A Day in the Life of an Intuitive Eater

Stacy is 43 and works multiple jobs from home.

She describes her past self as an “olympic yo-yo dieter - like gold medalist!”

When Stacy reached her breaking point with dieting, she found herself thinking: “I spend so much time stressing about food… stressing about burning calories, no carbs, this much exercise, watch my calories, watch the scale, measurements, photos… I have so many other, more important things in my life to worry about right now. I need a break!”

Now, far into her intuitive eating journey, Stacy shared what her daily life is like:

Stacy’s lifestyle🙌🏻

“I eat around convenience, which I used to really beat myself up about. And I carried a lot of shame and guilt when I would do that. But I'm a pretty busy person; I work multiple jobs. So I don’t get as much time as I would like to cook.”

Breakfast🍩

“I don't normally have a huge appetite in the mornings, so I usually eat something basic. I’ll throw some frozen protein waffles in the toaster, then put a banana on it. I’ll also buy oatmeal cups that have nuts or fruits in them.

On the weekends, I do like to cook breakfast because I have a little more time. That normally looks like something like eggs and bacon, maybe toast or pancakes too. I prefer making turkey bacon at home because it's less messy. I like it the same as normal bacon, I just don't like the mess of normal bacon.”

Lunch🍕

“I cook the most and get my most nutrient dense foods at lunch time. Since I work from home, I’ll make up a big stir fry. I love making my vegetables in the air fryer instead of sautéing them because it gives them some crunch. I’ll add some brown rice to my stir fries to get some carbs, because I noticed that when I don’t add it, I just don’t feel as satisfied. I might make a big salad for lunch - and by big I mean like a whole mixing bowl - I don't mess around with regular bowls when I eat salads! I throw in a little meat, maybe some chicken or maybe some salmon if I have salmon leftover.

I also make sure to keep frozen meals on hand for when I get busy. I really like ethnic foods and my partner doesn't. So most of the frozen meals I keep on hand are Chinese, Thai, Indian, or whatever interesting meal I’d like to try. I keep that on hand for when I don't have time to make big lunches.”

Dinner🍝

“My other half is a typical Midwestern farm boy. He’s a basic meat and potatoes, casseroles, comfort food kind of guy. So we eat a lot of pasta dishes and meat and potatoes. He's not really into vegetables, so sometimes I'll just add a side of green beans or a small side salad to my meal, depending if I even want it or not.

I do keep a lot of frozen meals on hand, because sometimes we're just busy. Every time I get groceries, I buy one frozen meal that the two of us can enjoy, because there are nights when I work late, so I need something that we can just throw in the oven.

Once a week we do pizza night - that's a must! We have a really great pizza place that delivers to us. He gets the same thing every single week, but I like to explore different things on the menu. They have lots of great sandwiches, pizza, and salads, so it's totally just what I'm feeling on pizza night.”

Snacks🥪

“Snacks have probably been the trickiest thing for me. I am still kind of triggered by bars, because I lived on Quest bars, ThinkThin Bars, and Clif bars for so long. I know they’re a convenient snack, but I don’t like them. So I'm more of a cheese and cracker girl. Cheese and crackers with some meat, maybe some nuts. Sometimes I like to have a pop tart for a snack. So really, my snacks are just sort of whatever I want in that moment - I don't get too hung up on it.”

Movement💃

“I do work out mostly every day because I love it. So I make sure that my eating is kind of scheduled around that. I always want to make sure that I get something about an hour to a half hour before I work out that’s a little bit carb heavy, and then some protein afterwards, whether it's a shake or solid food.”

What’s the difference?💙

Stacy was able to move away from restrictive eating and toward total physical, mental, and emotional health - after 20 years of intense yo-yo dieting. She now has permission from herself to eat those convenience foods without guilt or shame so that she can keep herself nourished during her busiest days. She no longer obsesses over tracking every bite and enjoys the mental space and energy that have been freed up by making peace with food. Food is neutral to her, so she doesn’t stress over what she should or shouldn’t eat, instead focusing on what feels good and what fits into her life best.