This post is one of many on the topic of intuitive eating. Where Intuitive Eating is capitalized and italicized, it refers to the text Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionary Anti-Diet Approach by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch. Where intuitive eating is in plain text, it refers to a more generalized non-diet nutrition framework or style of eating.
I can't tell you how many times I've been in session with a client who's been knocked off course by social media content that claims to be anti-diet but is, in fact, diet culture in disguise. The #intuitiveeating corner of the internet has certainly grown over the last few years. Many intuitive eating creators offer meaningful support to their followers – sometimes serving as the initial introduction to an anti-diet framework or encouraging folks on their own food freedom journeys. But the principles that serve as the foundation of Intuitive Eating are structured and nuanced, not lending well to the attention grabbing pace of social media.
If you’ve found social media content helpful along your intuitive eating journey, that’s wonderful. I’m so glad you’ve had that source of support! AND. Learning to recognize diet culture disguised as intuitive eating can protect you from ill-informed or ill-intentioned content.
Now my standard disclaimer: This post is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for individualized medical or mental health care. It does not constitute a patient-provider relationship. The content of this post might not feel useful to you right now – please take the information that serves you and leave the rest.
If the message is “stop eating” - Unfollow
Knowing that honoring fullness is a challenge for their followers, influencers often exploit Intuitive Eating Principle Five: Feel Your Fullness. Presenting an enticing (but unrealistic) promise that you will be able to stop eating the very second you are no longer hungry, and that being an intuitive eater in fact requires you to stop eating as soon as possible (aka, eat as little as possible).
There are lots of problems with the social media version of honoring fullness. Perhaps most glaringly, this is not what the Intuitive Eating text says! First, “no longer hungry” is not the same as “comfortably full”. It is very diet culture to suggest that we stop eating as soon as hunger cues dissipate. Friend, it’s beneficial to eat until you feel fullness. It sets you up to be more satisfied at meals and ensures you are eating adequately throughout the day. And second, the Intuitive Eating text suggests a range of fullness levels that may be appropriate to stop eating. Anyone who’s telling you there’s one perfect moment at which to stop eating doesn’t understand intuitive eating.
If it’s only about mindfulness - Unfollow
Alas, mindfulness has been co-opted by diet culture. Yes, of course, Intuitive Eating absolutely includes a mindfulness component. But there’s a lot more to it! Unfortunately, many of the faux intuitive eaters seem not to have ever even read the book. These days, mindful eating online usually looks like just another diet. The influencer who’s “being mindful” today and choosing a salad instead of whatever it she really wants . . . sorry, that’s called restriction, not mindfulness.
Providers who are committed to the earnest practice of intuitive eating understand that “mindful eating” is ineffective without the structure of the Intuitive Eating principles or one-on-one support tailored to an individual client’s needs. This is because, for many folks with a history of chronic dieting or disordered eating, tapping into cues of hunger, fullness, and satisfaction (the cues we rely on for mindfulness) may not be accessible early on. Mindfulness is a muscle that needs to be developed before it can be used reliably.
If it's f*ck it mentality - Unfollow
Just as intuitive eating isn't all mindfulness and carefully curated eating, it also isn't perpetual backlash eating. Last supper eating, f*ck it eating, and cheat days are common examples of backlash eating. In fact I have a whole post on why "Off a Diet" is Not Intuitive Eating. And getting stuck in the pendulum swing of all or nothing eating often leaves folks feeling that intuitive eating can't, or won't work for them.
Social media can perpetuate the misconception is that intuitive eating means eating whatever you want, whenever you want. While it's true that no foods are off-limits, intuitive eating also involves listening to your body's needs and making choices that honor your health and well-being. Remember: There are principles! There is structure! Any influencer posting epic what I eat in a day's or seeming to brag about binge or backlash style eating may be stuck in their own disordered cycle. When in doubt, mute or unfollow this type of content.
If the creator's thinness is on display - Unfollow
I spent a lot of time, in what feels like a past life, trying to "make it" on social media with yoga and anti-diet content. I recognized early on that yoga instructors who posted in skimpy athleisure were more likely to get engagement. This gave me the ick bigtime, so I opted out of the yoga corners of Instagram. But I was surprised, and a bit horrified, when a dietitian social media coach encouraged posting face and full body pictures several times a week. This coach was clear that faces, bodies, and especially thinness would get more views than text slides or images of food.
But for small bodied anti-diet, weight-neutral, or HAES aligned practitioners, this "body on display" strategy sends harmful mixed messages. While many well-meaning content creators will say (or caption) that intuitive eating is weight neutral, their visuals tell a different story. Over time, this content only reinforces that the measure of healthful eating is thinness. As in, “Intuitive eating isn’t for weight loss . . . but if you do it right, you’ll be thin like those women on Instagram.”
And finally,
If it makes you feel like you're doing it wrong - Unfollow
How do you feel when you put down your phone? Anxious? Agitated? Do you find yourself worrying about something you saw on TikTok days later? Maybe you’re unsure about an anti-diet influencer you used to really like who’s posts are feeling . . . off these days? Remember, all of us, including the folks we follow online, live in diet culture. Sure, there are bad actors who will gladly sell you a diet wrapped in intuitive eating buzz words. But more likely the creator has let their own unexamined healthism or weight bias seep into their content. Either way, you can unfollow.
Social media can be a double-edged sword when it comes to intuitive eating. While it offers a platform for sharing valuable information, it can also perpetuate diet culture and unrealistic expectations. It's important to critically evaluate the content you consume and seek out credible sources.
Remember, Intuitive Eating has never been a dogmatic, one size fits all approach. There’s no one right way to be an intuitive eater. If you’re having trouble getting the hang of it, that’s ok (and totally normal). In that case, find a support group, HAES aligned therapist, or intuitive eating dietitian who can guide you. Or check out books like Anti-Diet: Reclaim your time, money, health, and happiness through intuitive eating by Christy Harrison or Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionary Anti-Diet Approach by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch and the companion work book. And please, feel free to ditch anything that doesn’t feel helpful or supportive.
With compassion,
Stephanie
Very thoughtful and useful article. Thanks!