…Enter the wonders of intuitive eating

Today is a perfect example of how intuitive eating is slowly working to my advantage.  I think that one day I will have to diet again, assuming I still want to compete, but while I am learning to have a healthy relationship with food, that whole idea of dieting is kind of being thrown out the window (for lack of better words).

Today I woke up, posted a quick blog about how I’ve been doing with intuitive eating, and headed to the gym. Before the gym I took a l-carnitine supplement (click here for more info on this supplement) and drank 1 scoop of Metabolic Nutrition Tri-pep. When I got to the gym I warmed up with about 10-15 minutes of fast speed-walking, and then it was time to get ready to teach Body Pump. About 10 minutes before body pump I knew I had to eat something and of course I had planned ahead so I had my oatmeal mix (oatmeal + 1/4 cup egg whites + 1/4 cup water + ~ 1oz trail mix) which I didn’t finish – because I ate until my tummy wasn’t grumbling and then had to go teach.  I knew it wasn’t the best choice – to wait to eat until the last minute, but I also knew that I wouldn’t have had the energy to teach without eating something – so I picked the better of two evils.

After class I felt a rush of energy and decided to get in a quick back workout. Here’s what I did:

• Superset (SS) x 4 sets – reps were around 15-20 each set: lying overhead lat pulls, seal rows, bent over rows
• SS x 4 sets – reps between 12-16: Lat pull down (wide grip), seated cable row (tight grip)
• SS x 4 sets – reps between 12-16: straight arm pull down (using the ropes – hands together at the top, hands at my hips at the bottom), behind the head lat pulldown medium grip
• SS combo – 1 set: Deadlifts: Deficit for 12, straight leg for 10, sumo for 10.

I would have continued doing more deads but without a belt or straps my forearms were beginning to give especially with all the rows I had just done and body pump prior to that. It was a pretty good workout!

After I was done, I went to my favorite burger place called Elevation burger, where i got a kids burger (1 patty) in a lettuce wrap with onions, no cheese, and tomatoes. Then I headed home and made protein pudding – 1st Phorm CTC protein with a little water to make a pudding consistency (it’s like eating cinnamon toast crunch without the crunch haha!) and I put another 1oz of trail mix in my little container. I started eating the trail mix but stopped because I wasn’t really that hungry anymore.

…. Enter the wonders of intuitive eating.

I’m still learning about all of this, but it’s really becoming something that I can handle on a daily basis. Early I spoke about celebrating the little things, and I think that given my scratchy past with overeating and binge eating disorder, it’s pretty amazing that I’m able to recognize that I’m no longer hungry. A big thing I’ve noticed lately is an increase in my thirst – I’ve been very thirsty lately and I wonder if it’s because my sleep has been off, or if I’m finally recognizing thirst vs. hunger. I know that they say that in the beginning you may notice an increase in your weight at first, and maybe that’s true – but overall I feel good, and I feel like with a new tool for making good choices, I’ll be more likely to make better choices for my overall health as time goes on and as I continue to explore this anti-diet.