Diet Free Radiant Me™ Archives - Page 29 of 46 - Diet Free Radiant Me | Intuitive Eating | Emotional Eating

How to Stay Mindful this Halloween

The month of October is synonymous with Halloween and spooky fall festivities. But along with trick-or-treating comes massive amounts of sugar.

Whether you’re out and about tricking or home dishing out the treats, these tips will help you stay an intuitive eater amidst all of the chaos.

Eat Before You Treat

Just before the trick or treating traffic is about to commence, have a late lunch or early dinner. A full stomach will prevent you from overindulging on candy to the point of sickness. If you are a chaperone for kids who are going trick or treating, it’s a good idea to have a little holiday meal before heading off on your trick-or-treating journey. Eating too much sugar will cause you and your kids to crash and become cranky before the festivities are over. Don’t unleash the monsters!

Fun Size It

Portion control is key. Cravings are natural and shouldn’t be ignored. If you are craving a chocolate bar, choose the fun sized option. Fun sized candies have a fraction of the fat and calories per package. The object is to savor each bite. The more you focus on the taste and texture of the candy, the more you’ll be happy with a smaller portion. Satisfy your sweet tooth with a fun size bar without missing out on the fun.

The Dark Side

Dark chocolate might be an acquired taste but it is certainly the way to go. Dark chocolate contains 70% or more of cocoa. Cocoa has been shown to contain antioxidants and has cholesterol lowering properties. The fat in cocoa is comprised of monounsaturated fatty acids as well as stearic acid which appears to have no effect on cholesterol levels. So if you need a little chocolate pick-me-up, dark chocolate is the way to go.

Healthy Homemade

Making homemade treats is a great alternative to buying prepackaged candies. If you have the time, make fun treats at home so you know what you’re eating. They can be fun and healthy for everyone. Let your creativity run wild.

Dip your apples in peanut butter and dark chocolate for a dark twist to candied apples.
Make some Petrifying Popcorn- air popped, drizzled in honey and sprinkled with cayenne pepper and salt for a kick.
Go ahead and decorate your fruit for an easy alternative! Tangerines can be turned into little jack o’lanterns or put mint chocolate chips on a banana to make boo-nanas.

Be an Intuitive Eater

There’s no need to call the food police while you’re out having fun. Celebrate the holiday by letting yourself have a little bit of candy here and there. Listen to your body- if you need that sweet vice, eat it. But if you’re past the point of fullness, that extra candy isn’t going to make you feel any better. Using your brain and stomach instead of your eyes will help guide you through this holiday season without a problem.

Halloween is the perfect opportunity to go out and get a good walk. Walking around the neighborhood even for just half an hour will boost your immune system and decrease your risk for cardiovascular disease. Not to mention, it feels good to get some fresh air.

Have some fun this Halloween by being the best intuitive eater you can be!!

Your Turn to Take Action: What creative homemade treats will you make for your little monsters?

Getting Rid of “I Can’t” with Intuitive Eating

I have had many clients who are stuck in a negative, diet mentality. They often come to me with lists of things they can’t do and never mention anything they can do.

I can’t stop dieting.

I can’t lose weight.

I can’t change my eating habits.

I can’t listen to my body.

I can’t exercise.

When a client comes to me with this mindset, I like to tell them a story about my son’s third grade teacher.

For homework one night, my son had to write a list of all the things he can’t do. Naturally, I thought this assignment made no sense. Why would his teacher want him to do this? Shouldn’t he make a list of all the things he can do? Nonetheless, we still worked on his homework and came up with a list of things he can’t do.

When he came home from school the next day, I asked him what his teacher did with his list of “I can’ts”. He said his teacher had them march out to the playground, dig a hole and bury their “I can’ts”.

I was astonished. This is brilliant.

Why didn’t I ever think of this idea for my clients?

Well, now I do use this concept for my clients, and you!

This activity falls right into the practice of eating intuitively. While you are on your intuitive eating journey, you are working on reframing your mindset. You are changing the way you think about your body, food and the way you eat. This activity is a great way to help you solidify why you want to change your mindset.

You can get rid of your “I can’ts” by reframing your mindset.

Change your “I can’ts” to “I am”, “I can”, and “I will”. Look at them as challenges that you will overcome, which will lead to success.

Here is an example: You can reframe “I can’t exercise” to “It’s a challenge for me to exercise, but perhaps I can start with a 5 minute walk each day”. By changing exercise to a challenge instead of an “I can’t”, you are recognizing the fact that you can overcome this challenge.

