Intuitive eating sounds great in theory. But what if your hunger cues are all over the place, you're running on crappy sleep, or your schedule doesn't allow you to eat whenever you're hungry? Here are seven things to consider before fully leaning into intuitive eating.
NOVEMBER 10, 2026
Intuitive eating is something I love, but it's not always the right move.
Lemme explain.
What is intuitive eating?
Intuitive eating is a popular "non-diet" approach to food. The basic idea is that your body is super smart, knows what kind of food/nutrients it needs and can communicate to you via hunger signals and cravings for you to get what you need.
When you start to pay attention and honor that hunger, you tap into that eating intuition and don't need to rely on external cues (like calorie counting, and whether or not it's "lunch time") and can eat based on what your body needs.
There's a lot of truth to this, and it can work really well. We're all born with this ability to self-regulate. Babies do this super well, and toddlers too. Even picky ones tend to regulate their intake over time if given lots of exposure and choice.
But we get messed up along the way.
Diet culture, "clear your plate" messaging, etc. make us (particularly women) lose the ability to trust our bodies and honor our hunger.
So in short, intuitive eating = great. We definitely all have the ability to get back to this place, given enough practice.
ButtttttttttttttTTTTTT.....
That idea of "listening" to your body and hunger cues gets a lot harder when certain foundations aren't already present.
Because cravings can be a message for what your body needs (like dark chocolate when you're on your period!), or they can be something else.
Here are some things we have to get a handle on first, before diving into an intuitive eating path.
1. Blood sugar regulation and cravings
If your blood sugar is up, down and sideways all day long, you probably have a lot of energy highs and lows, and sugar/starchy cravings.
It may seem like your body is telling you that cookies and coffee are what it needs all day, but in reality having bigger and more balanced meals at regular intervals is the real flex here.
2. Nutrient deficiencies and undereating
When you have a ton of nutrient deficiencies, and are under-eating things like fat, protein, or carbs, your body can send you signals and loads of cravings.
And yes technically this is actually your body being super smart and trying to help you, but when there's a ton of depletion going on it's really difficult to interpret.
Like you might crave a burger and fries when you're not getting enough food. Or ice cream if you're not getting enough fat.
Now, cravings alone aren't a reliable way to diagnose nutrient deficiencies. We need more information than that.
These foods are fine to have sometimes, but if they start to make up a significant proportion of your daily meals and you're missing a bunch of other nutrients, you're not going to feel great.
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3. How sleep affects hunger cues
Ah sleep.
That thing we all know we need more of.
Even just one night of bad sleep can temporarily reduce insulin sensitivity, and poor sleep can also show up as some pretty intense carb/sugar cravings.
If sleep isn't great yet, we may need some structure around eating rather than fully relying on hunger cues.
4. How hormones affect hunger and fullness
I know we like to blame everything on hormones.... and this time it's true.
Hunger and fullness cues are influenced by hormones, so it's a thing.
Insulin, leptin, and ghrelin are all hormones involved in telling you if you're hungry or full, and those signals can get mucked up and hard to listen to.
Wonky cortisol and stress can also influence appetite and cravings for things like salt, sugar, and even wine.
We need to know what we're working with to understand where these cravings are coming from, when to listen, and when to view them as a sign of something being off balance.
5. Digestion and appetite
"I'm just not hungry in the morning" can sometimes be a sign that we need to look more closely at digestion and appetite.
So instead of following the idea of only eating when hungry, we've gotta figure out what's going on with digestion and appetite, and support that first.
Same goes for those who don't feel great after they eat, and so this impacts what they're choosing to eat or even skipping meals to avoid feeling crappy.
(Pun always intended.)
Of course, not being hungry first thing in the morning doesn't automatically mean you have a digestive problem. But if digestion or appetite is consistently getting in the way of eating enough, that's worth looking into.
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6. Emotional eating and finding joy outside of food
Do I really want that cookie?
Or do I have absolutely no joy or fun in my life and this pastry will give me that little shot of happiness I'm desperately searching for?
To be clear I don't think there's anything wrong with occasional/more than occasional treats.
I don't think that food needs to be 100% only about nutrition. It can bring us joy and be used in celebration too, and that's a normal part of life as a person who eats.
But taking stock to see if food is your primary or only joy and seeing where you can add in some non-food ways to fill that gap is important.
I know this is hard as an overwhelmed mom, but even just getting this idea on your radar is a place to start.
7. Your schedule doesn't always match your hunger cues
Sometimes we can't just wait until we're hungry and only eat then.
I see clients and have meetings throughout the day, but block off 30 minutes at noon for lunch.
Sometimes I'm not super hungry yet but know that my next break isn't until 2:30.
If I don't eat at noon, I know that I'll hit a wall come 1pm and then suffer through the rest of my calls, which does a disservice to my clients as well as me.
So I eat early, knowing that's perhaps not the perfect choice, but it's the better one.
Can you practice intuitive eating and still follow a meal plan?
So in short do I love intuitive eating?
Yes.
Do I use some of the principles with my clients?
Absolutely.
But it's not always a starter skill, and there are some basics to consider first!
And like most things, it's not all or nothing.
We can use intuitive eating principles when it makes sense, and think more formulaically about food and meal planning when that feels like the more practical way.
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xo
Alison
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