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This month’s selection for RWR Book Club –Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionary Anti-Diet Approach by RDN Evelyn Tribole, MS and RDN Elyse Resch, MS
What’s ahead
Summary
Intuitive Eating is a foundational book in the anti-diet and body liberation movement. Written by two registered dietitians, it introduces a flexible, compassionate framework for reconnecting with hunger, fullness, satisfaction, and self-trust. The book outlines 10 principles that guide readers toward a more peaceful, body-respecting relationship with food — one that isn’t rooted in shame or restriction.
Why Intuitive Eating Is Book #1 in the RWR Book Club
Intuitive Eating is our starting point because it helps unravel the very foundation of diet culture that so many of us have internalized without even realizing it. It’s not just about food, it’s about rebuilding body trust, learning to honor hunger and fullness, and healing the mental and emotional weight we’ve been carrying around how we eat.
This book gives language to the thoughts so many of us have had in secret:
- Why do I feel out of control around food?
- Why does eating “right” feel so hard?
- Why does my body always feel like a problem I have to fix?
It offers a way forward that’s compassionate, empowering, and sustainable — and it lays the groundwork for every other book on the RWR list.
Before we dive into movement, habits, or self-care, we have to address the mindset that says:
“I have to earn rest.”
“My worth is tied to what I eat.”
“Healthy means smaller.”
“Restriction equals discipline.”
Intuitive Eating gently dismantles those ideas and replaces them with permission, connection, and autonomy. It invites you to let go of shame and step into curiosity — which is the heart of everything we do inside Results Without Restriction.
That’s why this isn’t just the first book.
It’s the foundation.
This Book Is Great If You…
Are curious about healing your relationship with food without counting anything
Feel stuck in the cycle of dieting and want a new way to relate to food
Struggle with guilt around eating or your body
Want to rebuild body trust and learn to eat in a way that feels good, not punishing
Need a copy?
Why I Chose This Book
This book is part of the RWR Book Club because it speaks directly to two core pillars: Gentle Nutrition and Body Respect. It helps readers identify and challenge internalized diet culture, explore eating without guilt, and develop an internal compass for food and movement choices.
Suggested 4-Week Reading Plan
This book is dense but structured, so we’ll divide it into manageable weekly chunks (approx. 60–70 pages/week):
Week 1:
Introduction
Principles 1–2:
Reject the Diet Mentality, Honor Your Hunger
Week 2:
Principles 3–6:
Make Peace with Food
Challenge the Food Police
Discover the Satisfaction Factor
Feel Your Fullness
Week 3:
Principles 7–10:
Cope with Emotions with Kindness
Respect Your Body
Movement – Feel the Difference
Honor Your Health with Gentle Nutrition
Week 4:
Application Chapters
Personal Reflection
Revisit any chapters that hit home
Make it yours: You don’t need to follow this plan perfectly. Read at your own pace and take breaks when you need to reflect or process.
Journal Prompts
Use these questions to deepen your reading experience. There are no right answers — only what’s true for you.
- What food rules are you realizing you’ve internalized (even subtly)?
- How has diet culture shown up in your life without you realizing it?
- Which of the 10 principles feels most aligned with you right now? Which feels hardest?
- In what ways have you been taught to disconnect from hunger or satisfaction?
- How do you define success when it comes to your relationship with food — and how do you want to redefine it?
- How does it feel to consider trusting your body — or treating it with respect, even when you don’t love it?
This book also has a companion workbook if you’d like guidance in putting these principles into action
The Intuitive Eating Workbook: Ten Principles for Nourishing a Healthy Relationship with Food
by Evelyn Tribole MS RDN (Author), Elyse Resch MS RDN (Author), Tracy L. Tylka PhD (Foreword)
Your Thoughts
- Which of the 10 Principles resonated most with you?
- What was your biggest “aha” moment reading this book?
- How has your perception of hunger and fullness changed?
P.S. Looking for more books on Intuitive Eating, regaining body trust and dismantling diet culture?
Check out the RWR BOOK CLUB book list HERE.
Frequently Asked Questions about Intuitive Eating
What is intuitive eating?
