Why you should be an intuitive eater and NOT a dieter.

Remember in my previous post I wrote about 'jiggling' the thermostat? After reading this book I really thought back over my life and wondered what size I'd be if I had never played along in the dieting game. I bet I'd be healthier.

I remember bouts in college and high school of basically long term fasting. Bouts of insane exercising. And somehow still gaining back the weight that would briefly leave. Sometimes more to boot.

In fact many of my diets were the first few symptoms of an eating disorder:

• 
  
• 
  
• Refusing to eat and denying hunger
• An intense fear of gaining weight
• Negative or distorted self-image
• Excessively exercising
• Flat mood or lack of emotion
• Preoccupation with food

Come to think of it - those things seem pretty status quo these days - I mean you should be doing those or you are gluttonous right?

I wish instead that I had had more knowledge to focus on being an intuitive eater.

What your body does when you diet:

Your body wants homeostasis BADLY. When you diet your "hypothalamus reacts to the messages it receives by signaling other body tissues to release hormones, enzymes, and other chemicals to push you back into homeostasis."

Of course, sometimes we're able to temporarily override the hypothalamus's efforts to restore homeostasis. For instance, if you're trying to lose weight, you may be able to consciously overcome feelings of hunger through your own willpower. People on diets manage this - albeit not for long.... So then your hypothalamus gets more aggressive, affecting systems beyond your conscious control." - excerpt haes.

There is a lot of scientific evidence in the book that basically boils down to this:

You start to diet.

Just the mere thought process of "I am going to restrict calories" starts chains of activity in your brain.

Then you do restrict eating and your body strikes a counter attack.

First - it increases hormones and enzymes to increase your hunger.

When you do eat there are enzymes and other chemical functions that actually make the food taste better to you.

Just to be sure it turns down all natural responses to satiety. So food tastes better than usual and you are not getting cues of fullness like you normally would.

But if you manage through sheer willpower to continue to restrict calories:

Your body tweaks your metabolism and sloooows it down.

And just to insure you won't waste away - more powerful chemicals come into play to literally slow you down. Your body instigates feelings of weakness and lethargy to reduce caloric output.

so to compare, what if dieting was like budgeting:

You'd say I am going to spend less money this month.

Well all of sudden everything would break in the house so you'd have to spend money.

But if you still refused to spend money the bank would just let someone come in and steal your debit card.

People who do stick to a diet LONG TERM, even if they are strictly following it will gain weight back. The diet industry ignores this fact and popular opinion says well they are 'cheating'.

But in controlled long term studies this has been proven to not be the case. Even with very controlled amount of calories the human body is amazing and can get you to be at that set point it wanted in the first place.

Now your body is very concerned if you are below the setpoint but a-ok with you being OVER the setpoint. So when you frequently diet it just raises that setpoint to protect against future diets. So years of dieting can make you weigh more than you would have been just listening to your body's natural cues.

"No one profits from internal trust, except of course the individual - trust that your body knows what it wants and it will guide you" - Linda Bacon.

I do wonder about all the success stories that you hear of dieters who kept it off forever... if they were chronic over-eaters, who, with awareness, became intuitive eaters and naturally reached their setpoint.

You can. not. look at a person and assume anything about their eating habits. I bet fat people eat a lot less than you think, and I bet there are thin people who can put. it. away. Just look at my adopted brother. Same home, same meals, he ate way more than me and my sister. But was thin as a rail.

a letter to those who have lost weight can be found here

"Please don’t promote the belief that if someone is disciplined

enough, they can choose to be thin. This is not true for the vast

majority of people. Many fat people face a great deal of discrimination and stereotyping because of the false belief that weight loss just takes discipline."

Bucket List - 10th grade version

My best friend Ingrid and I wrote these lists for ourselves the summer after 10th grade. Not sure how my list of 20 things I want to do before I die became 24 things. But here it is - It gave Kyle a good laugh last night reading them:

In case you can't read it:

1. Read all of the scriptures.

2. Go on a mission.

3. Live in a loft or apartment in the city.

4. Go on a long hiking/camping trip in some exotic place.

5. Become an Occupational Therapist.

6. Raise a family.

7. Kiss a teacher/professor. (sigh... yes I had a huge crush on a teacher I'll leave un-named)

8. Be Someone's hero.

9. Go Skiing in Utah. (I did in Wyoming an countless times in Virginia - does that count?)

10.Make love in the water. (yeah who didn't understand the logistics of sex LOL)

11. See the Northern Lights.

12. Finish my genealogy (what exactly counts as finishing??)

13. Give natural childbirth and breastfeed. (how come I was enlightened at sixteen and got stupid when I actually became pregnant?)

