Hi friends! Cody Jenkins here- I’m the other Nutshell Nutrition RD 🙂 It has been awhile since I’ve popped on here to say hello. For those of you who don’t know, my husband and I welcomed our sweet baby boy, John Barry Jenkins III, into the world on August 19th. He was 8 lbs, 1.5 ounces, 20.5 inches and we love him more than we ever imagined possible!
Becoming a mom has been quite the learning curve. I tried to prepare myself for all the change and some things I felt ready for…while others were way harder of an adjustment. A doozy.
Which got me thinking…What does eating intuitively look like for this current season I’m in? Perhaps some of you new mommas out there can also relate? Or maybe you’re feeling a lot of pressure to eat and move in a certain way, but those expectations feel so unattainable? If so, it’s okay. You don’t have to eat and move like that.
I am very thankful breastfeeding came relatively easy to both baby John and me. That said, because I am nursing a baby, I am hungrier than I ever have been before. My stomach is a bottomless pit and I might have a hollow leg. Everyone talks about crazy hunger and cravings while you are pregnant. For me, my body’s cues drastically changed once I began nursing.
And here I am 1 week overcooked at 41 weeks 🙂
I didn’t notice a huge difference in my hunger cues while pregnant. If anything, I had to adjust how I ate simply because I would get full quickly with a baby taking up space. But now I really feel different. Not only is my hunger and fullness different, I’ve realized it can be difficult to eat mindfully. I don’t think this means I’m not eating intuitively, it’s just that some days I don’t put much thought into my food and I’m okay with that. The relationship I have with the foods I eat and my body looks different right now because life is really different right now.
I am no longer the only person I have to feed and take care of. My body is responsible for feeding John (crazy that my body is sustaining a human life…SO COOL) and he is my priority. The minute I became a mom, I quickly realized my time and my body are no longer my own. The journey of intuitive eating can and will change throughout your life. That’s why we never really arrive and instead we’re always learning and trying to understand ourselves and our bodies better. Variety is the fun spice of life right? You are always learning how to nourish your body best. Accepting that what you do one day may look entirely different the next is part of the journey.
I texted this picture to JB while grocery shopping asking which cereal we should get. He said to get both (wise man) and it was the best combination. Anyone else like mixing cereals? And WHY is Count Chocula not offered all throughout the year?
So what does intuitive eating look like for me right now? Sometimes it’s simply eating what is quick, satisfying and convenient. That means you will often find me eating chocolate chip cookies with my coffee or a few handfuls of Cheez-its at 10am. I wake up starving most days and when your baby is not sleeping great – I find comfort in a sweet treat in the morning. This is okay. Food can help soothe us, but we just don’t want that to be the only that soothes and comforts us. Some days, that is what mindful eating looks like for me. It makes sense and life less stressful. No guilt and not a lot of thought. It’s just my normal.
My meals do not always look perfect. Often I’m eating snacky meals while standing in the kitchen watching John do tummy time. Dinner is usually the only time I even think to take a picture so that is why you mostly see dinner pictures sprinkled throughout this post…
Intuitive eating isn’t always this super mindful, eat exactly what you’re craving and cook delicious meals sort of thing. Sometimes intuitive eating I think means thinking less about food and simply being able to meet your basic needs…like feeding yourself. And showering..
I craved Cheez-its when I was pregnant and to this day, they really hit the spot for me. I often like to eat meals once John goes down for a nap. It’s easier for me to relax and actually enjoy my food that way. However, if I am hungry before then (which I often am), I will munch on some Cheez-it’s or another salty snack. I’m craving snacky starchy foods right now and I’m good with that. It’s just normal eating. Fats and carbs to fill me up and some salt to satisfy.
What else is different? I used to be more of a sweets for breakfast kind of girl. I rarely ate eggs. I liked them on occasion but just not everyday. Lately, I can’t get enough! Give me all the eggs. Maybe it’s my body needing extra protein. Before having a baby, I would wake up in the middle of the night for a snack. But in the early days of nursing, I found it helpful to keep snacks in the nursery so that I wouldn’t get hungry in the middle of the night. Snacks make this life possible!
