In This Day and Age, How Do We Get Back to Normal?

With all the fad diets, food rules and body expectations that we are bombarded with every day, not to mention #life, it can be easy to lose sight of what is truly important. YOU!  That’s right.  You heard me.  YOU.  Honor who you are.  Culturally we talk a lot about the need for self care or even self compassion.  True self care is honoring who you are, and that includes enjoying what you are eating. 

Ellyn Satter, RD, LCSW, author of Secrets of Feeding a Happy Family and creator of the Satter Eating Competence Model says that “eating can be about happiness, comfort, and passion of celebrating wonderful food, enjoying it with others and leaving the table filled with peace and well being.” Unfortunately for many, eating is filled with as she says,”trouble.”  The trouble is eating has become riddled with negative feelings and negative self talk.  Many are anxious about choosing the “wrong” foods or feel guilty for having “bad” foods.  So what are we to do to get out of this cycle?  

Here is a reminder of what Normal Eating looks like: 

Normal eating . . . 

is going to the table hungry, and eating until you are satisfied 

Normal eating . . . 

is being able to choose food you enjoy and to eat it and truly get enough of it—not just stop eating because you think you should. 

Normal eating . . . 

is being able to give some thought to your food selection so you get nutritious food, but not being so wary and restrictive that you miss out on enjoyable food. 

Normal eating . . . 

is giving yourself permission to eat because you are happy, sad, or bored, or just because it feels good. 

Normal eating . . . 

is mostly three meals a day—or four or five—or it can be choosing to munch along the way. 

Normal eating . . . 

is leaving cookies on the plate because you will let yourself have cookies again tomorrow, or eating more now because they taste so great! 

Normal eating . . . 

is overeating at times, and feeling stuffed and uncomfortable . . . and undereating at times, and wishing you had more. 

Normal eating . . . 

is trusting your body to make up for your mistakes in eating. 

Normal eating . . . 

takes up some of your time and attention, but keeps its place as only one important area of your life. 

In short, normal eating is flexible . . . 

it varies in response to your hunger, your schedule, your food, and your feelings. 

If this way of life sounds appealing to you, a Registered Dietitian can help you get back on track. 

Reference:

Satter, Ellyn.  Secrets of Feeding a Healthy Family: How to Eat, How to Raise Good Eaters, How to Cook. Kelcy Press, 2008.