Simply reframing your mindset will help you get “I can’t” out of your vocabulary and you will feel great doing it!!

If you want to learn more about how you can reframe your mindset, you can contact me here. I am here to help you.

Do You Feed Your Emotions?

One of the things that come up often in my work with my clients is how they deal with their emotions. We all experience different emotions throughout a given day. Those emotions can be sadness, happiness, stress, anxiety, boredom or many others. It is totally normal to experience these emotions from time to time, but how you cope with them is key.

So let me ask you a question: How do you handle your emotions?

Do you look for support from someone close to you?

Do you journal how you are feeling and use one of your coping mechanisms to help you get through it?

Or, do you reach for food?

Do you find yourself reaching into the food cabinets when these emotions arise? How do you feel after you eat your “go-to” mood fixer food?

As an emotional eater you use food as a way to solve your problems, so you think. But in reality, food will not make these problems go away. They will certainly distract you for a time but once you stop eating, the problem and your feelings will still be there. You sadness, anxiety, boredom or stress, will still need to be addressed. But now, there is likely some added guilt and physical discomfort from overeating.

Does this sound like you?

If it does, know you are not alone.

Here are 4 steps you can take today to move away from emotional eating:

Acknowledge when you turn to food to comfort your emotions. Are you choosing foods to help numb your emotion? What emotions are you feeling in that moment? Take a moment to breathe and think about what you are doing. Journal what comes up for you.

Stop and listen to your body before turning to food. What are you truly feeling? If you can honestly say you are hungry, then by all means you should eat….a well-balanced power snack or meal. But if you are being true to yourself and really want to help yourself, you won’t automatically say “I’m hungry”. Instead, you will think about what you are feeling and how you can comfort yourself without turning to food.

Seek support from a loved one or counselor. Talking through your emotions instead of eating through them is an amazing feeling.

Journal things that you enjoy doing that can distract your during your emotional times. Take a walk, do a puzzle, read a book, etc. Figure out what works best for you.

Let’s dig even deeper into how to end emotional eating.

Join me on Thursday, October 13^th for a free live training called A Simple (and Delicious) Way to End Emotional Eating.

Click here to learn more and to register.

Read This if You are an Emotional Eater

There is nothing wrong with foods being a source of pleasure. In fact, the more positive your relationship with food, the better you will feel about your eating habits.

But, there is a fine line between a positive food relationship and using food as comfort.

The notion of seeking “comfort” from certain foods can lead to problems with your relationship with food. If you are eating something to gain a sense of comfort, this begins to connect your eating to emotions instead of satiety.

There is a difference between eating a food you love because you are enjoying the taste of it or the ceremony for which the food represents, and eating to soothe emotions.

If you eat to feed your emotions, then you may be an emotional eater.

Let’s take a look at the cycle of emotional eating:

Your emotional trigger might be stress or even lonliness, which can lead to overeating and bingeing. You might be looking for “something” to fill a void that you seem to have in your life. That food may give you relief in the moment, but shame, guilt and body bashing can quickly follow.

This can become a vicious cycle, leaving you with a poor body image, negative self-image and those same emotions you started with.

When you eat for comfort, you are likely looking to avoid feeling whatever feelings you are experiencing. Because let’s face it, feeling feelings is hard! You hope that food will solve whatever problem you are having, but you know what? Food will not solve the problem. Once you stop eating, the root of your problems will still be there. And on top of that, you likely feel bloated, tired and physically uncomfortable.

The best way to deal with your emotions is to look at the root of the problem, instead of turning to food.

Use food as fuel rather than therapy.

This is not to say you can’t eat the foods you previously considered to be “comfort foods”. Instead, simply redefine their place in your eating plan, and make them a part of your healthy lifestyle, not a part of your mental well-being.

Would you like to delve further into your emotional eating?

Join me for Facebook Live in my Private Facebook Community on Thursday October 6^th at 8 pm Eastern where I will coach you through your biggest emotional eating and body image challenges.

No Facebook? No Worries!

Sign up HERE for a FREE TRAINING on October 13th

Topic: A Simple (and Delicious) Way to End Emotional Eating

PS: Even if you attend our Facebook Live, I recommend you still register for the Free Training.

Taking Your Kids on Your Intuitive Eating Journey

It is a lot easier to reach your goals when you are working with someone else, right?

You can share your intuitive eating journey with someone who looks up to you the most, your child. Your child can be that someone!

As a parent you are a role model for your child. Even if you aren’t aware of it, you can influence your child’s thoughts and behaviors. So whether you already have kids or are planning to have them in the future, it’s a great idea to model your intuitive eating journey to help instill a healthy relationship with food and feelings of self-worth.

