Intuitive Eating During the New Year and Beyond

If you’ve recently begun working on your relationship with food, the New Year’s resolution season can present unique challenges in maintaining your path toward intuitive eating. Unfortunately, some diet companies have started co-opting the principles of intuitive eating to market their weight-loss products. The temptation to revert to old habits can be overwhelming.

However, it’s important to remember that you don’t have to lose hope. It’s normal to experience tension and doubt along the way. Below are a few strategies to help you navigate the resolution hype and continue striving for freedom from diets while cultivating a healthy relationship with food.

1. Reaffirm the Reasons Behind Your Decision

Your motivation for pursuing intuitive eating is still valid, even during this season. Whatever inspired you to explore intuitive eating remains true. It’s easy to second-guess yourself when you see the world around you embracing restrictive diets, but remember why you started this journey in the first place. Consider journaling about your past relationship with food and how it has evolved. When the temptation to restrict or fall back into old habits arises, refer to those reflections to remind yourself why intuitive eating is the right path for you.

2. Recognize That Healing Your Relationship with Food is Not a Trend

Unlike many of the products and plans promoted during this time of year, making peace with food is not a passing fad. The mindset shift that comes with intuitive eating has the potential to transform every aspect of your life. For many, food is deeply intertwined with emotions and relationships. By healing your relationship with food, you may find that other areas of your life improve as well. When you’re no longer preoccupied with counting calories, you can spend more time with loved ones, enjoy meals without anxiety, and focus your mental energy on more meaningful pursuits.

3. Understand That Shifting Focus Away from Weight Loss Doesn’t Mean Abandoning Health

Choosing to move away from a focus on weight loss does not equate to neglecting your health. Rather, you’re giving yourself unconditional permission to enjoy all foods. This doesn’t mean you’ll only eat desserts to prove that you’re “doing it right.” The goal is to eliminate the arbitrary rules of diet culture and reclaim the power to nourish your body with the foods that meet both your physical and emotional needs. Health is far more complex than rigid calorie guidelines and a set amount of daily exercise. You are not a formula, and simply adhering to these restrictions does not guarantee true health.

Keep these insights in mind as you continue your journey toward intuitive eating. It can be a long and sometimes challenging process, especially during the January resolution season, but the reward is true freedom and a richer, more fulfilling life.