14. Go Skydiving and Bungee jumping (check on of those. - sorry mom)

15. Go back to Yellowstone and stay at the Ol faithful inn.

16. Go to a U2 concert.

17. Take my kids camping like Dad took us camping.

18. Never drink alcohol. (oops. its disgusting.)

must not be able to count - I skipped 19

20. Go to an outside hot spring in Colorado or some place cold during the winter. (did it in the summer does that count?)

21. Visit Italy.

22. Get a master's degree (no longer interested.)

23. Marry in the Temple (Sealed March 7, 2001)

24. take a yoga class (scratched out - but I've done it several times.) and Go skinny dipping in the ocean, or in Lake Norman every summer. (I've gone skinny dipping many, many times so I'll count that as done.)

moi working at Kings Dominion - you had to ride the ride you worked at before opening - the kids in the photo booth thought it was funny to take our pic and send it up to us

cha, cha, changes.

I added pages. there right up there.

oh and we love this video:

Introducing the newest member of the family:

Sunday night at the dog park - we go there A LOT, its kind of our 'thing'. I said, "you know I've never really had two dogs but Hickory sure does like the company here... maybe one day"

and Kyle looked at me like I was nuts - because despite being pet people, Having a puppy as of late has been H. A. R. D. - remember my garden anyone??

So I let the thought pass, but then the next morning I read about a cute puppy on facebook that had been rescued by a sweet family down the street and adopted by another sweet family but it wasn't working out.

Kyle and I texted all day about how bad an idea it would be... But somehow, somehow....

somehow....

we went to bed that night with a puppy in the bed at our feet.

Hickory is in heaven with a friend, I have the kids helping alot before they are back to school, maybe this house training thing will go fast (it did with Hickory) and Popper has a new lease on life because Hickory doesn't play the "where's that cat" game all day - he bothers the puppy instead.

His name was supposed to be Hunk.

Zeke was the Cowardly Lions name on the farm at the beginning of Wizard of Oz, Hickory is the Tin man's name, and Hunk was the scarecrow's name.

but Hunk just wouldn't stick... So by Tuesday we had deemed the trial run a success and named him...

Nikko

the leader of the flying monkees...

from Wizard of Oz....

just in case you haven't noticed we kind of got a theme going on up in here.

who needs pacis, sippies, and pull ups?

Suri Cruise

things I've learned from five babies -

I NEVER give a pacifier to a baby who is not actively trying to go to sleep. They don't need them stuffed in their mouth to play.

When I see a mom stuff it back in their mouth repeatedly - I realize its the mom with the problem not the baby.

I DO use a pacifier though to prevent the blanket addiction that Ms. Maiya went through.

I wean the pacifier starting around six months - Gone before 1st birthday for sure. A child talking with a pacifier in the mouth makes me squirm.

Pacifiers should not come in sizes for up to age THREE.

I breastfeed as long as possible - it prevents terrible, terrible constipation that my kids are prone to.

I don't, don't, don't deal with sippy cups or bottles (well bottles for date night I suppose). If my baby goes from breast to straw cup they never miss it.

If my baby does get a bottle it IS NOT PROPPED, no matter how old they are.

I don't feel the need to give them milk or juice. at all. older babies and toddlers do just fine on water only. Mine get yogurt, cheese, real fruit and breast milk - that's enough. And yoo-hoo no more sippy cup science experiments.

Pull-ups are really, really, really expensive diapers. If you need them you are not ready to potty train.

Baby food is pretty much unnecessary. Again breast milk then what we are eating with a little extra mushing - very rapidly mushing is also unnecessary.

When I get home and you are sleeping in the car seat. I take you out and put you to bed. Yes I will risk you waking up but more often than not you will sleep longer and better in your bed.

You have my permission to love your body.

