Eat what you like; the weight loss will follow?

Do you struggle with this new approach of intuitive eating? You're not alone. Intuitive eating should be so simple, but you struggle every day::

You crave butter toffee candy. To indulge or not to indulge?

It used to be so simple when you were dieting. The answer was, of course, "no." Candy is bad, right? And then you ate it anyway, and felt guilty, which led to a binge.

Now, as if your dieting life wasn't complicated enough, you're being told to give in to your cravings. "Eat what you like, and the weight loss will follow" is the new intuitive eating adage.

Well, should I eat the butter toffee candy or not!!!!!!!!!!!!! Jeesh, my intuition tells me "yes"!

How does one use intuition anyway?

We often think of intuition as a hunch, but in the context of eating, we need more information than we get from a hunch. The word "intuition" is a good one, though, because it suggests a few things:

1. We all have it inside us
2. It can feel somewhat automatic
3. We don't need a rule book
4. We won't all find the same answers
5. It's not a plan
6. It's a spur of the moment decision

But is there anything more? Sure. The best intuition of all is informed intuition. Let's look at a non-food example. A few generations ago, mothers relied entirely on their intuition to know if their babies were in trouble. It probably worked to some degree, but an occasional baby did die of choking, poisoning, or a lethal fall. Intuition alone isn't good enough.

Today we have knowledge about the most dangerous chemicals and household objects, along with some baby-proofing safeguards such as gates and outlet plugs

But today's mom knows she can't rely on only devices. Instead, she has "informed intuition." The smart mom knows that after all the baby-proofing, she still needs to stay tuned in to her baby's activities. The combination of information, safety devices, and intuition make for a safe and sound baby.

So it goes with eating. Today we have good information about healthy fats vs. unhealthy fats. We can make informed choices so we're not getting too many refined carbohydrates. We know that a reasonable portion of roast beef is about the size of our fist.

But do we rely entirely on food rules without tuning in to our bodies? To do so can lead to disaster. We've already tried this route and failed. It was called dieting.

Now we know we can use our intuition, too. We can "tune in" to our bodies in much the same way that mom tunes in to which strained vegetables her baby likes and dislikes. She's aware when baby is getting full. She backs off.

After years of chronic dieting, we need to learn our intuitive hunger and fullness signals, and we need to figure out our true likes and dislikes. But we also need to use our heads. If we've already had a slice of pecan pie today, do we really need those toffee candies? How about a few tangerine sections instead?

The best intuition is informed intuition. It's a nice mixture of reasonableness and honoring ourselves.

In the long haul, if you're overweight, this approach to eating is the best guarantee of finding your optimal weight and best health. There is no other method that comes close.