Popping into the forum after a week and saw this thread and the original one having been resurrected. Wow!
I really agree with the need to adopt a "thinking less of food" mindset. For me, it was really important to pursue activities that kept my mind busy and away from thoughts of food when I was in the transitioning phase and I still do my best to keep my mind active now (be it on work, studies or other activities or events).
Wannabe, thanks for the kind words in your post in the original thread. I'm happy that things are working out with IE.
As for pregnancy, lol, I put on so much weight during pregnancy that everyone was totally shocked! Couldn't help it, I was so nauseous and just wanted to have something in my mouth all the time to get rid of the nausea.
I have been practicing IE since I first posted in this thread last year. I have definitely had some bumps along the way. But, I have lost about 20 pounds. And, unlike with dieting, I haven't only been able to maintain it for a week and then shot right back up, I have been hanging out around this weight for a while. I think I started losing weight again recently though. I haven't weighed myself in a while, but I am fitting into pre pregnancy pants and today for the first time in over 2 years, I was able to put my wedding ring back on!
Key for me has been to allow myself to eat whatever I want. I had a hard time with this. I had to kind of work up to it. Like first, instead of any treat type thing, I started out with protein bars, then granola bars, then chocolate,then oreos, and then my ultimate ice cream cake. I also made sure to buy a LOT of those, enough where I didn't worry about running out or decide that I needed to stop eating so I would just eat the rest of the box to get it out of the way. When you have 5 boxes in the pantry, that urgency just goes away. Well, it did for me and all those foods lost their forbidden magic. Then I started noticing that I felt like crap after I ate a lot of sugar, wheat and dairy. So I naturally started to look for food that didn't have it. I stopped craving sugary treats all the time and started eating more vegetables and protein. All on my own! And I have tried diets before that tell you not to eat wheat or dairy or sugar and I have lasted only a few days on those before rebounding into mountains of treat food. But when I am doing it for myself because I recognize that I just feel better, well its amazing. I enjoy it. I eat a salad almost every day for lunch now because its delicious and I love how it makes me feel, and gives me energy where as after lunch I used to be dead tired. But, these guidelines couldn't come from outside, they have to come from inside.
I also started tuning into my hunger and trying to eat only when I was hungry and stopping when I was satisfied. This took a LOT of practice. In fact, I feel like I only recently got the hang of this. It took months before I was able to leave the table without the feeling of a hurting stomach because I ate too much. But, I just kept on trying and trying to be mindful. Eating used to be stressful because I was concentrating so hard on if I was full, if I was satisfied, if it still tasted as good. Now, I barely think about it, I just eat until I am satsified. I can tell now. My body actually speaks to me and I finally hear it. I am still working on eating slower though. I still want to race through my meal. Probably because I have 3 small children that I am always dealing with and sometimes eating with. And sometimes, I still do emotionally eat, but that is ok, I just recognize that that is what I am doing and then later try to figure out why I did it. It's totally a process, and not an overnight process. Im still working on it.
Just this week I finally decided I would like to do some exercise. I have been really resistant to exercise because I used to treat exercise like food and when I finally let myself eat anything I wanted, I also gave myself permission to never exercise again if I didn't want to. But, lately I find myself enjoying moving more and I like the feeling I get when I exercise. So I started again. Im hoping because it comes from inside me, that it will be more lasting, like the eating is.
Anyway, sorry for the extreme novel.
eta: I just read my last post here from last year and I have to say I was on the right track but I only THOugHT I was legalizing foods. I didn't fully commit to the process and so eventually I ended back up craving sweet things and eating things when I wasn't hungry. It took me a long time to get out of "diet" mindset and even today I sometimes think maybe I should count calories... but I can't bring myself to do it. So yeah, its a long process, at least it has been for me.
eta2: I am obviously not saying it is neccessary to cut down on wheat sugar or dairy, I just noticed that for me I feel worse when I have wheat dairy or sugar right now and I feel better when I don't. That could change at any time, and I am totally open to that. One thing I do notice for me, is when I eat bread I don't feel satisfied and it makes me feel more hungry, the same with sugar. But I still have it if/when I want it. Like yesterday I still had a slice of my birthday cake and enjoyed it. But noticed later that I felt lightheaded, with a sore throat and was hungry again. But still, I chose to have it.
Last edited by Pinkhippie; 04-07-2014 at 11:27 PM.
Welcome back Pinkhippie and please do stick around to share your experiences with us. I'm so glad that IE has worked out for you long term, 20lbs is an amazing byproduct and I hope that if I lose 20lbs within a year it's because I've kept it off, not because I've gritted through it. There is such a big difference between working hard to lose 20lbs and losing 20lbs without working hard.
My goal for every day is to end the day satisfied with what I ate. I've noticed that when I am not satisfied that the next day becomes more difficult. I'm not seeing any weightloss right now but I haven't gained any over the past couple of weeks since I last weighed. The progress I am making has more to do with state of mind and amount of anxiety which has lessened.
