Hi, everyone! If you've been following my blog, you know that we recently explored two of the three destructive dieting voices which are listed in the fabulous book, Intuitive Eating. The Food Police and the Nutrition Informant. To wrap up our three-part destructive dieting voices series, let's talk about the third destructive dieting voice - the Diet Rebel! The Diet Rebel voice frequently has rebellious thoughts in response to being on the receiving end of critical or con

Hi, everyone! In last week's blog post, "Destructive Dieting Voices: Part 1 - Challenge the Food Police," we explored how the Food Police is a destructive dieting voice that symbolizes our beliefs and thoughts that label what we eat - and ourselves - as "good" or "bad" depending on our food choices. Well today, let's talk about a second destructive dieting voice, the Nutrition Informant voice! As the Intuitive Eating Workbook states, "The Nutrition Informant voice aligns wi

Today I'm writing the first of three blog posts about three destructive dieting voices - the Food Police, the Nutrition Informant, and the Diet Rebel. All three destructive voices are discussed in the life-changing book, Intuitive Eating. But for today, let's focus on the Food Police! The food police prevents us from making peace with food and our bodies. The food police contributes to judging ourselves based on what we eat, how much we eat, and how frequently we eat. Cha

In a world in which we're surrounded by diet culture, it can be so easy to scrutinize our bodies. To criticize them - maybe to the point of saying that we "hate" them out loud. Which always feels awful, and further harms our relationship with our bodies. If you can relate to this, it's not your fault. Diet culture tells us that we're not good enough as we are. That there's something wrong. This can lead to dieting - which we know doesn't work for most people in the long-

Many of us have been there. We're eating a scrumptious meal - when someone nearby suddenly says to us, "You're still hungry?!" Or how about, "You're so good. Your meal is so healthy!" Or, maybe someone doesn't say anything, but gives that look of disgust which sends the message that what you're eating or the amount of food that you're eating is bad, gross, or wrong. None of which is acceptable. Yep. Being surrounded by diet culture frequently results in judging others b

You are worth so much. But if you're struggling with your relationship with food and your body, it doesn't always feel that way does it? In fact, it can feel down right scary when a big part of your self worth comes from the size of your body and your overall appearance. Bodies do change. How we look shifts throughout life. It can be so easy to compare ourselves to others in different areas of life. We are human after all. When I first begin working with new clients as

Hi, everyone! I hope you're all doing as well as possible this spring! After having returned from celebrating my dad's B-Day in one of our favorite places - South Haven, Michigan - I'm writing about a topic that comes up a lot. My experience as a Registered Dietitian and a Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor is that it's pretty common for clients to have a history of obtaining physical activity only when dieting. For these individuals, once the dieting comes to an end, so

In a world where we're surrounded by diet culture and are frequently told that we're not good enough, it can understandably be hard for many people to respect their bodies. It can be challenging for them to make their bodies feel comfortable and to meet their bodies' basic needs. To treat their bodies with kindness. The reality is that diet culture needs the fixing. You are worth so much NOW. This is one of the reasons why I love the 8th principle of Intuitive Eating so m

Not too long ago, I wrote about exploring your hunger cues. So today, let's talk about the fifth principle of Intuitive Eating, "Respect Your Fullness." As I've mentioned in the past, diet culture praises restriction versus nourishment - which makes it challenging for many people to feel comfortable about eating enough to feel full. When I'm working with clients and they begin honoring their hunger, and eating enough food to feel comfortably full - versus just slightly full

One of the healthiest things that I've done in life was giving myself permission to eat unlimited quantities of cheesecake - without any guilt - when I wanted. Cheesecake used to be a "forbidden" food in my life - before I read the powerful book, Intuitive Eating, did some internal housekeeping to work on issues that I had with food and my body, and became a non-diet dietitian and a Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor. When I did consume cheesecake, I was in a restaurant -

If you've been following my work online, you've probably read about why dieting doesn't work for most people in the long-term, how the size of our bodies does not equal health, and the benefits associated with health-promoting behaviors that feel right to us. You've also probably come across my blog posts about Intuitive Eating, including my FREE PDF, "5 Things Everyone Should Know About Intuitive Eating." Maybe you've noticed that I refer to myself as a Certified Intuitive

As I wrote in my last blog post, "Diet Culture: Examples of its Influence in Our Society," diet culture presents its influence in so many areas of life. Among many things, diet culture can result in experiencing size discrimination (weight stigma). Weight stigma can then lead to internalized weight stigma - in which the person being discriminated against believes the labels that have been placed upon them. Both weight stigma and internalized weight stigma may be harmful to

If you've been following my blog, you know that I've mentioned "diet culture" in multiple blog posts, and that I previously struggled with disordered eating - followed by doing some internal housekeeping and becoming a non-diet dietitian and a health coach who specializes in Intuitive Eating and uses a Health at Every Size (HAES) perspective. You know that I frequently talk about why dieting doesn't work for most people, and how focusing on our behaviors - versus a number on

Grieving the loss of a loved one is HARD. It's painful. It's unpredictable. It's part of life. And It can affect our emotional, physical, and mental well-being. I am truly sorry if you're grieving the loss of a loved one - or have in the past. I am actually writing this post because I grieved a lot at the end of last year, and the beginning of this year after losing the physical presence of two uncles and our cat, Starla - all within a few months. I also found that the

According to research completed for The Succeed Foundation, 30% of the women surveyed expressed that they would "trade at least one year of their life to achieve their ideal body weight and shape." A portion of those surveyed indicated that they would give up at least 21 years of life to obtain their preferred body weight and size. Obsessing about obtaining a specific body size or weight can contribute to doing things that may be harmful to your health - and distract you fro

Many people who enter their Intuitive Eating journey would like to receive some support from their friends and family. Given that we're surrounded by diet culture, it can be challenging for loved ones to know how to support our goal of making peace with food and our bodies. Some clients would like for their family and friends to comprehend why they're on this Intuitive Eating journey. They would also like to avoid receiving unwanted comments about their food choices and bod

It's understandably tough for lots of people out there who have dieted off and on to experience joy when they eat. Dieting often causes us to consume foods that we don't enjoy, and experience guilt and anxiety when we eat what we actually want. While food does provide us with much needed energy for survival, it's also about experiencing satisfaction or PLEASURE. Feeling mentally satisfied with what we've eaten is incredibly important! It can empower our emotional and physi

As I'm writing this blog post about sleep strategies as a form of self-care, I'll share that last week I was tired! As a result of working with Intuitive Eating, regularly obtaining a sufficient amount of sleep is now a big priority in my life. But last week our beloved 15 1/2 year-old cat, Chakra, was having some health issues (We lost our other pumpkin, Starla, at the end of December - so I was prepping myself for what might be ahead). On the day that we knew we were tak

"Honor Your Hunger" is the second of 10 principles in Intuitive Eating - which is an evidence-based model and a flexible approach to eating. Learn why hunger cues have our backs, and some tools for tuning into your hunger signals. There you are going about your day - while experiencing the increasing sensation that you REALLY need to pee. So which of the options below do you do next? A) Contemplate if it's alright for you to pee. B) Exclaim, "I don't want to ruin my day by

Here's a roundup of my favorite non-diet podcasts to serve as an additional tool for supporting you during the holidays and beyond - on