Factors that Influence Fullness
As we spoke in the previous post about the characteristics of fullness, now we will delve into the factors that influence fullness. We will be talking about 5 of them, but there could be more or less for you; every body is different. Dieting itself is a factor that can influence our fullness but also our understanding of fullness. These factors are things that we can grow back into being aware of and strengthening.
Initial Hunger Level:
Our initial hunger level can vary based on how much we have eaten before this meal or snack. If we eat when we are not hungry, we do not have a meter or compass to determine how it differs from hunger. Imagine if you grew up in a place that was only warm and you had never experienced snow before. You have been moved to a highly snowy and cold mountain town. Because you have never experienced snow and the cold, you would not be able to gauge what clothes you need to bring with you and just how cold "cold" can be. The same can be said about our understanding of hunger levels. If you are recovering from dieting or disordered eating, your level of hunger or knowing what hunger cues are will be unknown or skewed. This is not meant to make a rule that you can only eat when you're hungry. This is more about a factor that influences fullness.
Unconditional Permission to Eat With Attunement:
If you have yet to make full peace with food, stopping when full may be difficult for some folks. It's hard to stop eating if you believe you'll never eat a particular food again. Attunement is about being aware of your body and deeply listening and responding to meet its needs. One will find great attunement when getting adequate sleep, food, hydration, and having a work/life/joy balance. If you are sleep-deprived and food deprived, it will be difficult to eat with attunement. Without attunement, unconditional permission to eat can go awry. Unconditional permission to eat is a crucial point of Intuitive Eating, no longer restricting what you eat based on a dieting mentality. Experiment by making a list the foods you used to restrict and slowly reintroduce them. Reintroducing them with unconditional permission will help these foods lose their novelty.
Timing:
The amount of time that has passed between meals and snacks influences fullness. Generally, you need to eat every 2-4 hours. Check in with those more subtle signs of hunger! How is your mood? What does your stomach feel like; are you noticing signs of bloating? Think back to the other characteristics discussed in the last post and how they feel for you. If this feels difficult, try going within 3 hours between meals and snacks and see how it feels.
Social Influence:
We have all been there; a party with friends or a family get-together. There are plates upon plates of food around you; you have decided that you are comfortably full. But at this point, the host is coming around again, inviting the guests for another serving in a very heavy-handed and pressuring tone. What do you do? Feeling comfortable in your fullness and respecting your body, you can stand up for yourself and turn down the next helping! The presence of people at a meal increases the amount of food you might or might not eat. This may be due to peer pressure in any direction, distraction, or just simple unawareness.
Types of Food:
This factor holds importance regarding staying power. Think of "air foods," popcorn, rice cakes, and light and airy food that don't have any real density or sustenance. These can leave you feeling momentarily full but then wanting more soon after. Foods higher in fat have more staying power, keeping you feeling full longer. At first, be sure to include protein, fat, and carbohydrates! This will help you assess fullness or satiety better.
Fullness is a feeling you may not know anymore, but you can reconnect to this biological cue. Fullness is a natural state of being, not something that should be ashamed of or freed. Go through the sections discussed today and practice being aware of one for each meal or snack you have! If you have questions about Intuitive Eating, please message Robin Harris through email, at robin@bodypositiveacupuncture.com to schedule a workshop. Look forward to more posts like these!