Damned If I Don't... (Part 2, following Damned If I Do)

There are five steps to becoming an intuitive eater, outlined in the book Intuitive Eating by Evelyn Tribole.  I talked about the first two in my blog post Damned If I Do. Today, I'm going to share the last three steps, the ones I'm really looking forward to putting into practice until they become a part of my routine. 

To recap, Step 1 is READINESS, and Step 2 is EXPLORATION. Here are the next three:

Step 3: CRYSTALLIZATION

These are my notes, which are mostly verbatim quotes:

"Honor hunger. Continue to make peace with food. New in this stage: taking a time-out in the midst of eating to consciously gauge how much your stomach is filling up. You'll be experiencing your feelings and finding ways to comfort and distract yourself without the use of food. KEEP WEIGHT LOSS ON THE BACK BURNER." -Evelyn Tribole

I think I will know crystallization is taking place when I am no longer hung up on my weight. I worry that it will only occur when my clothes start feeling looser. WILL my clothes start feeling looser? Gah. See, I'm not at this stage yet. I want to have energy! I want to feel strong! I want to be able to keep up with Chuck all day at the faire, and not get fatigued. I want my clothes to fit. And to think I used to be so good at Back Burner Thinking. Keeping weight loss on the back burner is so hard because I want to lose this excess weight LAST MONTH!

Step 4: Intuitive Eater Awakens

More notes: 

"When you choose formerly forbidden foods, smaller amounts will be satisfying. Food talk and self talk will be positive. Finding healthy alternatives to distract and comfort yourself will come more naturally. At this point, if it's meant to be, your body will be on its way to approaching its natural weight." -Evelyn Tribole

Can you see why I can't wait to awaken my inner intuitive eater? I have to believe my natural weight is a healthier weight than my current number. I have been practicing self-care, and trying to comfort myself in ways that don't involve food. I think that I need more practice at distracting myself when I'm not experiencing physical hunger. I still eat often out of boredom or stress-avoidance, although I think I'm making healthier choices than I used to do.

Step 5: Final Stage  (Treasure the Pleasure)

Still more notes:

"Honor hunger. Respect fullness. No guilt about food choices or quantities. Nutrition becomes a path to feeling as good and healthy as you can, not another mechanism to make you feel bad about the way you eat." -Evelyn Tribole

My final notes, the words I am setting all my hopes on:

"Weight will settle into a place that is comfortable and appropriate for you height and frame. You will feel empowered and protected from outside forces. You will be an intuitive eater once again."

This is the brass ring of my hopes. Right now, I can only imagine what living like that would be like. Please, let it be so.