How do you feel about calories on a menu?

The old me was 100% in; I would have thought it was a dream come true. In fact, for years, I fantasized about opening a restaurant affiliated with "WW." It would have the entire menu broken down by nutritional content and points. A place I could eat and quickly do my calorie math. It would feel safe.

Imagine that your beginner's mind allows you to unlearn your dieting rules and negative thoughts about your body. You get to create an alternate perspective that you are allowed to eat, you are good enough, and you can have autonomy and be the expert on yourself.

The words sound simple, and it is a powerful question. We often keep ourselves overbusy or don't believe our needs matter. I am here to tell you (and a reminder to myself as well) that our needs do matter, and when our needs are met, everything else begins to fall into place. Many of us have forgotten this simple question and the importance to continue checking in with ourselves, asking, "What Do I Need?"

In a perfect world, we would all be able to notice when we are starting to feel full, purposely decide that this is my last bite, and feel pleasantly full and satisfied. The "real" world distracts us from our bodies, often not noticing we are full until we are overfull and stuffed. UGH, no one likes to feel that way. Blowing past our fullness happens for a few reasons, including eating mindlessly.

As dieters, one of the things that many of us are good at is ignoring our hunger. We falsely believe that ignoring our hunger, skipping meals, and eating less will lead to that magical, mystical number on the scale. Remember Tip #1, no more weighing! So, contrary to our diet brains, Top Tip #8 that will lead you to the path of Body Peace & Food Freedom is to Eat When You Are Hungry.

You are standing in line at the grocery store, and there it is, that magazine cover, yikes! I know you know what I am talking about. You stand in line at the grocery store, CVS, Target, or Walmart. There it is; you can't help to see the images. You see this "celebrity" with their before or after picture featuring them looking their "best" to "worst" with some awful commentary.

Let’s do lunch AND, please, hold the body bashing, sharing how “bad” you have been and talk about how “good” you will be tomorrow. Tip #6 is to Stop Gathering With Your Friends and Talking About Diets and Body Bashing. It’s time to bond around topics that lift you all up and empower each of you. How often does diet and body talk come up when you are “doing lunch” with the girls? I’m guessing the conversation isn’t always kind.

Did you know that weighing and measuring your food is one of the things that keep you stuck and disconnected from your body? Unconscious dieting usually happens in the form of meticulous eating habits, which for some of us evolve into disordered eating habits or, ultimately, an eating disorder.

Top Tip #4 has you clearing your bookshelves as you shift your reading to women who support, empower and have you learning to accept your here-and-now body! While I am a big believer in repurposing, sharing, and not being wasteful, in this tip, I literally mean to THROW AWAY, not give away, share, or pass along. We don’t want to hurt the people we love.

Body Liberation is the belief that all bodies are worthy and have the right to exist as they are. Intuitive Eating practitioners support a non-dieting approach to changing your eating habits. Learn to be the expert on yourself!

So many things impact our thoughts about dieting and how we feel about ourselves and our bodies.
Top Tip #2 is to Unsubscribe or Block one source that promises you happiness through a better body, leaves you feeling bad about yourself, or fills you with guilt or shame based on how you look, your food choices, or activity level.

Who has said, “Please, please, please let the number be…” as they step on the scale? In this video, I will share one of my Top Ten Tips on how to find your path to Body Peace & Food Freedom. Throw Away Your Scale!

Honor your health with gentle nutrition. You have the right to savor your meal without cajoling or judgment and without discussing calories eaten or the amount of exercise needed to burn off said calories.

Are you aware that your dietary needs and habits actually change as you age? Statistics from the National Association of Nutrition and Aging revealed that one out of every two older Americans is at risk for malnutrition. Additionally, bodily functions are continuously adjusting, so what used to work in your diet might not work for you five years down the line. This is why understanding how to properly fuel your body is important — it also dictates how you’ll be living your life. If you need help figuring out your nutritional needs…

Learn To Speak Body: When we are young, we learn to watch and interpret other people’s body language and respond appropriately. Rarely are we taught to tune in to our own body language.  Specifically, the internal messages that our bodies are communicating with us.

Our bodies communicate with us all the time; the challenge is, we don’t often understand what it’s saying; there is a language barrier. 

Satisfaction with food is the hub of Intuitive Eating. This stew is one of those meals, that has me saying I want “this.” which is high on my satisfaction scale. From Principle 5 of the Intuitive Eating Principles, ”When you are eating what you really want, in an environment that is inviting, the pleasure you derive will be a powerful force in helping you feel satisfied and content.

The first question you may have is, “what is Belly Love?”

Belly love is when you take the time and ask your belly if she is hungry, and you listen, trust and respect her answer

What is the difference between emotional and physical hunger?

For those of us that struggle with healthy choices, dieting, and the never-ending little voices in our head that seem to tell us we are hungry all the time, being aware is the first step to change and creating new habits.

Coming into the holiday season can bring equal parts of stress, joy, challenges, and fun, especially when it comes to food, family gatherings, and parties. And this year, it most definitely all looks very different!

I would like to share some thoughts on a NO REGRET, Thanksgiving to New Year’s Plan.

Self-care is always important, and given the current state of our world, now is the time to make an intentional choice to start taking care of you. The word self-care used to make me uncomfortable due to my flawed thinking that it was selfish. I was far more comfortable using the word self-preservation. As much as I now believe in self-care and what it means, we are in a battle of keeping ourselves afloat, and perhaps, for now, self-preservation is the better word.