Have you tried over and over again to strike a balance with your eating but you always seem to swing in either direction?
Either you go all in and it feels like you’re doing well for a while, eating all the healthy food… and then you fall off and you just say “screw it, I’m going to eat whatever I want,”.
Maybe you’ve thought about intuitive eating but you feel like you’ve been there before every time you stopped dieting, and you’re never going to stop eating.
Or maybe you’re in the early stages of intuitive eating and you’ve ditched the diet cycle because you know it doesn’t last, but now you feel like you’re just eating all the things and balance still feels impossible.
You are missing an essential ingredient in your balanced eating journey: SATISFACTION.
I KNOW this seems simple, but I think there is a ton of misconception around what satisfaction truly is and how it can help you to become a more balanced eater.
We are IN the holidays, and what I see happen with many of the women I work with is their struggle with balance becomes MORE magnified when we’re presented with a bunch of new and different and fun types of foods, and we can feel like we’re fighting against the food, TRYING not to eat it, and then succumbing to it, and overeating, then vowing to get back on track on Monday…
We are IN the holidays, and what I see happen with many of the women I work with is their struggle with balance becomes MORE magnified when we’re presented with a bunch of new and different and fun types of foods, and we can feel like we’re fighting against the food, TRYING not to eat it, and then succumbing to it, and overeating, then vowing to get back on track on Monday…
When I was a fitness coach, my BEST and BIGGEST challenges were the ones I did during the holidays and after the holidays.
It’s interesting, because most service based businesses don’t do well during the holidays because peoples focus is off themselves, and on the holidays, but women were desperate to feel in control of their bodies and habits around the holidays.
The other thing I see happening is women feeling like they just need to ‘give up’ and start again on January 1st. Which is so sad, because what you’re doing is setting yourself up for a year of yo-yo dieting, REAL balance starts now.
Satisfaction is ESSENTIAL to this balance you’re looking for.
Why satisfaction is a necessary ingredient in your balanced eating journey:
All our body craves from food is feeling and being satisfied. When we are satisfied, we don’t feel the need to overeat. We can eat ‘just enough’. Not too much, not too little, and we can experience that ‘hit the spot’ feeling with food. How often do you feel like that when you’re dieting or trying to stick to a plan? Many of us, when we release the diet, fall into overeating because our body is simply asking for what we haven’t given it.
When we are satisfied, we don’t feel the need to overeat. We can eat ‘just enough’. Not too much, not too little, and we can experience that ‘hit the spot’ feeling with food.
But here’s the deal– satisfaction with food is twofold.
We often think we’re looking for satisfaction through SATIATION (feeling full), which is KEY. BUT- satisfaction with food is physical AND psychological (mental). We need to be physically satisfied (satiated) AND sensory satisfied- we need to enjoy what we eat. If we don’t, we end up searching for that satisfaction (often in overeating, later on).
What you might be saying to yourself is, “Umm, duh, I enjoy everything I eat around the holidays, that’s why I eat so much,” but the reason I’m talking about this NOW, is because this is a skill you want to start cultivating before you’re introduced with all of the holiday goodies and decide the year is a wash, might as well start afresh on January 1st. Remember: balance starts NOW.
Giving yourself PERMISSION to choose SATISFACTION is a game changer when you’re working on eating balanced, long term. When you start really learning what is satisfying to YOU, you find the sweet spot of eating in a way that’s balanced and not restrictive.
When you start really learning what is satisfying to YOU, you find the sweet spot of eating in a way that’s balanced and not restrictive.
I want to offer you two questions to ask yourself when you’re deciding if a food is going to be satisfying. This is not comprehensive, this is JUST a starting point.
- Is this what I want to eat or what I feel like I should eat? Are you actually choosing what you want, or trying to ‘be good’? Trying to ‘be good’ and not feeling satisfied is an easy ticket to bingefest- maybe not that day or that night, but on the weekend, after a few cocktails or when you declare a cheat day.
- Is this enough to keep me full? Are you trying to eat less so you can save up for later? We need ENOUGH food and enough of all TYPES of food to be satisfied on a regular basis. When our body is feeling deprived, this sets us up for imbalance later. This is why I talk about the importance of creating a balanced plate, without restricting ourselves and feeling deprived.
Are you READY to cultivate balance this holiday season?? This week is the launch of a brand NEW, FREE balanced holiday eating email series with a workbook to help you get through the holiday season with ease. I asked you all what would feel MOST helpful this holiday season, and you want to do the work and make it feel easy, and I am here to support you in that.
Head to healthybalancedmama.com/hbh to sign up for free- you’ll get the workbook right away and the email series shortly after. You deserve a holiday that is full of joy- and BALANCE, not stress!
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