I'm Not Very Intuitive
Back in October I talked about a book I came across called “Intuitive Eating : A Revolutionary Program that Works.” Here we are in December and I have barely made a dent in the book. I really wanted to be a little more open here on YUM because I tend to really admire bloggers who do. While I don’t want it to take away from the food, I find that when I visit food sites I know I like to get to know the person behind the recipes and even the stories they share about its creation. I even love the family stories they share. Some share a little and some share a lot. In the blogging world we tend to start to feel like a community; some start to feel like family. If I want just a recipe, I’ll scope Pinterest, or even my partner site, Foodie. There are all recipe sites like AllRecipes and Food. But, they are boring. Nothing but recipes. If that is what you need, that is fine. Its a website. This is a blog. It’s a website, sure, but it’s a blog.
Anyway, I feel terrible.
This is a hard time of year for me. Holidays always are. So I am struggling to keep it together in the food department. I don’t want to go on a diet because diets don’t work. But I do need to figure out a good way of eating for me and my family. I need to incorporate a meal plan that works for my budget and one that I can share with YUM readers, too.
Food healed me once many years ago. I know food can heal me again. I just need to put one foot in front of the other (literally, too) and get back to the healthy lifestyle I used to live.
The other day I made a list of how I lost the weight the first time. What worked for me, what didn’t. Then I made a list of how my life is different now and why I think things are holding me back. It was pretty eye-opening.
I’ve been visiting Heather over at Kiss My Broccoli Blog quite a bit lately. I am sure she thinks I am stalking her 😉 But hey, she has good healthy eats. They aren’t all crazy foods either. I can find them locally and they are all clean and whole. Nothing processed. She’s pretty open about her food struggles and that is something I can relate to. When I stumbled on her Thoughts on Repeat post I just said to myself, “Here is someone who gets it.”
In my email to her the other day I mentioned that I am grateful for the Internet who brings people into my life with similar experiences and situations for me to talk to but at the same time it sucks that these are the things that bonds us.
I dove into the book again. The deeper I dove the more I felt something familiar. That’s when it hit me… I’ve read this book before. Many, many years ago my therapist recommended it to me. I read the book and hung on to some of the concepts but did not really complete their program. I’m not really sure what her (the therapist) intentions were because she knew I was doing Weight Watchers (had made it to Lifetime by this point) and had fallen off both trains but was still hanging on a little.
So I am laying in bed wondering why I never really paid attention to this book. It seemed great. I kept on reading. I got to the question and answer section at the end. That’s when the answer became clear.
“#5 Will I Ever Lose Weight Doing This? The most important statement that we can make is that weight loss must be put on the back burner, as you go through the Intuitive Eating process.”
Sorry, but no.
Not being able to work on a weight loss plan is not an option for me right now. The PCOS is making the weight loss difficult. In 8 months I will be 39. The closer I get to 40, the harder it will be to lose weight, especially as I get closer to 45. Between the degenerative disc disease and the osteoarthritis in my hips the food I put into my mouth greatly affects the outcome of my weight. That’s going to determine my day-to-day pain.
The food has to become lighter so I can. A lighter me means a stronger me whose joints wont be in so much pain.
I’ll still be sharing a lot of great recipes with you, so please no worries there!
Just don’t be surprised if you start to see some small, subtle changes here at YUM after the New Year. I promise, it will be worth it. 🙂
First time reader so: Hi!
Like you I read the book – or better yet: parts of it – a while ago and then ‘forgot’ about it again. Struggling more lately I’ve started reading it thoroughly once more and noticed I’d be better off – really- putting the authors’ advice to practice day by day.
I think you can use the book just the way it fits for you. Not in an all-or-nothing way because even if you’re intending to loose weight you can still try to work on becoming more intuitive. The way I understand it weight loss is possible and will happen if meant to be when eating intuitively. If I got it right Resch and Tribole simply mean for weight loss not to make weight loss the number one focus you’re working on doggedly. I’m sure you’ll make the decision that’s right for you in the end. Good luck!
Thank you for stopping by. It is very nice to meet you. Your blog is super cute! Love the balloons.
I am still reading the book. There is quite a bit I find therapeutic and quite helpful. It really makes me stop and think before I start shoveling food in my mouth. So, I have not abandoned it completely. I started back at the beginning and am just reading it a little at a time. I’m not sure if I will post progress reports here or not. I am still undecided.
I don’t want to discourage anyone from reading it, that’s for sure.
Heaven only knows I have tried every diet that has ever come out-I am pretty sure anyone-in my 64 years! And yes, it is harder to lose the older you get (I’m still trying to figure out when I got to be 64!!). The only time I ever lost weight easily is when I got diabetes–before I was diagnosed!! Of course it has slowly begun to come back-I am fighting it all the way. I will definitely have to read this book to see what it has to say.
I’m going to be 40 next year and I know for certain, I want to NOT be in this shape. It’s so hard!
I totally eat for wellness and have healed a lot of my health issues. I am still working on some.. but I so believe that you CAN heal yourself by eating the correct foods.
I try to stick to whole, clean foods. I am just so easily tempted by treats! Ugh.
I love your honesty. Those are the blogs I stick with. . .the ones that are candid about their experiences. I grew up TINY, underweight, and then in my late 20s, I gained a lot (for me). I lost a bunch doing Weight Watchers, then I fell off the wagon, I guess. I put a lot back on. I am not overweight (close), but it’s hard to love my body sometimes when I have struggled with image all my life. I want to make a commitment to healthy eating, not weight loss. I love this post.
Hi Jen. I understand where you are coming from. It’s always been hard for me cause I do take after my grandmother and aunt more. My mother is a lot shorter than me and weight about 100-110. I hear from people that my biological father was a big guy, but I’ve never met him, so I am not sure. I’d love to do WW again, but here its like $12/week. I don’t think I am disciplined enough for the online program as I have tried sticking with it a few times.
Intuition can help guide us for sure. We need to trust our instincts more.
I know I can’t eat perfectly all the time. I can control my water and if I can increase that to ensure my body is hydrated .