Although the intuitive eating program provides
generalized recommendations, its goal is a highly per-
sonalized diet, because each person has different needs
and preferences. The program stresses the value of
moving away from struggles involving willpower
toward the freedom of self-empowerment, from forced
behaviors to ones that arise naturally. The intuitive
diet is notably influenced by the fields of self-help and
behavioral therapy. The founders stress that the pro-
gram is process-oriented rather than results-oriented,
which means that practitioners’ programs will be full
of both mistakes and successes that should be wel-
comed, accepted, and learned from.FunctionBorrowing from the language of therapy, the
intuitive eating program playfully asks people to
become aware of their eating habits by identifying
and naming their dominant 7l ‘‘eating personality.’’
Common eating personalities that lead to problems
are the Careful Eater, the Professional Dieter, and
the Unconscious Eater. These personalities might be
overly obsessive or guilty about food, or always on
some kind of restrictive and difficult diet, or simply
unaware about why one is making bad food choices.
By identifying and naming their eating personal-
ities, people can then begin to learn what has caused
the Intuitive Eater inside themselves to become lost or
overshadowed. This is the part of the mind that knows
how to eat, without guilt or compulsion, in order to
provide the body with its nutritional needs. Awaken-
ing the intuitive eater happens in stages. First, people
often hit the ‘‘diet rock bottom,’’ realizing that dieting
does not work and is fueled by guilt and poor body
images. Next comes the ‘‘exploration’’ stage, where
people are asked to become very aware of all the
emotions, cravings, and behaviors that they exhibit
around eating. This stage also entails releasing guilt
over all foods (‘‘making peace with foods’’), sorting
out which foods are liked and disliked, and learning torecognize the feelings of hunger and fullness, distin-
guishing between emotional and biological signals
around eating. The next stage is ‘‘crystallization,’’ in
which principles of intuitive eating begin to be prac-
ticed regularly. In the next stage, the ‘‘intuitive eater
awakens,’’ in which intuitive eating patterns are inter-
nalized and become natural habits. When this hap-
pens, the final stage is entered, where people are
enabled to ‘‘treasure the pleasure’’ of eating in a way
that is emotionally and physically gratifying.
The intuitive eating program explains in detail its
ten main principles that can bring about healthy and
natural eating habits. It also recommends steps and
practices that people can use to incorporate each prin-
ciple into their lives. The first of these principles is to
‘‘reject the diet mentality.’’ This means that all diets
should be given up, as well as habits related to them
such as calorie counting. Other people’s advice and
judgments are also limited. Next comes the ‘‘honor
your hunger’’ principle, which emphasizes playing
close attention to biological hunger signals and react-
ing to them by eating without guilt. Principle three is
to ‘‘make peace with food,’’ which means giving one-
self permission to eat whatever one really likes. After
this comes the principle to ‘‘challenge the food police,’’
which means paying close attention to how one inter-
nally judges and talks about food. Principle five is to
‘‘feel your fullness,’’ or learning how to detect when
enough has been eaten, to avoid overeating. Then
practitioners are then asked to ‘‘discover the satisfac-
tion factor,’’ or to learn to take pleasure in eating and
to savor the experience. Principle seven asks the eater
to ‘‘cope with your emotions without using food,’’ in
order to stop confusing biological with emotional sig-
nals. By asking practitioners to ‘‘respect your body,’’
principle eight helps people overcome the habits
caused by negative self-image. Principle nine, ‘‘exercise
and feel the difference,’’ suggests that people adopt
exercise programs that are easy and fun, and to enjoy
the feelings of well-being that result from exercise.
Finally, principle ten asks people to ‘‘honor your
health by gentle nutrition.’’ This means making food
choices that are nutritious and pleasurable and that
help the body to feel and function well. This principle
also notes that healthy food choices evolve over time,
and that occasional missteps are a natural part of the
process.Benefits
The founders of the intuitive eating program
believe that their system represents a paradigm shift
around eating. People are asked to perceive life and
eating in a different way, moving away from guilt andKEY TERMS
Anorexia—Also called anorexia nervosa, an eating
disorder characterized by extreme weight loss, dis-
torted body image, and fear of gaining weight.
Bulimia—Also called bulimia nervosa, an eating
disorder characterized by binges, or eating much
food in little time, followed by purging behaviors,
such as throwing up or taking laxatives.Intuitive eating