I’ve also discovered that the more relaxed I am, the more in-tune with my hunger I am. I feel like I’ve always known this, but it feels more true and real than ever before. My largest meal is at the end of the day once John is down for the night. I’m much more relaxed because I know I get a little break. At this time, you will find me getting up from the table several times during a meal to get more food. JB often laughs when I am serving dinner and he asks which plate is his only to find that his has the smaller portions –> which I think is important because we have this stereotype in our culture that men eat larger portions. Maybe sometimes they do…but maybe sometimes they don’t. And that’s okay. That’s normal. That doesn’t mean you’ve eaten “too much.”
So many things are changing in my life right now. We are learning a ton about John and life with a baby –> everything feels new and unknown! But it’s been fun to see that I am still a student to my body and to really listen to it’s needs. My hope is that this post encourages you to do the same today. Whether you have a baby or not- it’s probably telling you something different than it did yesterday and your food cravings may reflect that. I know it’s hard to reframe the way we view our bodies and eating habits, but try to think about enjoying the journey your body takes you on instead of trying to control it. <3
Intuitive eating is an approach I’ve been wanting to take for awhile, and for the most part, I am in tune with my body’s needs. Sometimes it’s hard not to eat plain chicken because I know I “need” protein at that moment, as opposed to eating what my body really wants which, lately, are smoothies and easily digestible foods. I’m not a mama, but I have heard of the craving for eggs post-baby! So interesting. Our bodies are cool.
Our bodies really are the coolest- I agree! Keep leaning in and listening to your body 🙂
I just had our first baby on August 14…so I can relate to much of what you are talking about – especially the bottomless pit (I thought I ate a lot before having a baby!)! I have learned to not stress over what I am eating and just eat what I am craving or whatever is easiest to grab when hunger strikes. I feel like I am learning new stuff every day but it’s so fun and exciting!
Yay! Congrats to you- our babies are just a few days a part!
Hey sweet friend! Motherhood looks like its treating you well. SO fun to read about your posts, and see a peak into your life, now that its been a few years out of school. Merry Christmas to you and your family!
-Kelly C
Kelly!! So happy you commented 🙂 hope all is well!
John is absolutely adorable and I love your attitude about intuitive eating in this season of life. Keep being a rockstar 🙂
Thank you so much!!
I loved this post!! While I’m not a mom yet, this was helpful because I feel like other hangs in life complicate intuitive eating sometimes, or they shake things up. Like moving, traveling, or going through a stressful time with work. This is so encouraging!!
So glad to hear it was helpful 🙂
Yes! I am 9 (almost 10…) months into breastfeeding and this hunger does not slow down! I wake up starving, and often need a bowl of cereal or pb&j after dinner, before bed. Like you, I have craved eggs (and red meat!) so much and gladly consumed what my body is telling me it needs. I feel very strongly that our society sends a horrible message to new moms about getting your “body back” when really, we need to focus on the mental health of new moms. The physical will come in time. You will fit into your clothes again. But mentally, there is SO MUCH happening and we need to talk about that and support one another. Not just regarding PPD and PPA, but also just the major change that comes with being a new mom (especially if you return to working full time). I could stay on this soap box for days 🙂 But, all of that to say, great post!!
Amen!
YES!
Thank you and amen!! 🙌🏼
I Love this! My son is 10.5 months old, and even though we are down to only 4 nursing sessions a day, I STILL feel like I can never get enough food haha. And it was interesting because I felt self conscious at first about eating bigger portions than my husband or wanting a snack 30 minutes after dinner. You’re right- our culture has definitely brainwashed us! But it’s been so nice to just try to listen to what my body is telling me and to put feeding my son above everything else. It’s such an amazing time!
It really is amazing!!
I love that you pointed out that stereotype about women and men and the amount of food eaten. There have been MANY times I have been food shamed for eating more than my male counterparts at meal times. And it’s not unusual for me to eat more than my husband throughout the day, too. BUT, I also am usually more active than him throughout the day and I believe I operate on a metabolism that is higher than his. Such an important concept to point out!
