Intuitive Eating

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Intuitive Eating

• SagePlaceThe Center for Well Beings
• Tammie Fowles, LCSW, Ph.D
• Lewiston, Maine
• 207-620-0792

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When You wake up in the morning, Pooh, said
Piglet at last, whats the first thing you
say To Yourself? Whats for breakfast? said
Pooh. What do you say, Piglet? I say, I
wonder whats going to happen exciting today?
said Piglet. Pooh nodded thoughtfully. Its the
same thing, he said. -A. A. Milne,
Winnie-the-Pooh
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• Diets Dont Work Over the Long Term
• Diets Can Disrupt Normal Eating
• Dieting Can Cause Food and Weight Obsessions and
  Lead to Disordered Eating

 
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Binge Eating Disorder

• Preoccupied with shape and body weight
• Bingeing Consuming an objectively large quantity
  of food while feeling a loss of control
• Declaring many foods as forbidden
• Trying to go as long as possible without eating
  by skipping meals, trying fad diets, etc.
• Eating in secret hiding food

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Binge Eating Disorder Continued

• Checking shape/weight by weighing daily,
• pinching body fat, trying on skinny clothes
• Disrupted social life because you avoid eating
  with others
• Feeling ashamed about your eating and wanting to
  be more in control
• Feeling disgusted with your body

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Reject the Diet Mentality

• Diets Can Erode Self Esteem, Confidence and
  Self-Trust
• Dieting Can Negatively Impact energy and
  Performance
• Dieting Can Put Your Life on Hold

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Eating Styles

• Unconscious Eater
• Chaotic Eater
• Refuse-Not Eater / Waste-Not Eater
• Emotional Eater
• Careful Eater
• Professional Dieter
• Intuitive Eater

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Honor Your Hunger

• Dont ignore natural hunger signs, honor them by
  eating.
• Keep your body fed with adequate energy and carbs
  (the bodys primary and preferred source of
  energy.)
• Each time you eat, ask yourself , am I hungry?
  Whats my hunger level?

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The older you get, the tougher it gets to lose
weight because by then, your body and your fat
are really good friends.
- Anonymous-

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Food Journal

• Type and quantity of food and liquid consumed
• Time of each eating episode
• Emotional state directly before eating episode
• Place where food was consumed

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Food Journal Continued

• Situation Events that influenced eating
• Type and duration of exercise each day
• Each eating episode considered by client to be a
  binge (these should be underlined with a colored
  marker).

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The best way to lose weight is to eat all you
want of everything you dont like.
-Anonymous-
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Make Peace With Food

• Deprivation Backlash
• Last Supper Eating
• Non Forbidden Food
• Eventually Loses Its Power

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Challenge the Food Police

• Black or White Thinking
• I can eat only foods with zero grams of fat!
• Carbohydrates are bad. Im never eating bread,
  potatoes, tortillas, or pasta again!
• I shouldnt have eaten that cookie. Now, Im off
  my diet. I might as well eat the whole box and
  start over again tomorrow!
• I blew it and had a piece of cake for dessert. I
  feel like such a loser! I cant do anything

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Catastrophic Thinking

• I tried so hard this week, but I still didnt
  lose a pound. That's it! I give up. I'm never
  going to lose weight!
• I ate a whole bag of chips today. Its
  hopeless! Im always going to be an overeater.
  Ill be fat and alone forever!
• I can't believe I ate an extra serving of
  carbs at dinner tonight. Now, Im going to gain
  weight!

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Pessimistic Thinking

• All the food on campus is greasy and fattening!
• All healthy foods taste terrible!
• When I look in the mirror, all I can see is my
  fat thighs!
• I have no self-control!

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Self-fulfilling Prophecy

• If I get stressed out, I know I'll binge.
• If I eat too much, I have to do something to
  get rid of it.
• If I eat one serving of ice cream, I know I
  won't be able to stop.
• When I go home for the holidays, I know I'll
  eat everything in sight.

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Should Statements

• I need to eat only salad for lunch or else
  I'll gain weight.
• I should never eat fast food if I want to be
  healthy.
• I must exercise every day or else I'll have to
  really restrict my diet.
• I shouldn't eat after 600 p.m. or else all
  the calories will turn to fat.

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      Watch your thoughts, for they
become words. Watch your words, for they become
actions. Watch your actions, for they become
habits. Watch your habits, for they become
character. Watch your character, for it becomes
your destiny. The
Peace Pilgrim
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Changing Your Mind

• Listen to your thoughts.
• Ill never lose weight!
• Decide if your thoughts help or hurt your
  progress.
• Re-word your negative thoughts to make them into
  positive messages.

