How to Get Started with Intuitive Eating as a Christian
So you’re ready to finally ditch the diet but learning intuitive eating seems overwhelming… Don’t stress, sister! This guide will show you how to get started with intuitive eating in a simple way that’s right for you!
You have probably been down a rabbit hole on Pinterest or Google, doing research about intuitive eating and trying to figure out your next move. But you’re HERE! So I hope the search is over.
Women email me all the time to say they saw or heard me share about how intuitive eating transformed my health and my faith, and now they are inspired to finally ditch diets, too.
(BTW I love getting those emails! It brings me back to the beginning of my journey and I can reflect on how far the Lord has brought me!)
Those emails always seem to have a mixture of excitement and trepidation. There is a sense of HOPE in what the Lord can do… but also a sense of dread because the thought of learning a whole new way to relate to food and body seems daunting.
Intuitive eating seems too big or too overwhelming for so many women I talk too.
But don’t stress, sister! God is bigger and nothing is impossible with Him.
Push that overwhelm right out the door.
And while you’re at it, go ahead and push any ideas about needing to do intuitive eating “perfectly” right out the door. There’s no such thing! You can’t fail at intuitive eating. You just have to get started.
That is where this guide comes in.
How to start intuitive eating
Based on your own learning style and needs, this guide will show you how to get started with intuitive eating.
As with everything in intuitive eating, there’s really no one-size-fits-all approach or a “right” way to get started.
This flow chart will help you find an entry point that suits your personally so you can begin to learn about intuitive eating and start practicing it in your own life.
Ways to learn intuitive eating
If we were sitting down to coffee together, these are the questions I would ask you to get a sense of how you like to learn and what your preferences are.
Since we can’t sit down to coffee together, I worked these questions into this flowchart to help you navigate your own needs and end up with the right resources for YOU!
Do you need the structure of the formal teachings that come from online courses or professionals like coaches and counselors?
Or are you independent and self-motivated to study and learn on your own?
Are you an audio learner or just prefer to listen to information rather than read?
Are you a visual learner or just prefer to look at something digital or tangible to learn?
Do you want printed materials you can work through in an hands-on way?
Or do you just want to simply take in some information?
#1 Online Courses on Intuitive Eating
Learn more about the online courses affiliated with our podcast Intuitive Eating for Christian Women HERE.
Learn more about faith-based intuitive eating online courses created by some friends and colleagues HERE, just scroll to the bottom.
#2 Intuitive Eating Professionals
If the structure of an official course or program is not enough and you think you’re interested in even more accountability and individual attention by working with a professional such as a counselor, coach or registered dietitian, there are plenty of options available.
I am not taking one-on-one clients at this time, but I have several friends and colleagues who are!
Learn more about faith-based intuitive eating coaches and counselors HERE.
#3 Podcasts & Audio Books
If you are an audio learner, you should definitely use podcasts as a resource to learn about intuitive eating.
Podcasts are free, there’s tons of options, and you can learn in an informal manner that you can easily fit into your lifestyle.
I discovered intuitive eating through listening to a podcast, so I have a sweet spot for podcasts as an entry point to the non-diet approach. I still love to listen to podcasts while walking in the neighborhood, while out running errands, or while doing housework.
I want you to start with our podcast Intuitive Eating for Christian Women, specifically, Season 1 of Intuitive Eating for Christian Women, because it has focused episodes that unpack the principles of intuitive eating through the lens of Biblical truth, one concept at a time, in an easy to understand way.
For other great podcasts check out my round-up blog post where I’ve compiled The Best Health Podcasts for Christian Health HERE.
This round-up list includes intuitive eating podcasts as well as other Christian podcasts that don’t cover intuitive eating itself, but have a lot to offer in terms of holistic health.
FYI I update the list regularly so make sure you Pin that post or bookmark it so you can check back later for new episodes that will bless your journey to follow Jesus not diets.
For more in-depth content, you can also listen to audio books. Any of the books on my recommended reading list that have audio versions would be great to listen to as a way to get started with intuitive eating.
#4 Best Books
Get my full recommended reading list on the Best Books About Food & Faith complete with mini-reviews of why I like them HERE.
For a short list of where to start to learn the basics and get a good foundation (to which you can then apply scripture) I recommend these cornerstone books on intuitive eating, even though they are not faith-based:
- Intuitive Eating by Evelyn Tribole & Elyse Resch
- Health At Every Size by Linda Bacon, PhD
- Anti-Diet by Christy Harrison
For a short list of faith-based intuitive eating books (and it’s short because there are only a few!):
- Grace Food and Everything In Between by Aubrey Golbek
- Diet Detox devotional by Body Bloved
- Fulfilled by Alexandra MacKillop (releasing 3/2/21)
#5 Top Blog Posts
The best blog posts about intuitive eating for Christians are compiled on my Top Posts list.
For more, also check out my Resources list.
#6 Best Accounts
My favorite social media accounts to follow for support on your journey to Follow Jesus Not Diets are on The Best Instagram Accounts for Christian Health.
#7 Starter Kit
Download my FREE guide and start your own journey with the Intuitive Eating Starter Kit for Christian Women.
#8 Workbook
Go deeper with the Intuitive Eating for Christian Women podcast by treating it like an online course! The podcast is free but when you purchase our $7.00 Podcast Workbook you can turn your listening into living. Get your Podcast Workbook HERE.
Get intuitive eating support
No matter what your style of learning is, we ALL need community on our intuitive eating journeys to support as as we begin to live out what we’re learning.
How much support do YOU need?
Is following certain content creators enough or do you need to join their social media communities?
Do you need to stay off social media and need your support to come from somewhere else?
Do you prefer to simply monitor community activity and learn from what others share?
Do you prefer a large group where you can be anonymous of you want to or a more intimate group where people know your story?
Do you need something more than just an online forum?
Are you looking for face-to-face connections and relationship building?
Whatever your answers are to these questions – don’t go it alone! You do not have to walk this path by yourself.
God created us to be in community. So find the level of support that works for you in this season of your intuitive eating journey.
#9 Facebook Groups
The private Facebook group we created for the Intuitive Eating for Christian Women podcast listeners has grown to a flourishing and active community of over 1,000 women. You can request to join with your name and email HERE.
Other faith-based intuitive eating or body image groups on Facebook to check out:
- Joyful Health Co Group: Joyful Health Community
- Tracy Brown’s Group: Intuitive Eating and Eating Disorder Support for Christian Women
- Heather Creekmore’s Body Image Group: Body Image Help for Christian Women
#10 Membership
We’ve revamped the podcast monthly membership program! We’re not just Coffee Dates anymore. And we’ve taken the party OFF social media.
The Membership might be just what you’re looking for if you want something more than a Facebook group but you aren’t ready or don’t need to get formal support from an online course or working 1-on-1 with a professional.
Check out our Membership Page to see our announcement video explaining what it is, who it’s for, and why it’s beneficial. There you can get all the details about the 3 different tiers of membership and the 3 different price points, and find the one that has the features you want most.
If you’re ready to invest in your faith-based intuitive eating journey and invest in relationships with like-minded women, then join us!
It’s my prayer that these resources will help you figure out how to get started with intuitive eating in a way that’s right for YOU and how to keep walking the path with the level of support YOU need in this season.