You are born an intuitive eater, so chances are your child can help you on your journey as well.

Young children…

Have the ability to listen to their hunger and fullness cues.

Will not starve themselves or overeat.

Eat slowly, waiting between each bite until they reach for their next forkful.

As children age and see family members or the media describe food as “bad”, they may start to move away from eating intuitively. Their relationship with food and their body may start to change. If you take them on your intuitive eating journey with you, you may be able to help them continue on as an intuitive eater.

Here are 3 ways to help your kids stay intuitive:

Banish the “clean your plate before dessert” threat. Like I said before, children are very in tune with their hunger and fullness cues. If you want them to clean their plate, they will most likely overeat. If this is a chronic problem with your child, try giving them smaller portions. If they are still hungry, they will ask for more.

Focus on a healthy relationship with food. While on your intuitive eating journey, you learn about the importance of moderation and listening to your body. If your child sees that you are not afraid to eat certain foods and you stop when you are satisfied rather than stuffed, they will model that behavior. You will show them there is no such thing as “bad food” or “good food” and they will develop a healthy relationship with food.

Show the importance of loving your body. As you’re sitting with your child, talk about what you love about your body, whether it’s physical (“my eyes”), or something your body does for you (“my eyes help me see your beautiful smile”). By doing this, your child will gain a positive body image and show her own body love.

I know showing self-love can be hard to do, especially if you are struggling with it yourself. So here is an activity you and your child can do together before bedtime:

Ask your child to tell you what they love about you, or their favorite characteristic about you. Then you tell your child what you love about them, or your favorite characteristic about them.

Your intuitive eating journey can become a way to bond with your child. The two of you can work on your journey together, making it a family affair.

So remember, don’t go on this journey alone! Include your child and teach them about your journey. You never know, they might teach you a few things too.

If you would like more guidance on how to teach mindful eating to your kids, come join my free training Mindful Eating for Families: A Parent Class with Megrette Fletcher, RD. Sign up for notification on when the next class is available here.

Do You Plate Your Meals?

Think about this: When it’s time to eat, do you put your food on your plate and sit down and eat a full meal, or do you stand at the counter and pick at different foods until you feel you’re satisfied?

If you associate more with the latter question, you are not alone.

I have had a number of clients come to me feeling they are not worthy of a full meal. Because of their weight, they do not think they deserve to really enjoy their meal and eat in a pleasant environment, free of distractions.

This is just not true. Let’s take a look back to your past and figure out where this habit started.

Is it something you saw family members engaging in?

Is it something you were lead to believe by someone you trusted?

Do you think you are undeserving of a good meal because of what you weight?

No matter where this habit was formed, there is something you should realize. You deserve a proper meal, every meal of the day, every day. You deserve to sit down and enjoy your meal and savor each bite.

Plating Your Meals Throughout the Day

Many of my clients use the excuse of always being on-the-go or busy at work as their reason for not plating each meal, but that doesn’t have to be the case.

Even if you’re not at home, you can still have a good meal.

Instead of eating breakfast in the car, wake up a few minutes early and sit at the table to enjoy your breakfast. Those few extra minutes will make a big difference in the way your body feels.

Instead of eating lunch in the car or at your desk, find a table nearby to sit and enjoy yourself. You can do this by going to a restaurant for lunch, going to your office cafeteria, or sitting on a park bench. Your meal times can be a good time to reflect and really tune into what your body is telling you.

Plating Your Meal at Dinner

Here are a few simple ways you can start working on plating your meals and sitting down for dinner:

Treat yourself to a well-balanced, proper dinner at your own table. Make it a point to finish cooking, plate your food and sit down at the table.

Put a nice table cloth on your dining table. This will make your environment more enjoyable.

Use a nice plate instead of a paper plate. Again, this will enhance the environment of your meal.

Savor your meal. By actively savoring each bite, you will find yourself more satisfied with your meal rather than when you pick at food mindlessly.

Plating and sitting down to most of your meals throughout the day will help you feel more satisfied and you won’t find yourself reaching for a snack an hour later. You will also become more relaxed as you can use that time to reflect on how your body feels and clear your mind.

Your Turn to Take Action: For dinner tonight, make it a point to plate your meal. Let me know how your experience was in the comments below. I would love to hear from you!

If you are interested in starting on the intuitive eating journey, you can contact me here.

How to Love Your Body Just As It Is

If you’ve been searching for the perfect diet to get the body you’ve always dreamed of, chances are you are still searching.

