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There are so many different reasons why we struggle with
food, and it isn't black or white. Many of the reasons stem
from what we've been told, the way we've been raised and the
way we feel on a given day. It is liberating to know that
the struggle isn't just because we are bad when it comes to
eating well. In the book on Intuitive Eating,
written by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch, they recognized
that there are many types of eaters, and most of us are
dealing with a combination of these types. I have found this
to be true in my own work, and I'll start with the most
common ones that I see with people. They are the chaotic
eater, unconscious eater and emotional eater.
A chaotic eater has no routine to their
eating and has a tendency to skip meals, over schedule
themselves and eat on the run. They really have no idea what
they have just eaten or how much they've eaten. They just
eat what is available and deal with food the next time it is
available. They are completely out of touch with their
eating habits and choices. Is this you? How can you be less
chaotic this week?
An unconscious eater is similar to a
chaotic eater. They are not tuned into what or how much they
are eating, because they eat
while doing other things - like working, reading, talking,
driving, watching TV or cooking. They will eat whatever is
available and have no idea when they are hungry or if they
have exceeded their fullness level. Are you conscious of
your hunger or fullness levels? Try paying attention to them
this week.
An emotional eater uses food to cope
with their feelings and they may not even realize they are
doing this. What they do know is that they eat too much,
often eating an entire package of something before they
realize it. They are numb when they eat and feel powerless
around food. Emotional eaters use food to avoid facing their
feelings - even though they do not seem to feel anything.
When was the last time you think you did this? Watch for
emotional eating and see what you are feeling.
The next two types are often linked to how we were
raised. These
are the waste-not and refuse-not eaters.
The waste-not eater is someone who hates
to see food go to waste
and believes that it's a deal to get lots of food for their
money. They will overeat when food is in abundance because
they hate to see it wasted. What they don't realize is that
by overeating it IS being wasted - literally. And it is
going to cost them more money than they think they saved
when their health is affected by overeating, such as
diabetes, high cholesterol and blood pressure and coronary
artery disease. How often do you eat things for fear they
will go to waste? The next time you feel this urge, consider
the real cost.
The refuse-not eater is a person that
can't refuse food. They can't say no when someone invites
them to have food or encourages them to have more food than
they need or want. They feel they have to eat for fear of
disappointing or hurting the other person. As a result, they
give that person power over how much food they eat. Did you
eat something you didn't want over the holidays because you
felt you needed to make someone else feel good? It is ok to
say I've had enough, no thanks, or thank you but I'm full.
Then there are the restrictive eaters.
These are people that are
always going on the next diet or that follow a restricted
eating plan with vigilance. The chronic dieter is constantly
trying the latest diet, striving to lose a specific amount
of weight, and creating new good and bad food lists they try
to adhere to, but in the end they vacillate between under
eating, over eating and bingeing. The careful eater
scrutinizes labels and foods, weighs and measures all their
food, writes every morsel down and tracks every gram against
their narrow and very specific daily goals. For them there
is little pleasure in eating. This was me for many years.
Are you restrictive and struggling to enjoy your food? To
gain a healthy view of food you may want to try intuitive
eating.
An intuitive eater is conscious of their
body's hunger signals. They eat to feel satisfied. They
don't fear overeating - instead they trust themselves to eat
exactly what they need and have no guilt about eating foods
they enjoy. This type of eater is conscious of their food
choices and tends to want foods that honor their health and
are balanced to meet their physical requirements. How does
this sound to you? People who try it say it is a way to
achieve freedom with food while achieving
healthy eating habits. |
