Intentional Eating: How do I know if I’m doing it?

Or maybe you’re wondering, “what is intentional eating to begin with?”

You’ve probably heard of intuitive eating (IE) before. According to National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA), IE is the practice of “trusting your inner body wisdom to make choices around food that feel good in your body, without judgment and without influence from diet culture.” This is an eating skill that we are born with, but many of us have slowly lost to diet culture and unattainable food and fitness goals along the way. One of my goals as a dietitian is to help my clients rediscover eating for enjoyment and without food guilt. We do this by exploring and unpacking core beliefs about food and one’s physical body, all while developing an understanding of the facts about food! We breakdown diet myths and allow the concept of gentle nutrition to help guide our food choices.

In my practice, intentional eating best describes the bridge between relying on the structure and support of a meal plan and intuitive eating. It’s a short-term approach to meeting your body’s needs and requires a bit more mindfulness and attention to those real-time cues, like hunger and fullness. This is a short-term approach to eating because it allows us to eat for a purpose in the moment. It’s also a skill that has a time and a place. I personally don’t think intentional eating should have a seat at the table every single time we eat, but even intuitive eaters rely on this tool when the time comes.

To put it into perspective, I use this idea of intentional eating with my clients when coming across certain scenarios where eating for a purpose may be helpful. For example: this may look like fueling for a workout; having a larger breakfast before heading out for a day trip full of walking and museums (see photos above for what I wore exploring Boston for a day… yes, I’m proud of it); adding an extra serving of fiber on those days you’re feeling a little backed up; supplementing with extra leafy greens or folic acid during pregnancy; OR using eating skills you’ve learned to meet your metabolic needs while healing from diet culture. It’s an informed way of eating to meet specific and timely needs.

For me, intentional eating was something I used to focus on a TON. I’ll admit that I may have leaned on it a bit too much at the beginning of my intuitive eating journey. Let’s say I was going on a day trip and lunch plans were up in the air. You’d have found me carving out time to prepare a very balanced and satiating breakfast because I didn’t know when or what my next meal would be. I was a little too focused on eating for a purpose because I didn’t trust those lunch plans to provide the healthiest or most filling meal later that day. From an outside perspective, this may seem like a perfectly health-conscious approach to food. Internally, I was struggling to trust my food choices when I didn’t have access to my safe staple meals and snacks.

You may be able to relate to that story. And you may be wondering, how did you make that shift to intuitive eating? Lot’s of time and practice, self-reflection, repeatedly challenging my core beliefs, and having an understanding of the facts. Now, I help my clients to explore that exact same process. And let me tell you, the curriculum looks the same, but each journey to food freedom is so, so different!

If you’re interested in exploring your own relationship with food, check out my nutrition coaching program and apply to work with me!