Why I don't eat intuitively

Hi guys, how we doing today? Good? Ready to Think Out Loud? I know I am!


What seems to be one of the biggest diet trends right about now? No I don't mean the were-wolf diet or the five-bite diet (research them if you don't know what I'm talking about-they're hilarious)I'm talking about eating intuitively.

Now just to save myself from a whole lot of ridicule from healthy living bloggers everywhere- I am not saying I don't believe in this way of eating. I actually totally agree with it. It is the type of eating and diet that actually makes sense to me- listening to your body and acting accordingly, seems pretty straight forward and extremely logical to me!

No, I'm not saying this is stupid/ ridiculous, I'm simply saying I don't do it. But trust me- I really want to!

I have a few things to blame (well not really blame, but a few factors that I think have caused this) of course the main one is school. You don't have a choice when you eat at school- there are bells and they signal your food times and you deal with it (unless you are like a few boys in my year who smuggle sandwiches into classes).

As a result of this, these times that you are programmed to eat everyday get drilled into you and consequently, when that magical lunch time rolls round, the tummy starts growling! So even on weekends when I have absolutely no schedule, I still eat breakfast, lunch, snacks and dinner at the exact same ' scheduled' time. I guess I am still eating intuitively as I'm hungry and I eat, but I have a feeling it's not really the same.

I also blame (but not blame because that seems harsh) exercise. I'm never hungry after exercising/ running but know that I need to refuel in order to rebuild my muscles and refuel my energy stores- so I eat even when my body technically tells me not to. This also applies to days when I've done a big workout/ have constantly been on the move, I've almost made myself to eat every few hours to keep me going because I know I need to eat to keep my blood sugar stable and keep me going through every activity, even if I'm not hungry.

I do actually blame (and will use the word blame) our society and social norms that say breakfast happens when you wake up, lunch happens around 12pm and dinner around 6pm because that's what has been drilled into me since childhood and is therefore a pretty tricky habit to break free from (I just can't imagine having lunch at 3pm). This is also the reason I think so few people have actually mastered the art of truly eating intuitively and eating when and how much their body so desires.

How much, is yet another point (although doesn't apply to me any more, cooking my own meals). As kids we have meals placed in front of us that dictate the amount of food we can eat. We haven't cooked this meal. Someone with a whole separate body to us has- who has no idea how hungry/ not hungry we are and then might continue to tell us to eat everything on the plate. Now, as children we are pretty smart and do seem to stop when full/ keep going when hungry, but as we grow older and this other body cooking our meals, continues to cook our meals, clearing the plate is considered polite, no matter what level of hunger you are feeling before hand.

So- can you blame me for not being an intuitive eater?

I think as soon as I have more freedom in my life and am in control of my schedule a bit more (does that ever really happen?) that I will try this whole eating when you truly want to thing, but until then I guess I will stick to the scheduled times of breakfast, lunch and dinner that have been drilled into me my entire life. At least I have control over how much I get (because anyone cooking for my stomach would likely find it quite difficult to satisfy the hunger.)

And that's why I don't eat intuitively!

What are your thoughts?
Do you eat intuitively?
Do you eat at set times during the day?
Are you a super hungry beast like me?

Thanks Spoons for the awesome link-up! I hope everyone has a great day! :D