Intuitive Eating Coach and health journalist Pam Moore shares why diets don’t work and how to start intuitive eating.
Why don’t diets work?
Ever struggled with weight loss, number obsession or finding balance with food? Intuitive Eating Coach and health journalist Pam Moore shares how to step away from dieting and into sustainable wellness. We go deep into why diets don’t work and how you can break free from the yo-yo cycle. We’re sharing how to find food freedom and self-acceptance.
In this episode:
- Unhealthy diet behaviours we normalise as a culture and how to stop
- The challenge of athletes to NOT obsess about food and fitness
- Why so many of us underfuel and how it impacts or physical and mental health
- Evidence based strategies of intuitive eating
- Where most people give up on intuitive eating and ways to keep it up
WHY DIETS DON’T WORK: AN ATHLETE’S JOURNEY
Pam shares her experience of struggling with disordered eating, excessive exercise, and body image issues, eventually finding freedom through intuitive eating and rejecting diet culture. Her journey had the added struggle of being an athlete and trying to find the balance between nourishing her body and performance.
WHAT TO DO INSTEAD OF DIETS: INTUITIVE EATING
Pam explains the key principles of intuitive eating, including honoring hunger and fullness, rejecting diet mentality, and cultivating a healthy relationship with food and body. It’s about listening to our bodies’ signals and trusting ourselves to make nourishing choices without deprivation or guilt. This revolutionary approach challenges the diet mindset and encourages self-care and self-compassion instead.
We talk about the incredible transformations that intuitive eating brings. It’s not just about dress sizes or numbers on a scale; it’s about real, lasting change. Pam’s clients have experienced profound shifts, such as feeling free from guilt, enjoying food without restrictions, and gaining increased energy and mental clarity. Many of these experiences have a huge impact on mental, emotional and physical health.
THE CHALLENGES OF INTUITIVE EATING
Yes, there are definitely challenges to intuitive eating. From worrying about losing control or falling off track to social pressures, it isn’t a linear path to food freedom. But by acknowledging these struggles, we can address them head-on, breaking free from the dieting cycle and embracing a more authentic and fulfilling relationship with food and our bodies. Pam talks about how to approach each of these challenges and why it’s always worth the effort.
CONNECT WITH PAM MOORE
www.pam-moore.com
LinkedIn: Pam Moore
Podcast: Real Fit
LISTEN TO NEXT
Episode 203: Making Peace with Food & Your Body
INTUITIVE EATING ANSWERS
What don’t diets work? Why are they harmful?
Have you ever stopped to think about the toll that dieting takes on our overall well-being? It’s not just about shedding a few pounds; it’s about our mental and physical health. Dieting can leave us feeling deprived, stressed, and disconnected from our bodies. Not only does dieting teach us to ignore our hunger or satiety (fullness) cues, it also negatively impacts our hormonal balance so that our body remains in fight or flight mode, complicating digestion, sleep and often exacerbating many underlying health conditions.
How can intuitive eating help me break free from diets that don’t work?
Intuitive eating shifts your focus from external rules to listening to your body’s cues. It’s about nourishing yourself in a way that feels satisfying and sustainable, ending the cycle of dieting and deprivation. In small, science-based steps, it shifts your behavior and mindset around food. When done carefully, intuitive eating helps you slowly re-introduce forbidden rules, break food rules and find a new relationship with exercise.
What are intuitive eating principles?
Think of them as your roadmap to a healthier relationship with food and your body. Each intuitive eating principle helps you move closer to food freedom and body acceptance. Examples of these principles include listening to hunger and satiety cues, removing the morality around food (good vs.bad) and changing your relationship with exercise (from punishing to joyful movement.) Each principle builds another.
Can intuitive eating really help me find food freedom and body acceptance?
Absolutely! By tuning into your body’s needs, letting go of guilt, and releasing external judgments, you can experience a newfound sense of freedom and acceptance. Your thoughts shift from control and comparison to genuinely understanding what your body needs.
How does intuitive eating differ from dieting, why is it a more sustainable approach?
Unlike diets that rely on strict rules and short-term fixes, intuitive eating focuses on your internal cues and individual needs. It nurtures a long-term mindset rooted in self-care, self-acceptance, and listening to your body’s wisdom. Intuitive eating rebuilds trust in your body so that your food and exercise choices seem easier and more natural.
Do you lose weight with intuitive eating?
Intuitive eating is centered around body acceptance and fostering a healthy relationship with food. It’s possible that you might lose weight as you become more comfortable with your body’s internal cues and different foods. It’s also possible that you might gain weight. Remember that no program can promise weight loss through intuitive eating as each body will respond differently.
What are some healthy eating strategies I can use to listen to my body’s hunger and fullness cues?
Start by eating mindfully, savoring each bite, and noticing how your body responds. Become aware (without judgement) of the food choices you’re making, why and when. The more you can build wisdom around your body’s needs, the more prepared you’ll become to satisfy it. Another strategy that can be scary but that is a huge step forward is to allow yourself to feel hunger, understand that it’s only your body’s way of signaling to you. Show that you trust this signal by allowing yourself to eat, even if it’s not yet xyz time in the day.
How can I handle social situations and societal pressures while practicing intuitive eating?
Communicate your needs and boundaries with others. Explain why you’re making this transition from diets that don’t work to intuitive eating. Try to find at least one person who is unconditionally supportive of your journey and go to them whenever you feel triggered by a social situation or another person as you make this transition. Remember as well that it’s ok to say no – even temporarily – to friends or people who don’t respect this journey as you build confidence in yourself and what you’re doing.
Can intuitive eating positively impact other areas of my life beyond just my relationship with food?
Yep! By letting go of all the mental and emotional space you’re holding for dieting, you become truly free to experience the things you love in life. This means meals you love or moments centered around food like weddings or birthdays. You also become more confident in yourself because your worth is no longer tied to how you eat or how much you weigh. It’s an incredible growth journey!
What resources or support is available to help me on my intuitive eating journey?
Dive into books like those in the list below. You can also join Facebook communities, continue to listen to non-diet podcasts like Feel Good Nakd or even consider working with a non-diet registered dietitian.
Intuitive Eating Book Recommendations
- “Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionary Anti-Diet Approach” by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch. Find it here.
- “The F*ck It Diet: Eating Should Be Easy” by Caroline Dooner. Find it here.
- “Health at Every Size: The Surprising Truth About Your Weight” by Linda Bacon. Find it here.
- “Body Kindness: Transform Your Health from the Inside Out–and Never Say Diet Again” by Rebecca Scritchfield. Find it here.
- “The Intuitive Eating Workbook: Ten Principles for Nourishing a Healthy Relationship with Food” by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch. Find it here.
