At First You Might Feel Like A Fish Out Of Water

As you are trying to reconnect with your body and listen to your innate hunger cues to know when to eat, you may feel like “a fish out of water.”  You are not used to the freedom of being able to eat what you want when you are hungry.  I get it.

So here are some pointers.

You know you are hungry when just the thought of food makes your mouth water.  And you know you are hungry when you start to lose the ability to concentrate fully on whatever you are doing.   If you can successfully “ignore” your hunger, (by getting busy with something) then you are not hungry.
You need to spend some time learning about your own hunger.  Yes, your hunger patterns are going to be unique to you.  And it is a rewarding kind of “self discovery” to get to know those patterns.

I know mine very well, and that awareness give me a feeling of control and confidence.  There is no fear that I will blow it or eat for inappropriate reasons.
For example, I know that I often experience a “warning” hunger signal.   I know that first hunger signal isn’t an emergency hunger signal.  It is just letting me know that soon I will need to take care of myself.  How nice!  No panic, no fear, no stress.

When I was a dieter, I feared hunger because I knew I was not going to be “allowed” to answer it with food of my choice, or in an amount necessary to satisfy my hunger.  “Oh great, I can eat some lean chicken on whole wheat with mustard.”  So hunger always ended in an unsatisfactory experience.  But when you are eating with a thin mentality, hunger is always rewarded in a satisfactory way.

I know how to take care of my hunger.  And I know how much hunger to “tolerate” for the best eating experience.

Give yourself a chance to learn about your hunger.  Hunger is circular, not linear.  Your first hunger pang is not an emergency!   And when your body trusts that you will answer your hunger in satiating way, you are on your way to a strong thin mentality.