The truth is, chronic dieting and yo-yo dieting will not give you a body you love.

Diets are not maintainable.

Dieting to drop the last 10, 20 or 50 pounds can only backfire. It is only a short-term solution to a problem that needs a long-term solution. Chances are, when you reach your “ideal weight” (What is considered ideal anyway? A topic for another blog), you won’t be able to stay there for long. The reason for your need to overeat or feed your emotions will still be there.

You may be asking yourself, “If diets won’t get me the body I love, what will?”

Here’s the solution: learning to love your body right now.

The way to start loving your body is to step away from diets. If all you’ve ever known is dieting, this might seem a little scary. But, when you stop dieting, you become more in tune with your body’s internal hunger cues. You are able to listen to your body and feed it when and what it wants.

Here are 3 steps you can take now to start loving your body:

Respect your body. Respecting your body does not mean accepting your body how it is now and thinking you have to stay this way the rest of your life. It means accepting your here and now body. When you respect your body, treat it with dignity and provide your body with what it needs, then you’ll make room for loving every aspect of your body and what it does for you.

Trust your body. Start listening to your body’s inner hunger cues and feed them. Your body has the ability to tell you when it’s hungry, when it’s full and what it wants to eat. When you listen to what your body wants, you’ll start to change your relationship with your body and see it differently.

Stand in front of the mirror and tell your body what you love about it, whether it’s a physical trait or something your body has done for Use this as a way to show your body the same support that it has given you over the years- I love my ears, eyelashes, smile, butt or stomach.

I love how strong my arms are.

I love the freckles across my cheeks.

I love my legs because they take me where I need to go.

I love my hips because they help me carry my child.

When you love and respect your body, something wonderful happens. You no longer obsess over it and see weight release happen without all the worry. Having the ability to do this will help you succeed on your intuitive eating journey and you might be surprised to learn what your body is capable of when you show it love!

If you’re looking for more tools and techniques to learn how to love your body, come join my Love Yourself, Love Your Body free giveaway event happening now until September 30^th. I have complied 25+ experts who are giving away programs and gifts to help you make peace with food, enjoy guilt-free eating, a life free of dieting and a body you love. Grab your free gifts here.

If you’d like help on learning to love your body again, contact me here. I can help you.

7 Tips to a Mindful Morning Routine

If you are like most people, your morning is one mega rush! Quick jump out of bed, shower, get dressed and run out the door! You’re lucky if you grab a coffee and muffin to eat in the car as you head out to start your day. Or, you stop at the local convenience store and pick up a bagel with butter and a ginormous cup of Joe. Worse yet, you don’t eat any breakfast and your first meal of the day is lunch.

Sound familiar?

If so, you are probably not stopping long enough to figure out how your body feels when you treat it like this. You are on autopilot, doing the same routine day after day and wonder why you crash by the time you get home from work.

Nourishing your body from the moment you open your eyes in the morning is key to a healthy mind, body and soul.

I recognize it may take some time for you to change your morning routine, so focus on slow changes over time, at your level of comfort.

Here are 7 tips to get you started.

When you first wake up, take some time to meditate, even if it’s for just 3-5 minutes. It will allow you to connect with yourself on a deeper level as you start your day.

Set your intention about how your day will be, for example “Today will be an incredible day. I feel positive and alive”.

Spend 30 minutes to get your blood flowing and heart pumping through an enjoyable exercise routine or body movement activity.

Shower and get dressed in clothes that you feel comfortable in. Respect your body at the size it is now, no matter what size that is, and wear clothes (including undergarments!) that fit you well and comfortably.

Sit down and enjoy a balanced breakfast that includes wholesome food that you enjoy. Savor each bite, noting the taste, texture, temperature and aroma. Appreciate the food on your plate as you stay fully present in the eating experience without any distractions (avoid reading the morning newspaper or watching the news as you eat).

Pack your lunch and get ready to leave.

Hug your loved ones (for a boost of “feel good” hormones) and head out the door.

True, this morning routine takes some time, which means you will have to wake up a bit earlier than you are used to. And, that likely means that you will have to go to sleep a little earlier too.

But let me ask you, aren’t you worth it?

Your turn to take action: Practice incorporating this morning routine into your life and let me know how you feel in the comments below.

Confused Where to Get Reliable Nutrition Info?

It seems like everywhere you look there is new information on how to eat, what to eat and when to eat. These are usually followed by promises of weight loss, younger looking skin or to give you more energy. These claims are all over the internet and in magazines showing you what celebrities eat in order to look their best.

