No wonder I can't lose weight! I don't eat calcium foods. Just kidding.

An update on the bet between Spinymouse and myself:

I did pretty well last week. Walked 10 miles, spent 3.5 hours in the gym doing circuit training, and ate sensibly. My clothes seem a little looser this week, but I have gone back to not weighing so I don't know if I lost any pounds.

However, I went and bought a pair of size 12 jeans on Saturday, and I can't get them over my hips/butt, so Jo might not have to worry yet....

I also got rid of all the white rice in my house. Not because of any diehard health principles, just because I realized that I always use brown rice, and having the white version and the brown version of every kind of rice I use is taking up a lot of space in the kitchen.

Hope everyone has a great day :)

Fiddler, I often see recipes for basamati rice written by health conscious people. I have tried it and like it. I guess you can get both white and brown basamati but I have never seen the brown basamati in a store. Have you used it? With cooler weather coming on now my appetite seems to increase. Still have some weight to lose, though.

Sounds like Fiddler is getting the head start on our contest right now, thanks to my beer, but I will catch up!!

Anyway. I have decided what IE means to me is to get back to how I felt as a kid. I ate as much as I wanted, of course. But unlike many adults would define that, "as much as I wanted" meant not very much at all.
I had a stupid dream last night, about Alpha-Bits. I can't believe it but in the dream I remembered exactly what Alpha-Bits tasted like, (nasty!) and I have not been made to eat such a thing since I was about 5 years old. (I have a very good childhood memory and can remember back when I was less than 2.) But I was one of those kids that didn't want to eat much, and this was to the dismay and exasperation of my mother. Part of the reason I didn't want to eat much is because I didn't need to! Why couldn't my mother get that? The other part is, geez, mom, you're giving me Alpha-Bits, for Pete's sake, and who wants to eat Alpha-Bits??? Some gimmick designed to get kids to eat food, who would not have any problem eating real food when their bodies needed it, but the idea of being forced to eat Alpha-Bits is pretty pathetic.

Can't believe I dreamed about it though.

Check your local health food store. Brown basmati is not that uncommon, so if they are decently stocked they should have it. If all else fails, you can buy it on Amazon.com, but I imagine the shipping might be a little pricey. http://www.amazon.com/Rice-Brown-Bas.../dp/B0000CEQ9T

Another one I use a lot of is brown jasmine. Again, you should be able to find it at your local health food store. But if not, you can buy it from ImportFood.com, as well as black, red, and some other types of rice.

I'm still looking for a place that sells brown arborio rice to make risotto with. Not having any luck with that :(

Jo, Your post made me laugh! My mom had so much trouble getting me to eat breakfast that she let me eat ice cream with cereal!!! For years when I was young I ate bananas with cream! Most of the time I just drank orange juice. FINALLY, in high school, she let me eat nonbreakfast foods like vegetable soup and sandwiches. Then I started to eat breakfast. Of course, I always wanted to sleep late like most teenagers so sometimes it was just orange juice!!!! I look back at those carefree days of hardly ever thinking about food. I had a chubby period around age 10 but I grew 5 in. between the 6th and 7th grade and was quite skinny until I started to have kids. Then it seemed it was 5 lb per kid, ha! I can see now that starting to diet was the beginning of my problems.

Hello Ladies,

I had posted last night of my success so far on this method in 300+ thread but no repsonses of what I want to hear. You can check my story on there ,,the title I posted called " Doing Great..I Think..Need Input".

Thank you caroler for the great articles you provide on this special method..

I had been a lurker and reading this thread this past summer. I have Overcoming Overeating book, which it is a Godsend. Since the Summer, gave up my addiction to the whole dieting process. I wanted to break free from the diet/binge vicious cycle.

I am doing great and will continue on this method..It is working for me and seeing great results on the scale and most of all.. I feel lighter and have energy. It feels wonderful and I am truly blessed that am leading this method on getting in shape and stay healthy!!!

Have a great one and Keep eating Mindfully!! :hug:

:welcome3: Liliann, Things have been kind of slow around here lately so hope you post often. Another good book I haven't read but am considering buying is Beyond Chocolate. It is written by 2 ladies from the UK and they have a website and a free newsletter. Just google the title of the book.

