Intuitive Eating Series: Gentle Nutrition
For those of you who read last week's blog post or attended our Intuitive Eating Workshop last week, you may remember that gentle nutrition is the 10th principle of the intuitive eating framework.
Gentle nutrition is honoring your taste buds and your health while being aware of how your food choices impact the way that you feel.
Intuitive eating is all about freedom and no restrictions when it comes to food. So, when talking about gentle nutrition, it is never meant to make you feel like you have more food rules and regulations to follow. I like to think of gentle nutrition as the “eat what you want, add what you need” principle.
Gentle nutrition is truly meant to be used as a guide to remind ourselves of the basic needs of our body for it to function at its best.
Here are some practical ways that you can implement gentle nutrition practices into your daily life:
Balanced Meals and Snacks
You have probably heard all your life that you need to have a “balanced diet,” but what does that really mean? A balanced diet is when you aim to include protein, carbohydrates, fat, and fiber at each meal. Here are some examples of each:
Protein: eggs, chicken, salmon, tofu, cheese, Greek yogurt
Carbohydrates: bread, oatmeal, potatoes, rice, crackers
Fat: nut butters, avocado, cooking oils, butter, nuts, olive
Fiber: fruits and vegetables (these also pack lots of vitamins and minerals!)
Adding all of these components to your meals will allow you to keep your blood
sugar balanced and have you feeling full and satisfied for longer.
For a balanced snack, we recommend pairing a carbohydrate or fiber with a protein or fat. This can look like a beef stick and grapes or a Greek yogurt bowl with some blueberries and/or granola. Try some balanced snacks that sound good to YOU!
Timing
Timing is super important when it comes to fueling your body properly. Your body and metabolism need to be fed every 2-4 hours, depending on the size of your meal or snack.
The science: Digestion in your stomach takes 2-4 hours. Whenever your stomach is done digesting your food, the body then sends signals to your brain that you are hungry again.
Consuming a meal or snack every 2-4 hours helps to keep you full and satisfied, aids in blood sugar balance, and promotes stable energy throughout the day.
Addition
As I mentioned earlier, I love to think of the 10th principle of Intuitive Eating
as the “eat what you want, add what you need” principle.
The main focus of many diets is restriction and focusing on what you can cut
out of your diet. Intuitive eating is exactly the opposite.
I challenge you to shift your focus this week. What new fruit or vegetable could
you add to your weekly grocery list? Which foods make you feel the best? What new recipe sounds exciting to try? The possibilities are endless.
After reading this blog post, I hope you feel encouraged and motivated to engage in gentle nutrition practices in the weeks to come.
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Make sure to look out for our FINAL blog post of the Intuitive Eating blog series next week: Intuitive Eating and the Holidays.