Intuitive eating is a flexible, weight-neutral approach to eating that helps you reconnect with your body’s natural hunger, fullness, and satisfaction cues. Instead of following external rules (like calorie counts or food plans), intuitive eating encourages you to trust your body and honor your physical and emotional needs. It’s rooted in self-compassion, not restriction.
Is intuitive eating just “eating whatever you want”?
Not exactly. While it does mean giving yourself unconditional permission to eat, it also involves learning how different foods make you feel physically and emotionally. The goal is to strike a balance between satisfaction and gentle nutrition — eating in ways that support your well-being, not sabotage it. Over time, you begin to choose foods that feel good and energizing because you want to, not because you “should.”
What is “gentle nutrition”?
Gentle nutrition is the final principle of intuitive eating. It means making food choices that both honor your health and your taste buds — without punishing or obsessing over what you eat. It’s about progress, not perfection. If focusing on nutrition feels stressful or triggering, you’re encouraged to wait until the earlier principles (like hunger and fullness) feel more grounded before diving into this one.
How does intuitive eating help heal my relationship with food?
Intuitive eating helps you rebuild trust with your body by removing shame, guilt, and external rules from your eating choices. Instead of following a rigid plan, you learn to listen to internal cues like hunger, fullness, satisfaction, and emotion. By letting go of diet culture and tuning in to what your body actually needs, you stop obsessing over what, when, and how much to eat — and start building a peaceful, sustainable relationship with food.
It’s a process of unlearning the messages that told you your body couldn’t be trusted — and replacing them with self-awareness, compassion, and body respect.
What are the 10 principles of intuitive eating?
The 10 principles of intuitive eating, developed by dietitians Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch, serve as a flexible framework — not rules — to help you reconnect with your body and break free from chronic dieting:
- Reject the Diet Mentality
- Honor Your Hunger
- Make Peace with Food
- Challenge the Food Police
- Discover the Satisfaction Factor
- Feel Your Fullness
- Cope with Emotions with Kindness
- Respect Your Body
- Movement – Feel the Difference
- Honor Your Health with Gentle Nutrition
These principles are designed to work together gradually to help you shift your mindset, rebuild body trust, and approach health without restriction or obsession.
Is intuitive eating supposed to be a tool for weight management?
No. Intuitive eating is not a weight loss or weight management tool. In fact, one of its core values is that you let go of intentional weight control so you can focus on your physical, mental, and emotional well-being. This book is part of the anti-diet movement, which means it does not promote intentional weight loss, calorie counting, or before/after transformations.
Instead, it’s centered on body neutrality, food freedom, and long-term health behaviors. If you’re looking for a way to heal your relationship with food and your body.
Will I lose weight if I start following the principles of Intuitive Eating?
Some people may gain weight, lose weight, or stay the same, but the goal is to stop tying your self-worth or health to a number on the scale. Instead of manipulating your body, you learn to nourish and care for it with respect, regardless of size.
How do I know if intuitive eating is right for me?
Intuitive eating might be right for you if:
- You’re tired of yo-yo dieting, binge-restrict cycles, or obsessing over food
- You want to stop labeling foods as “good” or “bad”
- You’re ready to explore what it feels like to eat without guilt
- You crave a more peaceful relationship with food and your body
- You want to trust your own body’s signals rather than external rules
If you’ve spent years battling with food, your body image, or trying to “fix” yourself through diets — intuitive eating offers a way forward rooted in freedom, flexibility, and self-trust.
Can I practice intuitive eating with health conditions like diabetes?
Yes — intuitive eating can absolutely be practiced alongside health conditions like diabetes, but it may look a bit different. You can still reject diet culture, listen to your body’s cues, and approach food with curiosity and care — while also incorporating medical nutrition therapy and guidance from your care team.
In fact, the 10th principle, Honor Your Health with Gentle Nutrition, supports integrating health considerations into your eating patterns without fear, restriction, or rigidity. Many intuitive eating-aligned dietitians specialize in helping people with diabetes, PCOS, and other chronic conditions eat in ways that are both supportive and liberating.
Note: It’s helpful to work with a weight-neutral, intuitive eating-informed MD/RD if you’re managing a specific diagnosis.
Keywords: intuitive eating book, intuitive eating beginners, anti-diet approach, food freedom, body trust