Hi Lilliann
I looked up your post on the other board. You must be doing something great because it's working for you! I like the concept of mindful eating. Everything I have heard about IE has that as a key point. I also recommend the book: The Yoga Of Eating. (It's not about doing yoga.) It's very much about mindful eating.

Well, Pals - I'll be absent till late Sunday or Monday; I am going to a women's retreat (yoga, meditation, relaxation) up near Yosemite. Vegan weekend, music, and "drum" was on the list of stuff to bring if that gives you a picture. I'm excited but I can't find half of the stuff I want to bring! Where did my nice soft brand new yoga pants go????!!!!

Fiddler: yoga. vegetables. hiking. no beer. think of the damage this could do to your current lead in the contest. :)

Back later, have a great weekend everyone!
jo

Ok, Im done
 

Im new to this board and I have just had it with counting points, calories, carbs, etc. I have dieted my way up the scale and with all my efforts I cant pull it off.

If I can just share "the last straw" moment I had yesterday.... There has been a cheesecake in the fridge at work for 2 days now. The girl who bought it in said someone brought it to her house but she "doesnt like dessert" and it was all I could do not to slap her!
Anyway, I had all my foods lined up for the day..all counted out..no room for error...eatting if i was hungry or not...casue thats the rules. I didnt expect to be battling cheesecake that particular day. So I thought about it all day long...but it was calling me. I finally decided just to have a forkful, and thank Gawd I was so busy at work i didnt have time for more. I go in yesterday and the darned thing is still there...and i think to myself "comeon people! someone eat this thing or at least drop it on the floor!!" So i spend a second day obsessing over it and until im sneaking it out of the fridge again hoping im not seen...casue after all....everyone knows im dieting.

So, Im done running on this dieting treadmill only to be spun off and smacked in into the wall behind me *SPLAT*


I bought the IE book....but years back (like 10 or more) there was a similar thing i had tried with the same basic idea called Beyond dieting by Nancy Bonios. I loved that she had put a seminar out on video. I lost it some years back, and by lost I mean prolly threw it out when getting hooked on some diet :). I found a set of it on amazon....the video and the cassete tapes (yes cassets, thats how old it is...now i gotta try and find a casstte player, it might as well be on 8track)

So....im going to try very hard with IE so I dont drive myself crazy and maybe can set a good example for my daughter

Thanks for listening
:)

:welcome2: Tigerseye. I think we've all been there and that's why we're here.......tryng to find a way we can live with and still lose. It does happen but sometimes it takes a little longer. I notice an increase in appetite when the weather gets cooler. It's been so warm this fall that it is slow in coming but it did come just this week. Now if I can just hang in there and remember why this happened. One of the things that has helped me is to remeber how I ate as a kid and young adult. Seems once I had kids (10) I started to cook for them and forgot the things I liked. Now there is only one at home and I still try to cook things she likes but I'm branching out.

Thanks for the Welcome :) Did you say 10 kids? you are so blessed!

I did pretty well till about a 1/2 hour ago. I started to get a headache and next thing you know im eatting...I guess to comfort myself. I know i messed up and will have to quit doing that. After all...taking advil isnt eatting :dizzy:

I did manage to get a walk in...and im headed to work soon, if that cheesecake is there its goin gin the trash, lol! :carrot:

Hi All! I've been gone for a month...school is keeping me busy and tired out. Even with the stress of school starting, I haven't gained any weight back. I've continued to eat what I want only when hungry. It is so crazy when the girls sit around the lunch table calculating their weight watcher points and talking about forbidden foods. It is hard to resist the pull into the whole diet mode, and I don't even try to tell them how I am losing weight as I sit and eat a nutty buddy (or whatever those really fattening little debbie peanut butter things are called). I haven't lost any more weight than my 10 pounds, but usually when school starts I gain back all weight that I have lost over the summer. Now that I really am living IE I'm not gaining! I haven't been running lately, but I have my eye on a marathon in December. When I kick up the exercise, I hope it will kick up the weight loss. I wanted to lose 10 more pounds by Christmas break. It is hard to not get into the whole weighing thing. I need to get back here more often and keep myself sane.