I do have a stressful situation coming up though, Easter with my friends and family. It just so happens that both my best friends have recently lost a bunch of weight and they will both be there, along with another family member of mine who has also lost weight too. We were all about the same size or so and now I fear I'll be the biggest one. Everytime I think about Easter I think about dieting. I won't, but it pops into my mind.
Welcome back Pinkhippie and please do stick around to share your experiences with us. I'm so glad that IE has worked out for you long term, 20lbs is an amazing byproduct and I hope that if I lose 20lbs within a year it's because I've kept it off, not because I've gritted through it. There is such a big difference between working hard to lose 20lbs and losing 20lbs without working hard.
My goal for every day is to end the day satisfied with what I ate. I've noticed that when I am not satisfied that the next day becomes more difficult. I'm not seeing any weightloss right now but I haven't gained any over the past couple of weeks since I last weighed. The progress I am making has more to do with state of mind and amount of anxiety which has lessened.
I do have a stressful situation coming up though, Easter with my friends and family. It just so happens that both my best friends have recently lost a bunch of weight and they will both be there, along with another family member of mine who has also lost weight too. We were all about the same size or so and now I fear I'll be the biggest one. Everytime I think about Easter I think about dieting. I won't, but it pops into my mind.
Thank you! I hope to stick around more and have more to share as well.
I know exactly what you are talking about with gritting through it. Every time I diet and count calories I feel like I am barely hanging on and I go in the bathroom to look in the mirror at least once a day to see if I look thinner. It is not maintainable for me. This time has been, I wouldn't say easy but its been doable. The not easy part has been more just being aware when I eat if I am really hungry, learning new habits like not going to town on ice cream after I get the kids in bed, etc... but I feel like I am just living and just eating so its not been hard at all in that sense. I have also been doing a lot of emotional work as well and that has been difficult but rewarding.
I know what you mean about social events. Those always make me want to diet down to something quickly. But, I know that it will for sure trigger crazy bingeing for me, and I will actually gain weight so it won't be worth it in the end. If you are feeling anxious about it, maybe go buy a new outfit that you feel really good in? Do something awesome with your hair? those are things I do (if I can afford it) if I am anxious before a big social event.
I really like the idea of stopping halfway through the meal and coming back a few minutes later. I actually did that for lunch just now and was surprised to realize I wasn't hungry anymore. I have lots of opportunities to jump up and do stuff during mealtime since I have 3 kids who have constant needs the moment I sit down to eat myself, so that has been pretty easy.
I had another slice of birthday cake last night and it was good. I had the crazy thought in my head that I would let myself eat the whole rest of the cake if I wanted to, but I realized that after most of my slice, I really was satisfied (and feeling buzzy) so I stopped. And I didn't feel all gross and stuffed and like I needed to eat vegetables or fruit to make up for it, therefore stuffing myself more, OR feeling guilty and deciding just to eat everything in the house until I can't move. I ate my slice, recognized that it was good but didn't make me feel the greatest, and left it at that. I didn't eat again until breakfast this morning and it was fine. I really have come far.
Last edited by Pinkhippie; 04-08-2014 at 01:12 PM.
I just found this thread. I've been struggling with IE for over a year. My biggest issue is emotional eating. I know food won't solve the problem but I still do it. This thread has been very inspirational.
I eat a salad almost every day for lunch now because its delicious and I love how it makes me feel, and gives me energy where as after lunch I used to be dead tired. But, these guidelines couldn't come from outside, they have to come from inside.
Congratulations on your 20 lb loss, Pinkhippie.
That, and the line that I bolded, sums up success with Intuitive Eating.
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I have battled overeating for years. Up a few pounds, down a few, and every time the loss was less than the gain, so I ended up where I am. I have diabetes and my blood sugars have been out of control for a while. I recently decided that I don't want to lose my eyesight or any limbs, so I'd better do something.
Although I have tried every diet plan known to man, I finally quit dieting. I changed my eating habits permanently. I made 2 major changes. 1) I cut way back on carbs to lower my BS and 2) I researched nutrition. Before I eat anything I consider the nutritional value of that food. Cookies, cake, candy, chips, pretzels, have no nutritional value, and for some reason unknown to me, I now have no interest in eating them. I might eat too much at dinner, but if I do, it's nutritional food, not empty calories. This is a major change for me, as I have been a binger for many years. The weight is coming off, slowly, but surely, and my blood sugar average has dropped about 70 points.
I think for me it took something major threatening my life to make me change. I will always be a carb binger. I will never be able to go back to the way I ate before, for health reasons. I doubt if I could ever eat a slice of pizza without wanting to finish the whole thing. It's similar to alcoholism. Most of you girls sound young. I hope that you are all able to get a handle on this issue. Don't wait until you're an old lady!! LOL
Last edited by Wannabehealthy; 04-09-2014 at 10:16 AM.
