Vancouver Sun

How much should we eat?

- CRISTINA SUTTER Cristina Sutter is a private practice sport dietitian at the Optimal Performanc­e Clinic in Vancouver. She is also the SportMedBC RunWalk dietitian. For more informatio­n, visit cristinasu­tter.ca

Babies intuitivel­y know exactly how much to eat. When given unlimited access to food, babies and young children will eat exactly the right amount for their bodies.

As we grow up, many of us learn to eat for reasons that ignore our appetite and physical cues.

We have learned food can comfort hurt feelings. A well-meaning mother showed her love through food and we stuffed our bellies with food and love simultaneo­usly.

Parents who grew up in tough times, taught us to feel shame about wasting food. Others rewarded with food, “here, have some cake, you earned it!”

Now, we are so far removed from our hunger cues that we may turn to a diet to tell us how much to eat. We were not taught to check in with our bodies or to listen to our physical cues.

We can relearn how to eat intuitivel­y. Ask yourself: what is your tummy telling you? Listen to your appetite, respond to your hunger and trust your body.

Eat when you are hungry. ■

Stop eating when you are com■ fortably satisfied, then wait.

Get used to feeling satisfied ■ instead of full or stuffed.

Avoid getting too hungry or you ■ will instinctiv­ely overeat.

Some of us may not feel hunger at all if we have become used to ignoring these feelings or replacing food with caffeine. You can feed yourself small, frequent meals to rebuild a connection with your body and physical cues.

 ??  ?? Cristina Sutter
Cristina Sutter

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from Canada