So I went to get my ice cream. First I had to wait until I was hungry because my stomach was full and I wanted to enjoy it and not have my stomach hurt. finally I was hungry enough. I eagerly ate about 3 or 4 bites before realizing that actually its not what I wanted at all. I really wanted something savory with protein. So I put it away and made myself a fried egg sandwich on a whole wheat bagel instead. yum! Its just funny, I have been thinking of that ice cream for days now.

thanks for the input everyone. I'm having a really hard time deciding what to do here. I used to weigh myself weekly and it didn't really bother me much - I had become sort of immune to it. I'm wondering if I need to desensitize myself from it and start weighing weekly or daily. OR just go cold turkey - that scares me though because I've done YEARS of cold turkey and that's when I gained the most weight. I think I'm going to do some more searching on the subject.

I did some other reading today and I'm pretty sure I've been on the "hungry/full diet". Even though I've been eating whatever I wanted when I was hungry, I still always felt deprived. Like today I ate breakfast when I got up and with the kids because I was hungry. Then I got hungry again around 10:30am and had a snack. I was meeting a friend for lunch at 12pm and ate again even though I wasn't super hungry, just so-so hungry and I didn't eat until I was stuffed or anything but just enjoyed myself at this social situation. In the past I would have fretted over this because I wasn't properly hungry but I feel that this is what intuitive eating is - not the just eating when you are hungry but some times enjoying yourself at a social occasion because it's there and you can. I sure have a lot more work to do.... It's a journey not a destination, right????

@Pinkhippie: glad you listened to yourself re: the ice cream. One has to do that sometimes.....it's refreshing when in the end you didn't really want it... happens to me all.the.time.

I think we all have. Isn't it amazing how one little pound can throw us into such self doubt? As if that pound is proof that we are failures when truly that number could be different on any other day. My weightloss is extremely gradual, I've lost exactly 9 lbs since February. Yes I wish it was more. But I do try to focus on the other things I have achieved since then and remain convinced that if I keep this up the weight will come off. It's important to come up with a list of other accomplishments to counter your negative self doubts. You've outlined a few above like cooking one meal instead of 2 etc. what else can you focus on that can diminish the negative impact of that one pound?

I don't know if I have anything spectacular to add to the discussion about external era us internal gratification (thanks for tr shoutout Pinkhippie) other than to say that we must be aware of how those external forces affect us negatively even if they are positive. Sure it's nice to receive compliments, it's nice to see the number go down on a scale, it's nice to buy a smaller size. But they shouldn't be a guide to how you should feel. I haven't received a compliment in a whole, so what?

The scale is a complicated and very personal thing. I'm not convinced of the usefulness of weighing daily as Marina describes. That process sounds like torrure. I have my own battles with the scale and I do like to weigh once a week. At the moment I'm visiting my family for 6 weeks and have decided to put away the scale for that time. I wonder daily what I must weigh. Some days I feel certain I have lost and other days I feel certain I have maintained. One thing is for sure, my mind does not even contemplate the possibility of gaining. Maybe because I have been eating what I want for 6 months without gaining. We'll see when I get back what the scale says.

Yes, weighing myself daily might put me in a mental hospital. I think I might start going back to weekly. Still deciding.

I am going through some hormonal stuff - I think my body is trying to figure out why I'm not dieting, what is going on, etc.... so I need to just ride it out and let things settle in for a while. I've never been happier than I am now.

I'm definitely going to make a non-weight or body result list of accomplishments with IE. That will help a ton - sort of like you do Wannabe at the beginning of each month. I'll post it later when I think it through.

thanks everyone for your help!!!!

To each, his own, right? Daily weighing helps me a lot and it doesn't feel like torture AT ALL. I've been having doubts by reading the thread if this is the right place for me, actually.... I seem to always have a diferent opinion and sometimes i'm afraid if i write it all down i'll sound annoying... I guess my take on IE is a lot diferent and maybe that is because where i live people take a diferent approach to it. Most people who eat intuitively that i know do have a bit of a structure which they follow daily. It's not set on stone, it's actually quite flexible and open to changes, but this structure helps people who emotional eat to organize themselves and deal with social gatherings in which there's food. That's how i eat, and i'm not sure if it would be considered IE by most of you. So weighing and having somewhat of a structure i follow daily are parte of my IE and i feel they are crucial for my well being.

I've recently been out for 10 days. I was staying at my parents and even took a little trip to a charming small town. I tried to weight, but it was impossible most of those days. I kept following my eating structure but there were massive changes to it and i was ok with that, as it is something flexible that was constructed by me according to what works for me. I basically ate what i want, in the amount i wanted, whenever i wanted, but observing certain limits... i mean, i do have a binge eating problem, so it's fairly common for me to feel like my body needs sugar even when i've already had a lot and really don't need it. So, at times, i would not eat as much sugar as i wanted and 5 or 10 minutes later i would be feeling fine and satisfied, without any craving for sugar. Paradoxically, some amount of limits and a bit of restriction is important to my IE. I feel those limits are part of my being in touch with what is good to me and how my body reacts to food. Some days i'll eat a lot more carbs than others (and i mean A LOT) as i feel my body needs it, but i'll avoid eating beyond a certain generous boundary.