Hello everyone,

Thank you Carolr and Spinymouse for the book suggestion,, I will search on those.

From this moment on.... I will no longer devoted my efforts of relying on the scale. I truly believe that it is trying to tell me something of back off or something. I am eating right and staying active and when I taken my final scale peak on Thursday afternoon, I went up back up.. This was not the first time that it happened to me..this second attempt from being at 388 and went down to 335 and back up again.

From reading Geenen Roth book that I have plus Overcoming overeating.. I finally given up on my scale. It reflects my moods alot.

Today my food choices was so-so,,was not on the right mindset,,but I am cheerful that I am feeling lighter.

:hug:

A tough day yesterday.....big birthday celebration for DH with kids and grandkids.......prime rib and oatmeal cake. Glad that's over. ha! I love the fall so that should help. Such beautiful weather even when it rains.

I found an interesting article about how Thai food fits into a weight loss plan:

When picking weight loss diets, there are so many choices: Low-carb, low-fat, Oprah's books, Fergie's bars, pre-packaged, mail order, charts, graphs, tables, one-on-one, groups, South Beach, North End, grapefruit, water, meat, starving, see food.

You could also take a step back, and look at a group of people who constantly eat but are predominantly slim. There are 2 things you see on any street in Thailand: they're filled with thin people and they're filled with vendors selling food. Food is everywhere. How can there be more food, but thinner people?

Most westerners don't eat Thai food every meal. But there are a number of easy lessons that come from how Thai people eat Thai food that directly apply to healthier western eating. It's exotic, fun, tastes great and can encompass a whole healthy lifestyle. We'll call this: The Siam Weight-Loss Diet.

- Snack. With street vendors in Thailand presenting readily available food, people at work grab snacks when they are hungry. According to Dr. Weil, regular snacking moderates the blood sugar and keeps you from having the peaks and valleys that causes binge eating. For example, you could keep a basket of fresh fruit or nuts handy to snack on before you starve.

- Fresh Ingredients and Preparation. Since in Thailand, good quality, fresh food is readily available for takeout or eating in the office, there is not much demand for processed foods. Leaves are more commonly a part of a meal. While making fresh food may be a time consuming, it greatly reduces the amount of unknown ingredients in your body and provides far more nutrients for the same amount of food. Frozen food has half the nutrients of fresh, canned has 10. That means you need 10x the pasta sauce to get the same benefits as fresh. Make an effort to make food when you can and you will learn to cook better food quickly. For example the canned staple spaghetti sauce, can be made in 10 minutes from raw ingredients.

- Fruits. Great fruits are everywhere in Thailand and are more widely in demand than in the US. With great fruit now available here year round, choosing fruit instead of chips or other snacks is an easy choice to copy.

- Rice. Because most of cooked rice is water, it fills you up without supplying many calories. While this may sound counterproductive, in a society where people have the tendency to eat too much, it's a successful way to get "full" without the calories. Other similar examples of filling foods include oatmeal and couscous.

- High intensity flavored dishes. Many Thai dishes pack so much flavor per square inch (or cm) that you have to eat them on rice. There's frequently so much salt, hot pepper or other flavorings that eating the dishes by the raw spoonful is unpleasant. The food needs the rice. Since rice is mostly water, all things being equal, there ends up being more flavor per calorie of Thai food. You get the same level of tastes as a western dish without the calories. See how you can mix high flavor foods with low calorie fillers. Generally these high flavor foods are savory. Thai examples are abundant. You could, for example, serve smaller portions of steak and rice, with kim chee, Indian cilantro relish, or a hot pepper sauce.

- No dairy. I love good cheese. However in Thai food, there is no milk, cheese or butter. All calories add up. Coconut milk is perhaps the Thai analogue to dairy, but coconut milk is not nearly as prevalent in Thai food as cheese, butter or cream are in western foods. Ask most western chefs: what's the secret ingredient that makes people love a dish? Butter. What makes western desserts good? Butter. Lesson: pick dishes without dairy. Don't butter every pancake. Try toast with just jam. You'll be surprised what you need and don't need.