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Challenging Negative Thinking

• Cognitive Restructuring
• Am I being rational?
• Is is sensible or helpful to think that Ill
  never lose weight because I ate that piece of
  cake?
• Learning Positive Self-talk
• "I'm a good person, and I like the changes I'm
  making."
• "Sometimes I make mistakes, but I know how to get
  back on track."

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Feel Your Fullness

• Eat Consciously
• Pause in the Middle of a Meal and Check in with
  your Body
• Dont Feel Obligated to Leave Food on your Plate
• Eat Without Distraction

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Discover the Satisfaction Factor

• Ask Yourself What You Really Want to Eat.
• Savor Your Food
• Eat When Gently Hungry Rather than Over Hungry
• Eat in a Pleasant Environment
• Check in and Stop When Youre Satisfied

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Emotional Hunger is

• Sudden. One minute you're not even thinking about
  food, the next minute you're starving. You hunger
  goes from 0-80 within moments.
• Your cravings are for one certain type of food,
  such as pizza, ice cream, or chocolate. With
  emotional eating, you feel that you need to eat
  that particular food and that no substitute will
  do!

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Emotional Hunger is

• "above the neck." An emotionally based craving
  begins in the mouth and the mind. Your mouth
  wants to taste the pizza, chocolate, or ice
  cream.
• Urgent. Emotional hunger urges you to eat NOW!
  There is a desire to instantly ease emotional
  discomfort with food.

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Emotional Hunger is

• Paired with an upsetting emotion. Your husband
  yelled at you. Your child is in trouble at
  school. Emotional hunger occurs in conjunction
  with an upsetting or distressing situation.
• Often connected to automatic or absent-minded
  eating. Emotional eating can feel as if someone
  else's hand is scooping up the candy and putting
  it into your mouth. You may not notice that
  you've just eaten a whole bag of chocolate almond
  kisses.

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Emotional Hunger

• Does not stop eating in response to fullness.
• Feels guilty about eating. The paradox of
  emotional overeating is that you eat to feel
  better, and then end up angry or disapointed with
  yourself. Next, you promise to atone ("I'll
  exercise, skip a meal, etc.)

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Physical Hunger is

• gradual. Your stomach rumbles. One hour later, it
  growls. Physical hunger gives you steadily
  progressive clues that it's time to eat.
• open to different foods. With physical hunger,
  you may have food preferences, but they are
  flexible. You are open to alternate choices.

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Physical Hunger is

• based in the stomach. Physical hunger is
  recognizable by stomach sensations such as
  gnawing, rumbling, emptiness, and even pain in
  your stomach.
• patient. Physical hunger would prefer that you
  ate soon, but doesn't demand that you eat
  immediately unless you have allowed yourself to
  become over hungry.

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Physical Hunger

• happens out of physical need. Physical hunger
  occurs because it has been many hours since your
  last meal. You may experience light-headedness or
  low energy if overly hungry.
• stops when full. Physical hunger originates from
  a desire to fuel and nourish your body. As soon
  as that intention is fulfilled, you stop eating.
• From Constant Craving What Your Food Cravings
  Mean and How You Can Overcome Them. by Doreen
  Virtue

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Childhood is that wonderful time of life When all
you have to do to lose weight is to take a bath
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Emotional Eating Triggers

• Boredom and Procrastination
• Bribery and Reward
• Excitement
• Depression
• Frustration, Anger, Stress
• Fatigue

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Coping With Emotional Eating

• Ask Yourself
• Am I biologically hungry?
• What am I feeling?
• What do I need?
• How can I meet this need?
• Research indicates that individuals who respond
  to a negative situation with both positive
  thoughts and constructive action are able to
  avoid emotion-based eating 85 of the time.

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I Feel Because

• I feel because
• Angry they expect me to visit too much
• Frustrated I cant get home as much as Id
  like to
• Afraid Theyll think Ive abandoned
  them
• Devastated Theyre going down hill so fast
• Worried They might need nursing home care
  soon
• Irritated They dont seem to appreciate me
• Bitter Theyve ignored me for much
  of my life
• Resentful My brother doesnt take his turn
  visiting
• From Life is Hard. Food is Easy.
  Linda Spangle