" Just remember: You only have one body and despite how well you live your life, it may never change. Can you afford to hate yourself for the rest of your life?" -Linda Bacon

I stood up in the meeting.

I explained that I had had success in EVERY area of my life that I put my mind to- but this one.

If I had a goal that sang to my heart I accomplished it. I had got into OT school when it was harder than medical school to get accepted. I had fought addictions. I had a wonderful marriage. Beautiful children, and I had accomplished financial goals so that I could be a stay at home mother.

But then I publicly acknowleged that in that one area I always failed.

Can you guess where I was?

It could be any number of "hate yourself" places that dot our landscape, but that particular night it was Weight Watchers.

Did I lose weight? Yes.

Did it say off? no.

After years of intense willpower and numerous attempts, tears, and failures, a wonderful support system, prayer, and inner enlightenment. I have moved past those issues of feeling inferior because of my body. I don't have a "weight loss" blog. I don't visit yours. And trust me a lot of beautiful fat women have them: Here is my family blog - here is my weight loss blog.

I have a testimony because of the Gospel that one of the most important reasons we are here is to have and enjoy this body we were given.

I have definite opinions on the topic.

To put it in a nutshell, I think our obsession with weight is a full on attack from the adversary to make us feel like crap.

How much emotional and financial energy is wasted on our weight and obsessing about our bodies?

And its not even about our HEALTH.

its really about our SIZE.

Recently I started reading this book on my mom's kindle and I was so impressed with all the thorough and honest research I was mesmerized. I kept daydreaming about meeting the author in person and hugging her like crazy.

I am going to do an entire series on my blog about this topic. It needs to be talked about.

The general premise of this book: Health at Every Size by Linda Bacon is that our focus should be on improving our health NOT our size.

Because despite our best efforts at dieting you may be harming yourself more than helping. Many people who diet frequently end up weighing more. Drugs and surgeries may make you thinner - but the longevity of that is debatable, and the research shows you will NOT be healthier.

We should focus on WHOLE, healthy foods.

Intuitive eating - eat when you are hungry, stop when you are full.

Move your body.

Here is an excerpt:

"Until recent decades, adult weight stability over long periods of time was the norm and was an effortless process....

The healthy weight that your body aims for is called your set-point weight. Think of it as the preferred temperature on a fat thermostat. Like any thermostat, this one can be set at whatever point is most comfortable. The system then works tirelessly to do ANYTHING it can to bring your body in alignment with that point. It acts like a biological force: The further you go from the center, the stronger the pull to get you back to the comfortable range.

This system only works if we let it, however if you keep "jiggling" the thermostat via diets, the mechanism breaks down. This jiggling is like a power struggle to wrest control away from your body's innate weight-regulation system and in the end it only makes your body fight harder to retain control. The result: Your body forces you to not only REGAIN any weight you've lost, but you may even pay a penalty with extra weight gain, and a new setpoint weight set higher to protect against future restrictive diets.

My hot button topics that I'm going to blog about over time:

- How much I think gym class can hurt kids who aren't naturally athletic and over time develops a HATRED of exercise when it should be doing the exact opposite.

- What stupid things we say, even complimentary sometimes that make women feel sad about their bodies (I may even talk about the baby shower that I cried the whole way home from)

-Is accepting your size like giving up? Is is support of unhealthy habits? - short answer: No.

-Weight loss surgery - paying someone big money to force your body into malnutrition. (I may get my mom to guest post - she had weight loss surgery when I was a toddler. I grew up to the regular sounds of her vomiting.)

-Why the media talks of those who suffer from anorexia and bulimia with compassion and those who are fat like they are demons. Why is making fun of the fat person completely accepted across all venues of entertainment?

- Are you a restrained eater? If so you may be making your own life difficult. Are you a super taster? FASCINATING stuff!

-Fat children were excluded from protection in the Safe Schools Improvement Act - a measure to prevent bullying. How is that possible? If you don't think being bullied for your size is an issue - you obviously have never been bullied or seen a fat kid be bullied.

and more...

ps. here is my favorite review on Amazon about the book:

Health at Every Size starts with a discussion about the social and cultural myths surrounding weight. She talks about how at different times in the last century, women's magazines have had articles about how to GAIN weight, instead of how to lose it. Maybe the most important lesson in the book is how the weight loss industry, which includes government agencies, lies and manipulates statistics in order to make us believe that if we are fat, we are going to die.