- Well flavored dishes don't need fat. In western food, the olive oil, butter or other fat provides a smoothing and filling aspect of many dishes. For me, lasagna with non-fat cheese is inedible. Because the Thai food flavor system's complexity comes from mixing flavor intense ingredients, like fish sauce and lime and hot peppers, there's no need for a fat. If fat is a bottom flavor that pulls spices together, many Thai dishes are comprised of top flavors without need for a bottom. In general, look for dishes that don't depend on added fats and avoid the oilier dishes. If you try this at restaurants, you can always request stir-fried noodle dishes to be cooked with much less oil. Spread sandwiches with mustard or red pepper spread instead of mayo.

- Low in Sugar. Thai dishes are not highly sweetened. For main courses and soups, a little sugar is sometimes added to round out the flavors. Most desserts combine sugar and salt as prime ingredients but aren't just sugary confections. Many desserts are primarily fresh fruit. Many people drink water, fresh juice or soy milk instead of soda. Look for ways to cut out sugars.

- Shared dishes and smaller portions. In the US, most restaurants over-serve their patrons. Frequently, a single dish can serve 2 people. Thai's traditionally share from dishes in the center of the table. It is considered rude to place in your own dish much more than 2 or 3 bites of a dish at one time. Because people don't have heaping helpings, there is no pressure to clear the massive plate of food you took at the start of the meal when you were hungry. You are less likely to overeat. The serving plates also go back in the kitchen or fridge after the meal so if they are not finished, no worry, they can be finished next meal. With the exception of hamburgers, this is a fairly easy behavior to copy.

While following these principles is a great excuse for going out for Thai food, almost all of lessons can be directly applied to eating western food. The one universal point most nutritionists agree on is that dieting doesn't make long-term success, lifestyle choices makes long-term success. By picking a couple principles at a time and incorporating them into your life and then moving onto another when the ones you previously chose are locked into your habits, you'll be the most successful in staying the weight you want.

I can see how the cultural difference between having it be impolite to put more than a few bites of food on the plate, and how it is here where Aunt Bea feels happy if you ask for three platefuls of her cooking.....would make a big difference!
(I'd sure rather have a few bites of Thai food than a plateful of Aunt Bea's.)

That was very good, Fiddler. I have recently been rereading Fit for Life which emphasizes a lot of high water content foods, namely fruits and vegetables. Interesting reading.

Timely Thai Tidbits
 

fiddler - I found an interesting article about how Thai food fits into a weight loss plan:

Thanks for the timely input. Went with DW to a Thai restaurant last night, one we've been to several times before, but some aspects were more obvious because of your posting.

1) All the staff were thin, very thin, all of them.
2) Had a cod fish with lime sauce and brown rice. Felt satisfied, but not stuffed. Had never thought of rice as a calorie reducing food before.
3) No oil in either of our entrees.
4) Was so strongly flavored that eating without rice would have been unpleasant.

For me, Intuitive Eating remains a goal for the future. The idea has strong appeal, but execution is still ahead of my current state of healthy lifestyle. But, did have a minor IE success this week. About halfway thru the left overs I'd warmed for my lunch at the office I realized that I was satisfied. Only because of reading about IE did the thought enter my mind to stop and save the second half for tomorrow. So, I did. Yeah :)

So, maybe there could be IE in my future.

XXXXXXX 7 XX||||| 14 ||||||| 21 ||||||| 28 ||||||| 35 ||||||| 42
Completed Beck Program-day 9. 33 to go. Keep going!

Looks like I've found the place for me! I lost 50 pounds doing the Weigh Down diet (faith based diet by Gwen Shamblin) about nine years ago. I simply read the book, followed my hunger/fullness cues and the weight dropped off. Now two kids later, I'm back up 25 pounds. I keep trying to apply the hunger/fullness principles but am finding myself failing time and time again. Yet it is the only approach I feel is for me as it really makes sense to me, at the core of my being, that we were created to function this way, not count calories etc. Just wanted to introduce myself and am looking forward to the journey as my goal is to lose 30 pounds!

Christina:)

Hi Cristina! :welcome3:
I am looking forward to getting to know you here! It's really a good place for encouragement and support.

jo

Here's an exerpt from the latest Beyond Chocolate newsletter.

