Life Coach, Emotional/Body Code Practitioner
| Imagine having a relationship with food where you eat what you want when it sounds good, are in tune with your body’s hunger cues, and drop all rules that diet culture has created surrounding food. This is food freedom. Food freedom can have different meanings for different people, but embracing it can be an incredible act of self-care for us and our bodies. Here’s how food freedom can look in action: *Listening to hunger and fullness cues and honoring them *Giving yourself permission to eat a wide variety of foods when they sound good *Not putting any foods “off-limits” due to diet culture rules (of course, if you have an allergy or other specific restrictions for diagnosed health reasons, dieticians and experts wouldn’t want you to eat those!) *Eating mindfully *Aiming to remove feelings of guilt and shame surrounding specific foods or mealtime rituals As the name sounds, food freedom means liberating yourself from diet culture ideals and behaviors — and embracing listening to your body and what it wants! |
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| What Are Food Cravings and Why Do We Have Them? When we think of “cravings,” many people’s minds jump to pregnancy and periods. However, everyone likely has cravings at some time or another. Ever have those days when you just can’t stop thinking about a burger? Or maybe you get an intense hankering for something salty or sweet. Perhaps you’ve experienced an intense desire to eat something crisp, like celery or an apple. Food cravings can take many different forms. As Heather Caplan, RD, shared in EatingWell, food carvings are a “strong desire to eat” a specific type of food or a particular item. Cravings are actually one way our bodies signal to us that we need something! For example, wanting something sweet can mean we’re low on energy or sugar. A desire for something salty can mean we need more sodium. The list goes on. However, other factors can influence cravings, too — including hormones, changes in our sleep patterns or routines, stress, our emotions, and more. Cravings can happen for many different reasons — but one way or another, it’s a way our bodies tell us what they want! |
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