Do you get overwhelmed by all of it?

I know I do.

Those same people making the claims may say “if it worked for me, it can work for you!” But how do they know that’s true? Cutting out all carbs, going paleo, low-fat or high-protein diets will not give you the same results as someone else. First of all, many of these “diets” that are promoted are not healthy. They encourage you to cut out entire food groups or follow strict rules, which are usually followed by feelings of guilt if you break them.

The million dollar question is. “Where are they getting this nutritional information from?”

Is it some person who decided to eat these certain foods, lost a few pounds and now claims to be a “diet expert”? Or is it coming from a registered dietitian or other health care professional?

Before taking nutrition advice from anyone, look to see what their credentials are. If they are not a certified nutritionist, registered dietitian or other qualified nutrition specialist, think twice about listening to their advice. Doctors do, and can, give nutrition advice but they have had minimal education on nutrition. They have the right ideas, in regards to nutrition, but they do not always know the smartest and healthiest way to get you there.

Always seek out advice from professionals with credentials and advanced education in nutrition because truth is, nutrition information can be confusing. It’s a science that changes often.

There is no one diet that fixes everything for everyone. Especially with all the information in the media claiming that you should go gluten-free, sugar-free or preservative-free making it impossible to decide what is actually healthy.

You should definitely check with a registered dietitian or your doctor before starting any diet that has to do with “curing” a serious health problem. There are many holistic and nutritional approaches to curing certain diseases and illnesses but not all of them work. If you want to try these, continue your usual medication and inform your health care professional about them.

Since you’re reading this blog, chances are you’re looking for another way. Another way to get your nutrition information and a way to stop dieting.

I can help you with both.

As a registered dietitian nutritionist, I can provide you with correct and useful nutritional information. But, while more nutrition information may be helpful, that may not be what you need right now.

Take a look at where you are on your body love journey. Are you done with dieting? If so, intuitive eating may be your next step.

Intuitive eating is not a diet.

Intuitive eating will help you change your relationship with food; it is all about listening to your inner body’s signals and learning to re-trust your body once again! By listening to what your body wants and needs, you will be well nourished, your body will be happy and you’ll release excess weight.

Why will your body be happy? Because on your intuitive eating journey, you can eat whole, nutritious foods while still enjoying your favorite foods from time to time.

If you are looking to start on the intuitive eating journey, you can contact me here.

How to Prevent Rebound Eating

How many times have you done this: You want to look good for an event on the weekend so you spend the next week or 2 restricting your food and calories thinking you’ll shed 10 pounds by the weekend? And when that event is over you make up for lost time by indulging in all the foods that you were deprived of on that “diet” you were on? This is called rebound or binge eating. It is a vicious cycle that can lead to disordered eating patterns.

Depriving your body of the foods it wants over time can really take a toll on your body and mind. It can lead to cravings so bad that when you do finally allow yourself to eat what you want you could spiral out of control and end up bingeing on it. Then to compensate you might go back to restricting or trying to “work it off” at the gym which will only continue the cycle.

By incorporating intuitive eating into your life, you can break this cycle. Eat the foods you want when you want. But be mindful. If you want chocolate cake, have some cake. Don’t have the whole cake but have enough until you are satisfied. Eating a slice of cake won’t set you back on your weight or health goals, but depriving yourself until that cake is all you can think of just might.

Before deciding what to eat ask yourself these questions:

What do I really want?

You tell yourself you should get the salad when you’re out to dinner because it’s a healthy option, but you really want your favorite pasta dish. What should you do? You could get the salad and not be satisfied while watching your family enjoy their pasta. Or you can honor your preference and order the pasta. Consider asking for an appetizer portion or have the waiter bring half the portion and pack the other half to go. This way you can enjoy the pasta without the worry of overeating from the extra large portions restaurants usually give you.

Am I choosing the food because it’s what I should eat?

Who’s to say what you should or should not eat? Only you are the owner of your body and your food choices! Don’t fall prey to the “good food” “bad food” list diets give you. Own your choices!

Am I emotionally eating or am I really hungry?

If you’re craving a certain comfort food but you’re not actually hungry, this could be because you are feeding your emotions. Try to make yourself feel better by getting to the root of your emotions and find ways to fix them without food. Read more about this here.

Eating shouldn’t be an all or nothing sort of thing. If you give into your cravings once in a while you are not a failure. Extremes are easy, but finding balance within yourself and your eating is the hard part.

I know this isn’t easy. If you need help feel free to reach out to me here.