By: Michael Beiter

Will I have to food log forever?

New clients shake when they ask this question, like they are getting sentenced to prison.

I tell them no; if they can prove that their intuitions are accurate enough to keep them at healthy body composition and weight without the help of logs, then go ahead and eat intuitively.

Essentially, I ask them for experimental proof that their emotions accurately measure food. In over ten years, I have not met a single person who has 'passed the test.'

Some of these people have thousands of completed food logs and decide to try intuitive eating. Even with thousands of reps, their intuitions still need to be more accurate. As they stand, if they ate based on feelings, they would overeat.

This is a damn near universal problem people face today and has some solid psychological underpinnings. People think gaining weight is all a failure of their will without knowing that our food environment is made to mislead.

So what is our best defense against an environment designed for us to fail? Counting. And fortunately for you, the device in your pocket makes it easier than ever before.

You can try to manage what you eat with feelings. It probably won't work, though; eventually, you'll come to the conclusion my client did here.

After 26 months of work, 24 of which he tracked everything he ate, he experimented without food logging and sent me this message.

It's essential to note people with this much experience earn their right to play with intuitive dieting. When they don't like the results, they CHOOSE to keep logging because of the peace of mind and accuracy it provides. People like this don't feel shackled to their phones or diet; they feel liberated and free to enjoy this fantastic, albeit dangerous, world of food.