Q I've read and re-read that bit of the E-course that deals with the stop when you're satisfied principle and I'm not unduly worried about 'wasting' food that I'm too full to eat, but I enjoy eating so much that I really don't want to stop! I think, "Just that last potato won't hurt", even if I'm stuffed! If I stop, I feel deprived - it makes me antsy and moody, and I become a petulant 'life's not fair' child! It's silly, really, because overeating only makes me feel worse in the long run. Any insights on how to work on this principle would be greatly appreciated!

A The key is not to stop yourself feeling like that. Instead, experiment with this: For the next few days, let yourself have it all - just because you want it. Instead of thinking that you should stop and leave food on the plate once your body signals it's had enough, plan to eat it all and really experience what's it's like to give yourself permission to do that. Do it deliberately and without guilt - after all, it's only an experiment and you can always stop it if you want to.

When you've done that, experiment with this: Imagine what it would be like if you just sat there, knowing that you could eat it if you wanted to, and making a choice not to. What do you imagine that would feel like? The discomfort of not eating, of feeling the longing and the deprivation is what we are avoiding by overeating. How would it be to let yourself be the petulant child, just for a few minutes? Have the tantrum, stamp your feet at the injustice of it all and then make a choice to leave the potato! If you are willing to experience that discomfort for just a few minutes you might find that you can move on without needing to finish it all.

Just to be clear - this is not about resisting or telling yourself not to have it, it's about being willing to experience the discomfort of wanting it all and of feeling deprived - whatever that's like - and only for a minute at a time. If you find it too uncomfortable, it's ok to eat. I want to stress this point because it's critical: you don't have to leave the potato - it's not the 'right' thing to do, it's a choice.

A word of caution: don't try to short-circuit the process and go straight to the second part, choosing to say no! You need to have the experience of saying yes first. Only then will you believe that you can have it and that you are really
making a choice.

The more you experiment with both options, the easier it becomes to know that you do have a choice, rather than feeling as if you are just using willpower, and the more often you will find yourself stopping and feeling satisfied, even if there are a couple of delicious potatoes left on the plate!

Hey Ladies...
 

Well I am back, life has been hectic, working 2 jobs and just tired. I have been a little lax with my IE and working out, but I am a little more focused. So I am back.

Overall IE helped me maintain where I was, but I think with time I seem to be eating more and more for reasons other than hunger, so I am back. I also joined a challenge to make me ask more often if I am actually hungry.


The scale has bounced around and I actually moved it to my dining room which I never use and weigh myself about every 2 weeks.

I haven't read through all the posts yet, but hey to all the new and old, glad to be back.

Hey OBI! We missed you! Welcome back!!

:hug:

A thought I had the other day
 

So Part of my IE is staying under 2000 calories. usually I do this without thinking about it..I think it is a hold over from my dieting days and it works, so I keep it around. So anyway. It occured to me, that there are people in countries who are so called "less advanced" than the US and they are thinner and healthier than us and they have no idea what a calorie is, how many carbs they are eating or any of other many measurements we have around.

I was also thinking that there was a time in this country when people had no idea what a calories was and there didn't seem to be an obesity epidemic until we got all educated....

:?:

not sure what it all means, but just putting it out there.

I missed you, too!!!!!

Welcome back, Obie. Missed you lots. :)

No Child Left Behind
 

I think you're on to something here. Our schools used to produce educated kids of normal weight.

Since passage of the "No Child Left Behind" act, they produce under-educated kids who are over weight.

Maybe the person setting up No Child Left Behind was dyslexic and just swapped the two goals :D

XXXXXXX 7 XXXXX|| 14 ||||||| 21 ||||||| 28 ||||||| 35 ||||||| 42
Completed Beck Program-day 12. 30 to go. Keep going!

Thanks for the warm welcome back everyone, nothing special to write about today....just missed you guys :hug::D:carrot:

Lately I've been eating a lot of smoothies. I use fresh grape juice, banana and strawberries. Yummmmmm! I always forget how good they are when I stop making them. Other good ones are peach, pear and apple. It's fun to try different combinations.

