Does anyone here eat normally? (Without rules applied to food)

[Falafellygood]

And by normally, I mean without any rules or restrictions. Just eat whatever you want, start when you're hungry, finish when you're full.
Nothing about low carb, too much fruit, not allowed bread or pasta, chocolate=bad and salad=good, no intermittent fasting, etc.

This isn't a criticism or to be goady, just genuinely curious, because so many people (on here and IRL) seem to have such extreme rules about eating.

So I'm just curious who here eats by following their own hunger/fullness cues and cravings? Not applying moral values to food and everything can be enjoyed.

Yes. The neverending diet stuff, both on here and in real life, really pisses me off, I find it incredibly tiresome and dull. It makes me grumpy and sad to think of all the things women could be achieving if they weren’t spending the vast majority of their mental energy obsessing over what they’re eating on any given day. I eat what I want, when I’m hungry, in a decent enough balance (bit too much sugar probably). I can only hope I’m a decent enough role model for my children, especially my girls, to internalise the message that their weight is probably the least important thing about them and certainly no reflection on their characters, and use their energies more productively!

What do you mean by “normally”?

Do you mean cereal for breakfast, sandwich for lunch and pasta for dinner - jar and sauce?

I eat three meals a day as home cooked as possible, using good ingredients.

I do, but I'm obese so I don't necessarily recommend it.

Yes, what I want when I want. Never think about rules or good/bad food.

I did when I was younger. Now I'm middle-aged just the sight of a piece of toast makes me fat.

I've never been on a diet. Sometimes I need a bit of extra fiber, seems that my hormones can affect my digestion around my period, so I adjust accordingly, but I've never watched my weight and don't own scales.

I should say that I sometimes don't eat enough and skip meals, not as a weight conscious thing, but I have adhd and sometimes my executive function fails me and I get too overwhelmed. I'm a bit thin as a result.

I definitely eat without any rules, just eat what I want, when I want myself. But for family meals, I have to cook with a lot of restriction due to dc's multiple food allergies. So I use lots of alternatives to norm, by necessity. I cook lots of vegan dishes, also due to necessity nothing to do with ethics, and food is still lovely.

I think this post needs to ask for a size too otherwise there isn't a point of reference to the replies.
Eating responsibly is a social responsibility.

@FlyNow

I do, but I'm obese so I don't necessarily recommend it.

that really made me laugh

I used to - and I was fat. Now I apply 'rules' and I'm not 🤷‍♀️

Yes I think I do.
I do enforce a bit more fruit and veg intake than I would instinctively eat but I don’t consider that a 'rule'.

Variety and a bit of what you fancy. Sometimes what I fancy is a whole share bag of crisps!

Yep, we do. None of this you can’t have chips with Lasagne (albeit we don’t) but I serve mash with toad, Nan bread with curry and rice etc and certainly would never just have veg with Salmon en croute.

@Falafellygood

And by normally, I mean without any rules or restrictions. Just eat whatever you want, start when you're hungry, finish when you're full. Nothing about low carb, too much fruit, not allowed bread or pasta, chocolate=bad and salad=good, no intermittent fasting, etc.

This isn't a criticism or to be goady, just genuinely curious, because so many people (on here and IRL) seem to have such extreme rules about eating.

So I'm just curious who here eats by following their own hunger/fullness cues and cravings? Not applying moral values to food and everything can be enjoyed.

My sister is a natural size 0. We counted her calorie intake once and she ate 2.8k calories (it was a normal day).

She is really active but not as active as me but as I can still lose weight on 1.8k calories (with pcos and hypothyroidism) I imagine it’s because we both have a lot of muscle due to how we like to keep active.

I ate like this for most of my life and remained slim. Then a combination of getting older and comfort eating my way through some stressful events meant that I gradually put on weight, but so slowly that I didn't really accept it was happening.

Now I calorie count because I want to lose that weight. But I don't apply any moral value to it. I don't rate food as good or bad, I don't cut out entire food groups. But I do accept that if I eat a Snickers that's likely to leave me feeling hungry later, so most of the time I prefer not to do it, because the happiness it brings me (and it does bring me happiness) is so brief compared with the happiness I felt when I shopped for new jeans and discovered that my usual size was so big it was nearly falling down.

I still eat takeaways and chocolate and drink wine. But I really weigh up if it's worth it to me. And often it isn't.

I do. I eat when I'm hungry and stop when I'm full. I don't have huge portions and I'm moderately active. I'm a size 10

Also - there's certainly a moral undertone to your post, implying that normal people ought to be able to just follow their body's fullness/hunger cues/cravings and be fine - but that is not the case for many people.

Me. I do try not to eat too much in the way of biscuits, crisps etc. And I try to vary my carbs so it’s not just bread and pasta. But that’s not a diet IMO, just healthy eating.

I don’t own scales. I’m lucky that I had a pretty high metabolism till my 30s so never worried about weight growing up. It’s slowed right down since 30s/children (I’m now hypothyroid) and I have to eat less not to put on weight, but still never been on “a diet”. Just had to learn to eat less food overall.

Oh, I am a full size 12, whereas a year ago I was an '11'. I’ve put on about a stone the last 12 months but that’s hardly a surprise and I’m sure that when I can get back in more of a 'normal life' I’ll feel better.

Yes I do. My parents didn't have food issues (lots of other issues though), and everything was ok in moderation. I've never been on a diet but I don't have a sweet tooth so don't eat a lot of sweet stuff. I eat healthily but not in a calorie-counting way, just in a 'lots of vegetables are good' way.

I recommend the Fuck It Diet book for anyone who needs some perspective on this. Intuitive eating should be the norm.

I should clarify, I do not mean from a medical, religious or ethical perspective.

Thankfully no one needs a restricted diet in this house, Nor does anyone have any food fads, so I would say yes, we eat ‘normally’.

@Calledyoulastnightfromglasgow not sure why you think ‘normally’ would mean pasta and sauce from a jar ?

But our food is no longer ‘intuitive’ - it’s highly processed so it’s messed up our instincts.

Reasonably so. I don’t have rules or impose rules on others now the children are grown, but I do tell myself I don’t need to buy a bar of chocolate or open a bottle of wine.
I don’t eat breakfast, but that’s because I don’t like eating in the morning usually. If we’re on holiday and breakfast time has moved to 10am, I’m very happy to eat an enormous three course affair.
I rarely eat lunch, but if I’m in the mood I’ll shovel in a plate of cheeses and crackers, with a dozen pickled onions.

"Start eating when you're hungry" doesn't work for me as I have a family and we all eat together. So we eat meals at fairly predictable times so that we can suit everyone.