Thank you! I agree!
Congratulations on that sweet little boy!!! I agree that I am more in-tune with my hunger/fullness cues when I’m relaxed. Love how you are just going with the flow with all of this!
Yes! It’s just what you gotta do 🙂
Congrats Cody! He’s beautiful! Thank you for a great post! Best of luck and happy holidays!
Thank you Meaghan!
This is a great post Cody…I am a mom of teens and yes, initially it feels like your body is not your own…but ultimately it is – you just have other reasons to care for it even more when you have children depending on you. It shifts your perspective for sure.
I have multiples and I remember flying back home for my shower when I was pregnant – I remember feeling like that was the most safe I could ever keep them as they were tucked inside my belly. Now they just started driving on their own and boy do I sometimes want to be able to keep them safe in my belly again!!! 😉
Enjoy this precious time (sleep deprived and all!) with baby John
Thank you our so much!!
Thank you so much for this! Intuitive eating feels like a foreign language to me and is even trickier in the unpredictable postpartum period. I’m beginning to understand intuitive eating isn’t always “slow and mindful” eating, but eating in a way that meets your bodies needs. And yet, it’s still a little scary to have a relentless appetite while you’re nursing. I didn’t realize just how entrenched I was (am) in the diet culture until Robyn’s posts started exposing just how deep seeded these faulty belief systems can be. It’s so hard to navigate when diets are now masquerading as “clean and healthy eating.” So anyway, thank you for talking about intuitive eating and how to apply it to mom-ing!
Of course!! There is a season for everything and sometimes we can’t always be slow and mindful and that is 100% ok!
It’s so miraculous to see how a woman learns to feed her body so intuitively during and after pregnancy. I love how you talked about you truly listening to your hunger and not being worried about not spending as much time thinking about food. I love Cheez-its too. Your baby is so beautiful; what a blessing from God! May he know the miracle of knowing Jesus!
And all of your food looks so good; even though I haven’t had any children, I find that my biggest meal is dinner time too, because it’s the best time of day to just sit and enjoy food with my family. There’s definitely more snacking throughout the rest of the day.
Thank you so much!! So happy to hear you share my love of cheez-it’s!
One hundred times yes. I, too, was a bottomless pit while breastfeeding. More than during pregnancy, more than marathon training. I actually gained a couple pounds while breastfeeding. I guess my body needed the extra stores to make milk. Within a month after I finished breastfeeding the extra pounds disappeared just naturally on their own. Our bodies know best.
Amen!!
Great post. I am a mama to a fourteen month old and feel like I am finally eating and loving myself the way I’ve always wanted to – now that he’s eating “real food” (besides just breast milk) I want to show him that all food is great; the other day someone was appalkled that I gave him a bite of my cookie and said it’s “bad” to introduce “unhealthy” foods at such a young age but to me it’s beautiful that he’s too young and pure to have any diet brainwashing in his head – he saw mom eating something and wanted a taste and ate it, along with some banana and peanut butter and sweet potatoes – as much of each as he needed until he felt full. Babies and toddlers can teach us so much about intuitive eating – I’m learning so much from him! Congrats on your beautiful baby and keep preaching this important message!
So true!! I’m excited to learn more as John starts eating solids!
Great post. I am a mama to a fourteen month old and feel like I am finally eating and loving myself the way I’ve always wanted to – now that he’s eating “real food” (besides just breast milk) I want to show him that all food is great; the other day someone was appalled that I gave him a bite of my cookie and said it’s “bad” to introduce “unhealthy” foods at such a young age but to me it’s beautiful that he’s too young and pure to have any diet brainwashing in his head – he saw mom eating something and wanted a taste and ate it, along with some banana and peanut butter and sweet potatoes – as much of each as he needed until he felt full. Babies and toddlers can teach us so much about intuitive eating – I’m learning so much from him! Congrats on your beautiful baby and keep preaching this important message!
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