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Food Tracing

• Food Memory and Feeling
• Corn Chowder Mom made it on snowy Saturday
  afternoons before
• we went sledding. I felt festive, excited,
  happy, anticipating fun.
• .
• Cheese Curls My cousin and I pigged out
  on them
  when she was pregnant. I felt
  older, more mature, connected
• Donuts My grandmother made
  them each morning when we went to visit. I
  felt loved, special, warm, safe, nurtured
• From Life is Hard. Food is Easy.
  Linda Spangle

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Food and Needs

• Simple Needs Pleasure, fun, feeling better,
  stress relief (corn chowder)
• People Needs Connecting, pleasing others,
  attention, appreciation (cheese curls)
• Emotional Needs Safety, love, reward, comfort,
  avoiding painful feelings (donuts)

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Gather Your Needs

• What do I need? How could I get it?
• Time Limit house
  work
• Connection Make plans with
  friends at
  least once per week
• Hope Establish
  some goals
• Be Centered Learn Mindfulness

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Wild Geese You do not have to be
good.You do not have to walk on your kneesfor a
hundred miles through the desert, repenting.You
only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.Tell me about despair, yours,
and I will tell you mine.Meanwhile the world
goes on.Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles
of the rainare moving across the
landscapes,over the prairies and deep trees,the
mountains and the rivers.Meanwhile the wild
geese, high in the clean blue airare heading
home again.Whoever you are, no matter how
lonely,the world offers itself to your
imagination,calls to you like the wild geese,
harsh and exciting--over and over announcing
your placein the family of things. MARY
OLIVERDream Work
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Eating and Relationships

• Who are the five people in your life you are
  closest to?
• How frequent is your contact with each of them?
• What is your eating like before, during, and
  after you see them?

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Eating and Relationships Cont.

• What are two expectations you have for each of
  these people? When they are not met, what do you
  do?
• What roles do you tend to play in relationships
  with others? Do certain roles that you play leave
  you feeling "hungrier" than others?
• What are the satisfying and unsatisfying aspects
  of these relationships? How can you make your
  relationships more satisfying?

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Create a List of What you Love, and Do at Least
One Thing Each Day.

• Soft, flowing, soothing music
• Long, warm, scented baths
• Bed with a cup of tea and a good book
• Finishing a brisk walk along the river with a
  great book on tape
• Taking a nap with my puppy
• A really good movie
• Long, soulful heart to heart talks

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Enjoy life to the fullest. Remember all of
those women on the Titanic who waved off the
desert cart.
- Irma
Bombeck -
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Steps to Freedom From Emotional Eating

• Love yourself
• Give up perfectionism
• Break out of the "Being-Nice" trap
• Find alternative means of coping
• Connect with self and others
• Use the mantra Is this what I really need?
• Use this mantra to get you through
  moments of difficulty.
• From http//www.mental-health-matters.com/index.p
  hp?optioncom_contentviewarticleid504

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Four Steps Before Eating

• Stop
• Breathe
• Reflect
• Why do I want to eat right now?
• Why this food?
• Is this what I really need?
• Choose

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Respect Your Body

• Accept your genetic blue print
• You dont have to like every part
• of your body to respect it.
• Stop body bashing
• Your body deserves to be fed, treated with
  dignity, dressed comfortably, etc.
• The Loving Heart Exercise (see http//primusweb.co
  m/fitnesspartner/library/weight/feelings.htm for
  instructions)
• From Overcoming the Legacy of Overeating by
  Nancy Kathryn Fuchs

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According to Studies on Depression and Exercise

• Exercise has proven to be a beneficial
  antidepressant both immediately and over the long
  term.
• Although exercise significantly decreases
  depression across all age categories, the older
  people are, the greater the antidepressant
  effects of exercise appear to be.
• Exercise is an equally effective antidepressant
  for both genders.

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Depression and Exercise

• Walking and jogging are the most frequent forms
  of exercise that had been researched, but all
  modes of exercise examined, anaerobic as well as
  aerobic, were effective in lessening depression
  at least to some degree.
• The greater the length of the exercise program
  and the larger the total number of exercise
  sessions, the greater the decrease in depression
  with exercise.
• The most powerful antidepressant effect occurred
  with the combination of exercise and
  psychotherapy.

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Exercise Feel the Difference

• Forget militant exercise
• Shift your focus to how it feels to move your
  body vs. burning calories
• Dont deprive yourself of needed nutritional
  energy
• Focus on exercise as a way of taking care of
  yourself
• Include strength training
• Make exercise a non-negotiable priority
• Consider an exercise log

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Honor Your Health

• Eat a variety of foods per day including
• grains
• Fruits and vegetables
• protein
• calcium source
• 8 glasses of water
• Get enough sleep!!!!