The rules of INTUITIVE EATING WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS? HOW DO I STOP SNACKING?
It’s time to listen to your body and learn to love food again
From keeping track of the foods we eat to the concept of cheat days, it’s safe to say that many of us have a complicated relationship with food. But it doesn’t have to be that way. As the body confidence movement continues to gain steam, an increasing number of people are adopting a much healthier approach to the way we eat.
“Intuitive eating is a personalised approach to eating right for your body,” clinical nutritionist and naturopath Michaela Sparrow from The Longevity Remedy explains. “It involves knowing when you are truly hungry, taking your time to eat a meal so you know when you are full, and understanding what cravings mean and giving your body the foods it might be shouting out for.”
While the goal of intuitive eating is getting healthy rather than losing weight, Sparrow says that many people find that they do drop a few kilograms. This comes from being in tune with your body and eating for hunger or enjoyment, rather than to relieve stress or boredom.
“You won’t feel deprived and this will stop that rebound binge effect many people experience on restrictive diets,” says Sparrow. “This will help you keep your portions in check and your calories in line with your daily metabolic needs, without the need for actually counting calories. You won’t lose heaps of weight quickly; it will be slower but it will be more sustainable as this is a way of eating for lifelong health.”
Whether you’re a grazer or prefer three square meals, intuitive eating can work for you. But if you’ve been snacking more than usual while working from home during the pandemic, Sparrow says not to worry.
“Try having a nice high-protein, higher fat breakfast like an omelette or wholemeal sourdough with avocado, tomato and feta,” she advises, explaining it should help set you up for the rest of the day to avoid those pesky afternoon cravings.
“If all you do for the rest of the day is graze on healthier snacks rather than a big meal for lunch, you will get the satisfaction of hitting those cravings without going overboard on the food,” she adds.