So.... limits, a bit of restriction, loose exercising goals and even weighing daily are part of my habits and I still consider myself an intuitive eater.

Would you consider this is IE?

Marina Brasil: have you read any IE books at all that sort of define IE and what it entails? Might be helpful to do that rather than ask us because I think every single one of us will say that IE is a little bit different to them.

To me IE is NOT using anything that is like a diet: weighing daily, measuring food, counting calories, fat grams or carbs. Eating whatever I want when I'm hungry and sometimes enjoying food just for what it is when I'm not hungry and I want to. Not having guilt around food or food choices. Legalizing food meaning food is not "good" or "bad", it's just food. Exercising when I want and when I feel like it and finding an exercise program that works for me. It's also about mindful eating, being aware that I am eating and what I'm eating. I'm also working on how different foods make my body feel but I have a bit of a way to go with that since I'm still legalizing food and just got done with a coach that promoted the "hunger/fullness diet" in which I still felt deprived which ultimately made me cranky and feeling like I needed to binge. When there are no rules about food and I can be free to eat to my hunger signals, I don't feel the need or urge to binge what-so-ever. that is a huge huge win in my book and one that has taken 28 years to overcome.

Hopefully others will chime in too....

I pretty much agree with Jensassy except I did weigh daily for a long time. I think Im going to go back to not weighing anymore though. I fit into all my old clothes, Im happy with where Im at and I really want to focus on trying to figure out how to get more exercise into my life. I have noticed recently that focusing on the scale does make me feel anxious and possibly restrict more than my body requests. So, going to take a break from that.

Everything else, legalizing foods, eating what I want whenever I want them and just enjoying food sometimes regardless. I pretty much automatically stop eating when Im satisfied now, I don't really have to think about that aspect anymore. I don't like feeling stuffed anymore.

Listening to my body about what the food is telling me is very important too but Jensassy is right, that is a tricky road to walk without feeling deprived for me.

Most of all, I just try not to think about food very much at all unless Im hungry. I am pretty close to that now.

I agree with Jen on the binge eating. Binge eating for me comes from deprivation. I only really haven't felt the urge to binge since I started eating whatever I wanted- truly whatever I wanted. I had a chocolate bar for lunch today, or half a chocolate bar. I had a few bites and then decided that was enough. I've never only eaten half a chocolate bar... in my whole life. This has only come about through truly eating whatever I want. I've gone through phases of eating all the foods I used to restrict- bread and cheese, sausage and potatoes, sandwiches, hamburgers, hot dogs, mayo-based salads, cookies, candies, chocolate, etc. I eat a lot of the stuff for a little while and then after days to weeks I decide I've had enough, I don't need to eat that anymore. The spell is broken and they aren't compelling to me anymore. I'm about at the end with chocolate now. It's seriously losing its appeal. I have loads of it in the house, too, along with ice cream. I just don't care about it that much anymore. It's lost its allure, its sexiness. If your house is full of junk food and you eat all you want eventually you will get tired of it. I just ate a bunch of broccoli for dinner, even though I could have eaten cheese, sausage, bread, chocolate, or ice cream.

Hi All! This thread has gotten busy! I was posting back in december 2013 on the IE thread #18 at the time but it wasn't very active and I was talking to myself a lot so I kinda disappeared to find support elsewhere but I popped on today just out of curiosity to see if it was any better and found this thread which is very chatty! I love it! Do you mind if I join you all?