This just in from Bob Greene,

Paring down portions is a sure-fire way to cut calories, but figuring out what a healthy serving is can be tough thanks to the supersized meals and snacks we've all become accustomed to. Research has shown that restaurant portions have grown considerably in the last few decades. In fact, a study from New York University found that fast food items are now up to five times larger than their original versions. Unfortunately, you can't lose weight without paying attention to portions. So, how can you make sure you're eating a healthy amount each time you sit at the table? Try these portion pointers:

Go halfsies. Many people who eat out are shocked by the size of their dish--there can be two or three servings on one plate. And yet, despite their initial reaction, they continue to eat well past the point of being comfortable. That's because of all the eat-more triggers, such as music, lighting and even the size of your plate. So ask for a take-home box when your food is first delivered, and place half into the container for another day.

Order an appetizer. Another option when you're eating out is to select an appetizer for your main course. These days, appetizers are closer in size to what an entree should be, so feel free to have one for your main meal.

Be a label reader. It can be easy to overdo it with packaged foods because you may consider an entire bag one serving. Make sure to check the serving size on the label, and then do the math: Multiply the fat, calories and other nutritional info by the number of servings to determine how much that bag will really cost you.

Buy smart. Manufacturers are offering more portion-friendly products, like 100-calorie packs of cookies, chips and crackers. It's a great way to enjoy a tasty snack without having to worry about going overboard.

Think small. You can help your appetite adjust to healthier portions by retraining your eye. Serve food on smaller plates so meals and snacks don't look skimpy....

Here is another interesting article.

EVERYTHING I NEED TO KNOW ABOUT WEIGHT
MANAGEMENT I CAN LEARN FROM A CHILD

By Michelle May, M.D.

I love watching kids at Halloween - and any time of the
year for that matter. They can teach us so much about
instinctive eating and effortless weight management. For
example, during Halloween they are just as excited about
the costumes, the trick-or-treating, the sorting, and the
trading as they are about the eating. Don't get me wrong;
they love the candy but food is only part of the
experience. And for weeks afterward they get to enjoy a
couple of pieces of candy each day--but most kids lose
interest when their favorites are gone.

Children have many other natural behaviors that can teach
adults how to love food -but not too much. Here are some of
the important lessons I've learned from watching them:

EAT WHEN YOU'RE HUNGRY. From the time they're born, babies
and young children know when and how much they need to
eat--and they cry to let us know too. As they grow, this
important instinct can be un-learned so by the time they're
adults, they may have learned to eat for many other reasons
besides hunger: mealtimes, tempting food, stress, anger,
boredom, deprivation and countless other triggers. By
recognizing the difference between needing to eat and
wanting to eat, adults can re-learn when and how much to
eat too.

STOP EATING WHEN YOU'RE FULL. An infant will turn their
head away when they've had enough to eat, and a toddler
will throw a plate of food on the floor when they're done.
But as adults, we clean our plates because "there are
starving children" somewhere or just because something
tastes good. I'm not suggesting that we start throwing our
plates on the floor again, but we need to remember that
food is abundant in our society so there's no need to eat
it all now.

BEING HUNGRY MAKES YOU GROUCHY. Being hungry, tired, or
frustrated are sure to make a child crabby--and affect
adults the same way. As parents, we need to do our best to
make sure we are prepared with nutritious, delicious food
to feed our children when they're hungry. We should care
for ourselves that way too.

SNACK ARE GOOD. Kids naturally prefer to eat smaller meals
with snacks in between whenever they get hungry. That
pattern of eating keeps their energy up and their
metabolism stoked all day. Adults who need to fire up their
energy and metabolism might benefit from this pattern too.

PLAY WITH YOUR FOOD. Most kids love to examine, smell and
touch their food. Since eating is a total sensory
experience, they get the most from every morsel. This
childlike approach of eating mindfully will allow you to
appreciate the aroma, appearance and flavors
more--especially if you aren't driving, watching T.V., or
standing in front of the refrigerator. I think you'll eat
less food while enjoying it more.

