Episode 18: Identity-Based Eating Explained

We explore how identity-based eating drives choices more than hunger and how shifting self-image can change portions, cravings, and satisfaction. We share simple tools—awareness, the 80 percent pause, and future-focused habits—to help align eating with current goals.

• defining identity-based eating and why it matters
• examples of roles that drive overeating
• how childhood scripts shape adult portions
• spotting patterns like the clean-plate reflex
• using awareness to create choice at meals
• practicing the 80 percent full pause
• choosing a future-focused identity
• simple anchors: protein-first, water, enough
• leaving food without guilt and moving on

If you need help, reach out

Transcript

Welcome And Concept Setup

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Well, hello, and welcome to another episode of the 1% better podcast with your host, Josh Williams, coming live from a basement office slash guest room. So there you have it. Living that podcast life. Today I wanted to talk to you all about identity-based eating. So you might be, what is that? Never heard that before. Okay, you wouldn't be alone if you thought that. To come up with a quick definition of this is identity-based eating is the idea that many of our food choices are not driven by hunger. They are driven by how we see ourselves and the roles we believe we should play. We are all actors and this is on this stage of life. And we carry those roles over in how we eat, how we make decisions, how we see ourselves within context of friends, family, by ourselves. And so understanding that. Some people could you could you could say this blurs the line with like habit-based eating. I really like this idea of identity-based eating. It really stuck with me while understanding some things for some clients. And so an example of this to bring this from the sky and bring it down to the earth, like, what is this? What's some concrete examples? So this would be an example of I'm a person that always, you know, finishes my plate. I'm a bigger guy, so therefore I should eat more. I am a mother who finishes her kids' leftovers so they're not wasting. And I am someone who doesn't waste food. Those are just some of the identity-based. You could also say, maybe not consciously, but when I am stressed, I play this role, or I give permission for me to do X, Y, and Z. Again, you could also blend this with habit-based eating. I do the like the lens of identity-based. I see myself as this person, this person does this. And so an example of it for me in my personal life where this comes up quite a bit is, you know, when it's summertime, or it doesn't even have to be summertime, I guess, but when you're eating ice cream and or ordering ice cream, typically my wife will order a small or a kitty or, you know, the names don't really mean anything. It depends on the scooper, anyways. I will typically get a larger size, not because I necessarily want more ice cream, though I do like ice cream and probably do want more. But the real rationale is I'm a bigger guy, so therefore I should or I can eat more. And this can come over also if I was serving food or from ordering stuff out to eat. I might order more because therefore I am I am bigger, so therefore, I don't want to say deserving, but I can handle more food, so therefore I should. And it's it's these identities that we give ourselves are these roles in different situations that can play a big role on where we end up. So identities are often they're often learned. So, you know, as kids we might have been told, you know, we you know we clean we're we clean our plates, we don't waste food. You know, for me, you know, you know, if you want to grow up big and strong, you need to eat, you know, big guys eat more. So these things that can stick with you that maybe you haven't actually thought about in a while, but you're like, I actually still eat like that and come into play a lot. And you know, none of those are bad ideas on their own, but the problem is they stay with us long after they stop serving us. So as a growing boy, especially when I was you know playing football, eating more probably made more sense. That doesn't make as much sense for me anymore. But yeah, so some of these things or these identities that made sense when we were younger, 10 years ago, five years ago, may not serve us now that we are in our 40s, 50s, 60s, and and so on. And so the first thing is always gonna be awareness creates the choice. So an example is gonna be noticing the pattern and then disrupting it or pausing it. So for me, noticing the pattern that I will eat everything on my plate regardless of if I'm actually full or not. I will just eat it. It's understanding that pattern and seeing it and then being able to stop as you're eating and bringing awareness of am I actually still hungry or am I eating just because I have always finished my plate? And you might find that, oh, I could have stopped and I'm literally just eating because maybe there's a feel of guilt that when I was younger, you know, was told not to waste food, and so on. You know, so the question might be actually, do I actually want this amount? Um, am I enjoying this anymore now? I was out to breakfast recently and I love, I love home fries. And I think it was the first time ever I I didn't finish my home fries because I was eating them and I was like, you know, I'm full or you know, 80% full, and eating more of them wouldn't make me any more happy, and especially with with where my goals are are at now. And so the next step in this after awareness is the next step is is choosing the new identity. So what should I eat? So versus what should I eat, what would the version of me who takes care of their health be doing? Or where are you trying to get to? The the future version. So for me, it might be uh something that's a little bit more lean or someone that has a little bit more energy. What are the habits that my future self is doing? And what identities do I need to adopt now to get there? And so for me, it might be my future identity. They are the kind of person that eats a protein-forward meal. So the first thing they eat in the morning has protein in it. I'm the type of person that prioritizes getting water at each meal. I'm the one that eats to 80% full, not just to eat to eat. And so recognizing those identity patterns popping up is huge and understanding uh how we eat. And so just wanted to bring awareness to that. Wanted to make sure well, just hope that was helpful for you all, kind of flipping that for you, uh bringing light to this idea of identity-based eating. And hopefully that was helpful. And you might hear some stuff in the background. Apparently, people are coming down in my basement, so that's sweet. My cave, my cavern of solitude down here. But yes, so identity-based eating, just think about it. Are you doing things based out of habit, based off of who I think I am versus who I want want to be? And so hitting pause from there. If you need help, reach out. Thank you all so much. Hope you have a fantastic day and see you all very soon. Or I guess you will hear from me very soon.