So since I started IE 10 months ago a lot has changed for me. My name is Spryng, I'm 34, mother of 4 kids (14,13,11 and 8) I have lost 66 lbs total, 55or so of that was with a low calories/portion diet and then I found IE and switched as it made soooo much sense to me. My favorite book is How to have your cake and skinny jeans too though I've read several other IE books as well. I lose the additional lbs over a few months, not fast but consistant.
I divorced at the beginning of this year, 15 years of marriage was over but it was the best thing for myself and the kids. Me and my EX are amicable, it was uncontested and actually very easy in hindsight. So anyway, I met a great guy a few months ago and had to go back on birth control and the birth control really messed with my hunger. I was hungry ALL the time. So I was trying to do my IE principles of honoring my hunger and eating when I was truly hungry but I was seriously hungry ALL the time so I started to slowly gain.. nothing crazy, over the last 8 months I've put on 8 lbs... I was easily maintaining at 112-115 and after the birth control hunger I went up to 115-117, then 117-119 and then the other morning I hit 120 and said this has got to stop! I swore I'd never see 120 again when I left it so it was a wake up call for me that if I don't get this under control now it will creep up to 125, then 130.. you know that slippery slope, and it happens fast.
So anyway, the past week I've really been trying to figure out how to get this fixed. How do I follow IE principles if my body is telling me I'm hungry ALL the time? Well first I am cleaning up my diet, I really did eat crap all the time (because I could) I mean I'd eat a snicker bar for breakfast, not the best thing I could choose lol I've never been big on fruits and veggies, I love my carbs and fats but my body was craving some nourishment so I bought a nutribullet and have been making some awesome smoothies for breakfast each day. It doesn't feel like I'm eating fruits and veggies so I like it and in fact I crave it for breakfast every day, my skin for the first time in my life is clear and glowing, my hair is not breaking and I just feel more energized all day. So I checked that off my list, eat healthier... but still portions was the issues. I'm only eating when truly hungry but how do you do that when you are genuinely hungry ALL the time?? well that is what I'm here for... ideas.. yesterday I just really cut some portions down, Paced my hunger so instead of eating a meal at 2pm because my body was screaming for it, I had a green tea with chia seeds (chia seeds are sooooo good for us plus they swell causing us to feel satisfied) so I'm tricking my body a bit because I know it can't be needing those calories, it feels like true hunger but it has to be pseudo hunger... but it worked for yesterday! I was able to only eat 3 smaller meals, used chia seeds inbetween if I needed them and I was down to 119 today which I'm thrilled about but I still need to get back down to 112 or less so that is why I'm here... how do I continue to get past this birth control hunger! I can't stop taking them and yes I've tried a few different kinds this year but they all do this to me, so now I need to figure out how to do IE while on them without gaining weight and also losing a few more lbs in the process... ideas???? and I can't wait to get to know you all

Welcome Spryng!

Im sorry, I have no ideas for you. I experienced the ravenous hunger while I was nursing a lot and nothing I did seemed to calm it down. Now that she has reduced her nursing I experience a lot less hunger. Sometimes if I have an hour until dinner and I get hungry and I want to eat with my family I will have some tea with milk. Drinking something warm with milk helps me wait an hour or so. And sometimes a small serving of nuts can do the trick for me too. They are very satiating.

@locke: I feel the same way. I can have oodles of food around now and if I'm not hungry or feeling it, then I don't have any issues not eating it. I gave a friend (who is constantly watching her calories, etc...) a bag of delicious candy and she ate the entire bag in a day. I have had approximately 3 bites of the bag I kept for myself. This to me was a huge wake up call. Those who deprive binge, those who don't deprive, don't binge. this is the freedom we've all been looking for! isn't it grand?

WELCOME SPRYNG. I take progesterone because I'm naturally low, but I don't experience constant hunger with these artificial hormones and quite honestly I've never seen it addressed in any of the IE books. FYI: to me replacing chia seeds with food and trying to trick your body to be full sounds like dieting to me. If you want a snickers for breakfast, there isn't a reason why you shouldn't have it - just saying.....

I've been thinking about my list of things that have really changed for the better since starting IE..... I'm going to wait until tomorrow when we start our August thread and post it then!

Welcome Back Spryng!

What does your hunger feel like? Is it different at different times? Do you feel it in your belly, or in your mouth? I find my hunger is different at different times of day and it means different things.

Marina, nobody here will judge you for your eating, or how you view IE. I would suspect though that your occasional binging might be due to your restriction. I don't know how IE is viewed in your country but there are a number of books that are helpful, let us know if you need suggestions.

There are various phases of IE and perhaps you are in a different stage than I am. Structure and restraint have consequences for me in the form of binging. I too never thought weighing myself was a problem until I tried doing it less. It caused a lot of doubt at first and then some freedom. Self monitoring can foster a lot of scrutiny.

Welcome Spryng!

It's time for an August thread?!

Hi, everyone...I read here often, but don't comment much.

I just wanted to leave a suggestion for those who are trying to decide whether or not to weigh themselves, or just how often.

I'm one of those who likes to see the numbers, but my weight bounces up and down a LOT, so I use what's called a weight "smoothing" tool.

It's a program that graphs your daily weight and shows you whether you're gaining, losing, or staying the same, based on a 7-day average so it "smooths out" those daily ups and downs to give you a truer picture of what's going on.

Sometimes you're actually losing when you think you aren't; other times you're actually gaining when you think you're not.

I've used Weight Commander for years, but have recently found Weight Grapher, and really, really like the info it provides.

Hope this helps somebody.

Hello all I was on the IE forum awhile back. I see we are having a discussion on weighing in. I was ADDICTED to weighing every morning. So since the scale is in my home office, I have a rolling card with folders on it, and it fits right over the scale and to weigh in you have to roll it away and it is really a pain to move, so it has helped me not to weigh in every day. Tonight hubby and I will probably go and eat at a local resturant. We LOVE their seafood gumbo. Last time we went I had the bowl and a side of potato salad. I was stuffed! So I think tonight I will have the CUP of gumbo and the side of potato salad, I should be full and not stuffed.