ALL FOODS FIT. Though parents sometimes worry about sugar
and junk food, "fun" foods are part of a healthy diet. In
fact, overly restrictive food rules usually lead to
rebellious eating anyway - just think about the last time
you weren't "allowed" to eat something on a diet. Children
and adults both eat healthier when they enjoy these less
nutritious foods in moderation when they want them.

YOU CAN LEARN TO LIKE NEW FOODS. Healthy eating is an
acquired taste; it can take up to ten tries of a new food
before a child will incorporate it into their diet. Good
nutrition is essential, so providing a variety of
appealing, healthful foods will benefit the whole family.
In our house, we had a two-bite rule when my kids were
young. Assuming everyone at the table was hungry, they
needed to taste two small bites of everything we served. If
they still didn't like it, we didn't force or bribe them to
eat it--but they did need to try it again the next time we
had it. Since that was "The Rule," there were no battles at
the table and the kids often surprised themselves by liking
something they thought they wouldn't. As teenagers they
both enjoy a wide variety of foods.

BE A PICKY EATER. The corollary to the lesson above is
that kids won't easily eat something they don't like. As
adults we sometimes eat cold French fries, stale cookies or
salty chili just because it's there. Be a little pickier!
Think of how much less food you'd eat if you didn't settle
for food that tasted "so-so."

THERE IS MORE TO A PARTY THAN CAKE AND ICE CREAM. Invite a
child to a party and they'll want to know what they're
going to get to do. Invite an adult and they'll wonder what
food will be served. You don't have to avoid parties to
keep your weight down. Just focus on the real purpose of
social events--to be social--and let food be the icing on the
cake.

EATING WITH YOUR FAMILY IS FUN. Since babies and toddlers
must be fed by their caregivers, they naturally love eating
with other people. Family mealtime is your opportunity to
bond, connect with each other, and model healthy habits.
Now that our kids are older, we sometimes play "High-Low"
at dinner. Each member of the family takes a turn telling
the others about the best and worst parts of their day.
What a great conversation starter and opportunity for all
of us to learn how we handle normal ups and downs in our
lives.

IT'S BORING TO JUST SIT AROUND. Toddlers seem to be in
perpetual motion as they constantly explore their world.
Young kids love to run in the grass, play on the
playground, and challenge themselves and each other with
increasingly more difficult activities. Of course, as they
get older, television, computers and electronic games
compete for their attention. To encourage other activities
in our family, we use "screen time" which limits how much
time our children are allowed to spend on anything with a
screen. Sometimes adults would benefit by limiting their
screen time and exploring their world a little more.

FOLLOW THE LEADER. Face it, kids watch, and often imitate,
everything we do. If they observe us eating a variety of
foods and enjoying physical activity, then they'll learn to
take good care of their bodies. Likewise, if they don't
hear us making comments like "I look so fat in this" or "I
was bad at dinner so I have to spend an extra hour on the
treadmill" then they are less likely to suffer from poor
self-esteem and a negative attitude about exercise.

SLEEP IS GOOD. After a full day, children need a good
night's sleep to prepare for all of the adventures that
tomorrow will hold. Wouldn't we all benefit from a
consistent bedtime to make sure we get our rest too?

LIVE IN THE MOMENT. Kids are masters at living in the
present. They don't waste a lot of energy worrying about
what has already happened or what might happen tomorrow.
They are fully engaged in small pursuits like discovering
where the ants are going, chasing the dog, or seeing how
deep they can dig with a plastic shovel. We, on the other
hand, continue to scurry around, chasing after our dreams,
all the while digging ourselves deeper and deeper. We could
learn a lot from children!

In Health, Enjoy!

Hi. I've been on every diet out there, and none of them last more than a day. I'm fed up. I've tried IE before but never stuck with it because I wanted a quick fix, but, I don't believe ther is one. I'll evaluate after six months. Here goes first day. I drank my mate, that my boyfriend brought me, he brought me a muffin, it was huge, so I ate half, and was comfortable. He and I like cooking together, so, dieting doesn't work, because that takes away from a fun hoby we share. Going to stock my fridge, and cupboards with things I like, not am supposed to have. The Thai soup cups are my favorite. Look forward to getting to know you all.
Amie

Hi Aimie. Fiddler is a big fan of Thai food so you too have something in common. I'm like you.....been dieting for years with not much success. But I've lost about 20lb with IE. Welcome.

