. 

But, i have also added more into my diet! I have tried new marinades, I've baked more, I will have hella carbs and not stress about it, and I enjoy eating foods that I used to feel guilty about. 

I know I'm eating more than I was a year ago, but I feel like I'm fueling my body better.  

I am SO much stronger than I was a couple years ago or a year ago or even 6 months ago. And that's largely due to my strength programming but I know a contributing factor is the fact that I'm not in a caloric deficit so I'm able to build muscle.  

And its really nice not too feel guilty around food. Some days that's not the case, but most days I can eat the foods that make me feel good even it has carbs or sugar or chocolate or fat or whatever.

Beyond the food things, I know I mentioned the weight gain but it hasn't been a huge gain. It does feel like it was a lot, but when I started onto this whole intuitive eating thing I was coming off an entire month of illness so I was at a lower weight than I had typically been, so it's about 8-9 lbs since then but probably only 3-4 lbs realistically. And I don't think I've gained much of anything over the past few months (though I haven't been weighing myself regularly to be sure). 

 Another great success I've had has been with figuring out my hunger a lot better. I'm slowly getting more comfortable with eating when I'm hungry and then actually stopping before I'm so stuffed I feel terrible and just stopping when I'm satisfied. 

So a lot of positive things coming from from intuitive eating, and honestly it gets better as I get more practice with it. 

honestly, if you're interested in trying out intuitive eating I would give it a shot. It's been a process and it's not easy but the benefits of intuitive eating are many and learning how to really fuel your body in the way your body wants & needs to be fueled. If you have questions and/ or need support feel free to reach out to me at my Facebook page, Instagram, or in the comments below! 

on listening to your body & recovery

I've spoken previously on motivation and determination here, and I definitely feel the same. it's important to recognize that even on days when you are feeling lazy you should keep moving. and yes, pushing yourself is very important to get stronger and progress.

but along with that, it's important to listen to your body and what you actually NEED to do. this is something that I've struggled with. something I've struggled with throughout my entire workout journey, to be frank.

over the past few months, I have changed up my routine A LOT. new job, long commutes, training for multiple events, engagement, wedding planning, looking for an apartment, and it's been EXHAUSTING.

so with that, I have noticed that my training has been WAY harder. and, yes, I am pushing myself and working with new weights and pushing my pace, but I am tired ALL OF THE TIME. And that's not normal! 

I had noticed a lot of changes in my mood and appetite and motivation and in how my training was going. (So many hand tears) 

So I knew that I needed to take a break. Looking back over the past year, I hadn't taken a real break (rest for more than a day or two) in, well, almost a year. (Right around my move down to San Diego) which was not including the time in December when I was basically vomiting the entire month due to every type of illness I could manage to get (likely because I was exhausted and my immune system was compromised). 

I made the decision that after my June competition that I would take about a week off. So after my snatch set, I took the whole week off from any real lifting. Which was not easy for me; 1) because I work in fitness so I'm surrounded with people working out all day 2) I do really enjoy exercise 3) it's part of my routine and I am a creature of habit. 

 And what did I do on my rest week? 

Not a lot. Sometimes a walk. Sometimes some yoga. Sometimes a little bit of mace swinging. By the end of the week I was doing some fun flows with the kettlebell at light weights. And that's it. I didn't do anything crazy and recovered all week. 

I also didn't change up my eating habits. I ate basically the same things as I usually do as far as I could tell. 

I checked my Heart Rate Variance on an app (HRV4Training) to see where it thought I was in my recovery as well. Just to have some unbiased science in on my recovery, too. 

And by the end of the week I had more energy, my moods were in a better space, my appetite had gotten more normal.  

I just felt much better. My training all last week was back to regular strength, I haven't been waking up tired. It's been awesome. 

If you are noticing that your training is taking a hit, if you're tired all the time, if you're just wholly unmotivated for weeks at a time, if you're moody and just feeling off ~ it may be time for a break

I know there's fear of stopping when you're in a routine, but i promise it does you more good than continuing to train while you're burnt out. Take the few days off and let your body recover fully so you can actually enjoy your training. It's well worth it. 

Cleanses & Detoxes are BULLSHIT

hi, i'm here to start a fight with literally anyone and everyone trying to sell you some FitTea or some sort of 3 day Power Cleanse or telling your drink cayenne lemon water to detox your liver or whatever bullshit someone is peddling you these days.

CLEANSES ARE TERRIBLE. THEY ARE TERRIBLE FOR YOU AND YOU SHOULD NOT DO THEM

look, I understand, they are tempting as heck. they tell you that you'll lose weight fast or you'll have more energy immediately or your skin will magically look flawless. with just a few days of "cleansing" your body... like these are big promises to solve big problems - and they are totally empty.

So here's the facts:

1. your body cleanses and detoxes itself.
   1. all your body's systems are essentially made to use the things that come into the body and expel the stuff it needs to get rid of.
   2. your liver filters the toxins from getting into your bloodstream (i.e., alcohol).
   3. your kidneys filter your blood to get rid of toxins through urine.
   4. your colon produces chemicals (good & bad) and gets them out through bowel movements.
   5. lungs are able to filter and eliminate chemicals that can enter your body via breathing. (clearly we have a good system going here)
   6. And if something with your body is not functioning properly - go to a doctor. don't do a juice cleanse and call it good.
2. idk what magic you think cayenne or lemon juice has, but I can assure you it isn't going to magically make your body function better.
   1. though consistently eating nutrient rich foods on a regular basis (fruits, veggies, etc) your body will function more efficiently but just drinking juice for a week isn't going to magically streamline your body's functions.
3. the original cleanse ("The Master Cleanse"  by Stanley Burroughs in the 1940s- the 12 glasses of lemon, cayenne, and maple syrup + a laxative) was NEVER confirmed through any research. though it boasts giving you more energy and general happiness... doing the master cleanse is no better than starving yourself. basically every cleanse claims the same things, and also have never been substantiated through science.
   1. like, yeah, you'll lose weight doing that. because you're not eating ANY FOOD (and possibly taking LAXATIVES). but as soon as you eat again you'll gain most of that right back.  it's not worth it.
4. They are legitimately scams.
   1. guess what costs lots of money? FitTeas, juice cleanes, soup cleanses, and the works. they are just expensive poops. that's it. fancy laxatives in fancy packages with fancy flavors.
   2. you can actually harm your body by doing cleanses. do you think that eating cayenne and juice  for a week is good for your body? it's not. you aren't intaking much, if any, of your daily nutrient and calorie needs. your body needs food to function.
   3. you can get the supposed benefits of the cleanses through adding natural fiber and diuretics into your diet on a regular basis. think apples, beans, avocado, lentils, asparagus, figs, carrots, tomatoes, oats, blueberries, WATER).

so PLEASE for the love of everything good in this world, stop doing detoxes and cleanses. stop giving people your money for no reason.

I know it sounds so nice and convenient and easy to "kickstart" your weight loss or to even lose 5 lbs in 5 days or get clear skin instantly or something... but these are not good for you at all. not in the short term, not in the long term.

eat foods that make your body feel good and move how you like to move and enjoy life and don't buy an expensive tea that makes you poop a lot. #lifetips