1.) We're all going to die. Skinny does not equal immortal. (In case you were wondering.)

2.) The Center for Disease Control helped to design the `obesity crisis' with false statistics.

3.) The act of trying to obtain a `perfect' weight causes far more health problems than the act of trying to be as healthy as possible at your current weight, whatever that may be.

The first part of this book, for me anyway, felt like a battle cry.

The next part of the book talks about Health at Every Size and how to implement it into your life.

I'll admit something here. I skipped ahead to section two. And I was confused. Because I was looking for menu plans and concrete steps to follow. I've read a lot of diet and `life style change' books, starting with Susan Powter and ending right here. They all have steps to follow.

This book doesn't break HAES down that way, and at first I was confused. Because-well, how am I supposed to do this if you don't tell me how? Where are the charts? What about a training schedule or a list of HAES friendly snacks?

Then I went back and read from the beginning. (This was one of those times that my penchant for reading books backwards didn't work out for me.)

Turns out that HAES isn't a diet. I was a little slow integrating that information, because I actually knew that going in. It isn't a fitness plan. It isn't anything other than a validation, permission to treat yourself well right this minute. So Bacon's section two talks more about easing yourself out of what may well be a decades long addiction to dieting. It gives you permission to exercise because it's fun and feels good, or even as training, rather than as a punishment for the sin of being fat. To enjoy whatever food you want to eat-literally, whatever food-without putting a moral judgment on it.

HAES breaks down like this:

1. Love yourself. Yourself today, not yourself 10 or 50 or 150 pounds from now. Your body is just your body, it is neutral morally.

2. Eat good food, eat what you want and enough of it, and stop when you're full.

3. Move because it feels good, it is good for your health (yes, even if you never lose a pound) and it's fun.

Deceptively simple, right?

SMURFETTE!!!

I thought it would be nice to take the kiddos to meet the smurfs.

Then I thought it would be nice to punch someone in the face.

just kidding.

but not really.

See we got there an hour early and chilled only to have chickie in the black outfit with 5 lbs. of eyeliner decide 3 minutes before smurfette was set to arrive to form a line.

but she didn't know how to form a line so she had to call her manager and ask "how do I make a line"

I

am

not

joking.

Then half of the store rushed in front of those of us who had waited an hour.

I held it together.

just barely.

ask Sarah...

mean line cutters.

all for this.

when Benjamin would have preferred to stay at home and do this instead of roam around Barnes and noble:

Ella playing with the ipod:

I don't mind...

If I make people think sometimes. My birth control posts are still getting lots of action.

And the blogosphere has pricked my mind as well lately.

I LOVED Cjanes' post this morning - It reminded me so much of myself. The feelings of being done with children - then the overwhelming feeling of being open to more. The goal of less visits in pregnancy. I didn't start seeing my midwife until almost the halfway mark. And I toyed with the idea of nixing weekly visits at the end but was too shy to ask.

then Banned from baby showers put up this quote:

Here is a growing evil in our midst. It will be so in a little time that not a woman in all Israel will dare to have a baby unless she can have a doctor by her. I will tell you what to do, you ladies, when you find you are going to have an increase, go off into some country where you cannot call for a doctor, and see if you can keep it. I guess you will have it, and I guess it will be all right, too." - Brigham Young

and Mama Birth - wrote about my thoughts recently. Except she doesn't even know me and she wrote much more eloquently than I do. Her post THE C SECTION AS BIRTH CONTROL:

We can talk all day about the monetary cost of the c-section or about how it saves lives or about bacteria in the birth canal and trouble breathing, but you can not put a price on the damage we are doing to women.

This is cruel. This is abusive. This is wrong. And- this is how we are treating women at the time of their babies births. We are literally hurting women so deeply that they are scared to death to ever bear another child.

How often does a normal, natural, un-medicated birth do this?

And Well Rounded Mama - writes about the new research stating that (insert eye roll) surprise, surprise - Inductions increase C-sections. Specifically it TRIPLES the risk for first time moms.

You know what helps talk a mom into an induction?