I hope my therapist will be willing to work with me following this path, he seems pretty open, so, I'll share it with him. I've been on a real macaroni and cheese kick, had some for lunch, with a Haggendas bar. The vanilla ice cream center was great, but, I didn't like the chocolate coating, so, I think I may just have the ice cream from now on.
I realize that, when thinking about IE and eating what my body wants, I'm scared that if it tastes really good, I'll eat way too much. Even though I know when my body has had enough, I almost always eat beyand that point. I think I may devide my food in half next time I go out, and see if that works. Very nervous about this.
Amie

Aimie, A few posts above gives an explanation of what to do when you don't want to stop eating. I think we all feel that way at times and sometimes pay for it when we feel stuffed later. But it does teach us that feeling stuffed isn't good and that's a good thing. How are you doing today?

Hi carol. thanks for the board. i will try to be regular and come in. now this IE plan is it eating certain things. or just do our thing and watch calories and all? i am doing real good. LaDean Nice to meet everyone and be on a board again.

Hi LaDean. Intuitive eating is eating between hunger and satisfaction. There are quite a few posts here from other intuitive eating sites so maybe you'll get the idea from reading them. Since you are doing really well have you reached your goal? Welcome.

Here is Some Good Reading I Recommend for IE
 

:carrot:

Years ago, in the late 1980s a book came out that I thought was revolutionary" "Diets Don't Work" by Bob Schwartz. It does seem like the principles that he followed to lose weight and keep it off was also along the guidelines of "Intuitive Eating".

I followed this for years and I maintained my weight. I stopped yo-yoing BUT I did not lose weight on it. HOWEVER, having said that, I would also suggest reading "The French Diet" by Michel Montignac and "The Fat Fallacy" by Dr. Will Clower. Some of the premises they assert are very compelling about why U.S. is so obese and getting fatter all the time!

One assertion that both authors claim which I have found to be true for me is that when we eat so called "plastic" food that has taken all of the fat and sugar out but replaced it with chemical addictives we are fueling an insatiable appetite for MORE AND MORE because there is no nutrition in those "faux" foods. We are overweight AND malnourished!! Our body wants food that will satisfy us even on the teeniest cell level. Once we start feeding our body foods that meet these needs we don't want as much.
QUALITY OVER QUANTITY.

Now, having done what I have done in the past and really suffering physically as a result, I began eating healthier ---moving towards "whole foods" and away from anything that is altered by some food chemist (and I had a friend who did that for a living!). I am now eating real cheese and I find that my low fat turkey sandwich on whole wheat stone ground bread sticks with me for hours rather than a short while! I snack less as a result too. I am eating MORE real food and less 'FOOD PUTTY" and I am losing weight and feeling so energetic I feel twenty years younger.

When I return to eating faux food I find myself wanting to eat more. This is proof to me that was the basis for my overeating for decades. I cringe now when I see people still grabbing low fat this or low sugar that or whatever. My blood profile proves that eating "real food" will not harm you in the way we have been lead to believe! Now, I must add a caveat: I am not refering to fast foods or the stuff that is over processed or has a lot of "white" whatever in it.

When I was a kid, the ONLY time we ate rich desserts was the holidays. My mom only baked on occasion. When we wanted something sweet we ate a banana, an apple or a plum (from our neighbors tree!). We ate meat, potatoes and a vegetable. We had oatmeal, milk and unsweetened juice for breakfast. I carried a cold lunch to school. Exercise? We walked every where, climbed trees, swam in the summer, ice skated in the winter. I was a "natural" size 6 all of my growing up years.

I became fatter and fatter the more I joined different diet programs. I won't name names but you would know them if I did. Why? Repetitive starving and "faux foods". NOW, I am returning to the way I used to eat when I was a kid. I plan on being a size 6 again---in about 15-16 months.

Keep us posted on this. I do not think this is a diet trend at all but a way we used to eat before "faux foods" entered the market. Keep plugging away and listen to your self. Your body does know what it wants.:carrot: