𝘐𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘔𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘗𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨

𝘐𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘔𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘗𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺 - 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘯𝘫𝘰𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘤𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘩𝘺 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨

Disclaimer:

I don't give medical advice. Please talk to your physician.

I help busy moms go from being frustrated trying to figure out what to make for lunch and dinner for their family to feeling empowered knowing she has a fun, easy, and manageable meal planning system.

SIDE BENEFIT: kids learn to be and stay intuitive eaters and will remember this essential life skill of intuitive planning and cooking.

Do you want to know what I do when I struggle to figure out what I can make for dinner?

Yes, even as a professional chef (in training), I too have plenty of those days when I draw a blank, asking myself what dish to prepare for myself and my family.

The answer is: I go grocery shopping! ...but with an intention: to have the best time while there, to use my intuition and my five senses (taste, smell, hear, feel, see) to guide me to find the best produce, condiments, and spices to make my meals delicious.

My philosophy of 'if you start with great ingredients, you really can't get wrong, and your dish will be delish.'

This started early in childhood when picking up fruits and vegetables from our garden, and I got to go to farmer's markets. I was fascinated by the buzz of trading and loved my senses being activated by what I saw, smelled, and tasted.

One of my biggest 'hobbies' is finding new ingredients I want to try in the store. I also don't shy away from going to different grocery stores, even if they are miles away from my house. In the meantime, I learned which store has better and fresher produce, which one has the best-grass-fed beef or pasteurized chicken, and the best price on Freerange Eggs. In addition, I often travel to different stores to get better seafood. If I fancy Eastern European or Middle Eastern Food, you'll find me at Phoenecia or our local Bulgarian / Romanian market. Asian stores and Indian stores are my favorites as well. I know after my next semester at The Culinary Institute Le Notre, where I'll be working on International Cuisine dishes, I'll be even more comfortable and confident using those interesting spices and products. More on that to come.

Now, what is Intuitive Meal Planning?

This is my interpretation; take it with a grain of salt.

I'm not big on advocating any type of diet, and it seems that when I searched on the internet about this topic, even though it came naturally to me to call it this way, it seems it's now the 'newest' type of 'diet.'

I keep it super simple when I think about Intuitive Meal planning and cooking.

We can use our intuition and senses to guide us. For example, using our intuition, we will know what to eat, what our body needs, we will know how much to eat, and when.

But I get it; we all have busy lives and need more structure than this. For me, the benefits of a Mediterranean-inspired diet outweigh all other diets I've studied over the year.

Mediterranean Diet + Your intuition = healthy body and mind and spirit

Keep in mind it matters a lot where you grew up; your body might respond better to 'regional food' than 'foreign food,' which is why I resonate with the Mediterranean Diet.

What exactly is intuition?

It's an instinctive feeling, just knowing without reasoning.

We can relearn this ability if we lose it growing up, and we can definitely encourage and teach our kids to use the natural power they already possess.

BUT, what happens when the parent is so far from knowing to use their own intuition, and now they are trying to force new rules on their kids on what is healthy and what is unhealthy. Some create so many restrictions around food that they are freaking confused about it all.

Is there hope? I think so. We just need to trust and believe that this type of eating is healthy for our body and soul. The side benefits are excellent, too, less stress eating or binge eating, fewer cravings for salty and sugary foods, weight regulation, and increased joy for life in general.

So let's get started: HOW DO I IMPLEMENT THIS?

It's easy: you get in touch with your body cues (like hunger and fullness). But, hey, easier said than done for some of us, right?

Let me tell you what you will gain by investing in this new way of thinking: you can stop obsessing over your weight, quit binge-eating and end the feeling of guilt around food.

Have you already mastered these? I am so proud of you, and I'd love to connect so we can all help each other more.

Do you want to master these? Then, you came to the right place.

I found this quote by Alissa Rumsey, RD, very helpful: "Intuitive eating uses feelings of hunger, fullness, satisfaction, and body knowledge to dictate eating choices at the moment. Traditional diets use external factors like nutrient counts, calories, or food groups to plan food ahead of time without room for flexibility."

Said that: HOW DO YOU MEAL PLAN INTUITIVELY? HOW DO I STRUCTURE MY WEEK? I do it this way: usually, I have 2-3 trips to the grocery store during the week. Then, I do a quick inventory of what I have at home and make a shopping list, either in my notes or if I pick up groceries that repeat themselves, such as milk, pasta, butter, and eggs, then I put that list straight into my grocery app.

Those items are easy to shop for and will give me the base for breakfast and snacks. Like we will always have fresh bell peppers at home, apples, cucumbers, and garbanzo beans which my kids love to eat just like that with a splash of lemon and some sea salt.

Then for the more 'complicated meals,' I like to go to the grocery store myself because I need to see what is in season, what smells good, and what my body, mind, and soul are drawn to that moment.

My body knows what is good.

Our energy fields and intuition guide us.

When I am feeling low energy, my body usually suggests fresh fruits, greens, and vibrant colors.

My body usually suggests warm foods, especially grounding vegetables and soups when I feel melancholic.

My body brings me to the black chocolate section when I feel super happy and excited.

For recipe ideas, I often rely on memories; what dish growing up made me feel at home? Safe? Happy? What recipe in my adult life gave me the most energy? What is it I am trying to accomplish this week? Do I have work deadlines or a busy schedule with the kids?

Depending on my reflection on the last week and the anticipation for next week, I have a better idea of what recipes I want to cook. Of course, I also include the kids in this process, and they help me decide what they want to eat.

The same exercises apply to them.

When they were younger, we had a slightly different approach, but one that led to this one. So if you are curious about feeding your baby or toddler, send me a private message, and we'll chat.

I'll admit, it's not only intuition; I've been obsessed with healthy food for a long time growing up, fighting inflammation issues (eczema) and studying at the Institute of Integrative Nutrition, where I studied health and wellness in depth.

I know that we are all born knowing how to listen to our body's hunger and stringy signals. Still, we often grow up with mixed messages when we are constantly bombarded by media that we need to eat all these snacks.

Our friends and even family mess with what we know by feeding us whether we are hungry or not.

We are told to finish our meals growing up even though our bodies may be perfectly well-nourished; we are rewarded with food for good behavior at home and in school settings.

It's time we take our power back, of connection with our bodies more and stress less about diets, but put more emphasis on the human connection to ourselves and to our friends, family, and community.

The goal is to become an intuitive eater, where when hungry, you pick up something to eat without debating about it or feeling guilty.

I am working on a group program where we can all learn to cook together and create a fun community of like-minded moms who want to embark on this fun way of meal planning. Sign up for my newsletter for announcements.