2 things

Most women aren't prepared truly prepared to go PAST their due date. They always think it won't be them. And that magic date becomes a finish line - instead of a guess. When you get that big fat positive pregnancy test and look up your due date- think of it as your birth month. You can go two weeks before - but you'll probably go two weeks after. Plan on that. If you get to the end and you are miserable - most are. And someone gives you a way out - its almost irresistible.

The next thing is two words: vaginal tearing.

Its the thing the scares women from the moment of realization that the baby has to come out of THERE! Then with the modern technology of ultrasound you have doctors and their assistants more than willing to scare you with the BIG BABY card. They did it to me remember?

They say - Whoa this baby is BIG and you think of tearing from stem to stern and you are miserable anyway and going past your due date seems like a cruel form of torture.

But take a deep breath and think it through.

The baby's skull is what you need to focus on - get that out and the rest of the baby is a-ok - last month weight gain is not as huge of a factor as one would think- the skull is not going to get bigger and bigger. The bone structure is what it is - the weight your baby is putting on is pudgyness. They work on getting a butt the last few weeks - ever seen a premie? - they have no butt.

If you can get out the head - you can get out the pudgy body. My midwives said bigger babies cause LESS tearing in her experience. They come out slower. Your body accommodates.

Don't be intimidated into an induction because of the fancy term MACROSOMIA (big baby) 0r CEPHALOPELVIC DISPROPORTION (your hips are too small). They are mis/over-diagnosed ALL OF THE TIME - and the hyped up fears are only causing more c-sections that aren't needed.

C-Section rates hit ALL TIME HIGH:

"Obviously, a 34 percent C-section rate is far too high," said Jacqueline Wolf, a researcher at Ohio University who wasn't involved in the study. "Medical reasons alone cannot possibly explain why more than one in three American women need major abdominal surgery in order to safely give birth."

Already had a c-section?- studies are now supporting the fact that vaginal births after ceseareans are safe:

Anyway if you schedule that induction - prepare yourself for a C-section. I feel like I dodged a bullet. I knew so little in the past. So, so little. I wish I could go back and educate myself better.

Do I think c-sections shouldn't exist - NO WAY. I'd gladly have one if needed and feel blessed to live where I have had safe access to them. Bless these women who didn't.

I am frustrated with a situation that is happening TO women.

another blogger, Rixa put it best:

I think that some of my readers are equating my condemnation of a general circumstance (our high cesarean rate) with a condemnation of the women who undergo these surgeries. Disapproval of a general situation does not at all translate into judging women who find themselves in that circumstance, for whatever reason.

Did you see the new pampers commercial with a homebirth? Love it:

PS. I would love to channel my childbirth energy into a real venture - The Bradley training session will be in Dallas in December - but its $1200!!!! to become certified. I just may save for it though........

Kyle says I have too many pictures on the computer.

my boys:

there are no words for the cuteness. really there isn't.

Was just thinking about how I started reading Harry Potter when this one was in my womb and he was at the midnight showing of the last movie with me. time FLIES.

this is how PJ sleeps in the car seat. The car seat that he's about outgrown.

this is how my mom sleeps during her crossword puzzle:

Hey Tony!

Did I already put up some of these pics - probably... the kids waiting for fireworks on top of the van

the lake again: we have taken to heading up there after Kyle gets home from work - no one is there and we have a good 1.5 hrs. to swim - just enough time!

cookie monster!

the what am I game - grandma was stumped by ladder. - Is a ladder big enough for someone to fit inside?

My mom meeting PJ live for the first time. She was at his birth courtesy of Skype - but that's not the same as "neck sugars" as she calls them

Its "Gustin" as Cora calls him

Hey mom - love you!

The family post dinner fear factor continues - How many GIANT marshmallows can you fit in your mouth - I failed. Kyle dominated at three.

I bought a can of sardines at the dollar store the last time I was there - FHE dares anyone?

We baby talk to him more than we do to the baby...

then...

and now...

July Picture Pages

Meg and her fiance Justin - do you say fiance like the guy in O brother where art thou? you should - it makes your brain giggle

Pics with Grandma - can you tell its a little less than 900 degrees outside when we took these?

and maybe I should put up 4th of July pics before its August:

and for some randomness:

Meg getting Maiya to plank :)