The Rules of "Normal" Eating: A Commonsense Approach for Dieters, Overeaters, Undereaters, Emotional Eaters, and Everyone in Between! [Paperback]

Karen R. Koenig (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 14, 2005

Written in easy-to-understand, everyday language, The Rules of "Normal" Eating lays out the four basic rules that "normal" eaters follow instinctively — eating when they're hungry, choosing foods that satisfy them, eating with awareness and enjoyment, and stopping when they're full or satisfied. Along with specific skills and techniques that help promote change, the book presents a proven cognitive-behavioral model of transformation that targets beliefs, feelings, and behaviors about food and eating and points the way toward genuine physical and emotional fulfillment. Readers learn how to reprogram their dysfunctional beliefs, manage uncomfortable feelings without turning to food, and establish new eating habits that tune their bodies into natural sensations of hunger, pleasure, satisfaction, and satiation. Filled with humorous insights, compassion, and practical wisdom, the book outlines balanced attitudes and patterns that benefit all types of eaters.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Karen R. Koenig
Contributor residences (Roxbury, MA):
Psychotherapist and educator, former chronic dieter and world-class binger, Karen Koenig, LicSW, M.Ed. transformed herself from overweight and unhappy to fulfilled and weight-comfortable by learning to become a "normal" eater. She is a clinical social worker in private practice with more than 20 years' experience helping hundreds of compulsive, emotional, and restrictive eaters learn to eat normally.
A skilled and dynamic teacher, Ms. Koenig runs graduate social work and psychology continuing education programs in eating and weight management, where she teaches her "normal eating" model. She is a founding member of the Greater Boston Committee of the Massachusetts Eating Disorders Association, and is an active member of the National Association of Social Workers, Massachusetts Chapter Private Practice Committee.
As a frequent contributor to Focus, NASW's state publication, Ms. Koenig has written columns on eating, weight, and body image problems. Her personal essays have been published in The Boston Globe, The Boston Herald, and other local and national publications. She was a semifinalist in the 1999 Massachusetts Film Office Screenwriting Contest and received a Certificate of Achievement in the 1996 Writer's Digest Literary Short Story Contest. Over the past three decades, she has been interviewed on radio, television, and in print and served as spokeswoman for groups such as 9 to 5, Organization of Women Office Workers, the FACE Program, and the Self-Esteem Boston Educational Institute.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Gurze Books; 1 edition (January 14, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0936077212
• ISBN-13: 978-0936077215
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.6 x 7.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #23,748 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #36 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Mental Health > Eating Disorders

More About the Author

I am a psychotherapist, national educator, international author, and an expert on the psychology of eating--the how and why, not the what, of it. For more than three decades, my mission has been to help people with eating and weight problems learn to eat "normally" and maintain a healthy, stable weight for life without dieting and deprivation. My therapy practice is in Sarasota, FL, where I do tele-coaching and Skype consultation worldwide. As a recovered chronic dieter and binge-eater, I meld my personal recovery wisdom with my professional knowledge and experience to resolve eating problems.

My books are--NICE GIRLS FINISH FAT, THE RULES OF "NORMAL" EATING, THE FOOD AND FEELINGS WORKBOOK, and WHAT EVERY THERAPIST NEEDS TO KNOW ABOUT TREATING EATING AND WEIGHT ISSUES.

Visit my website--www.eatingnormal.com.

Check out my message board--http://groups.yahoo.com/group/foodandfeelings.

Read my blogs--www.eatingdisordersblogs.com/healthy/.

Try out my free Facebook app, APPetite--http://apps.facebook.com/app-etite.

Join my Facebook Nice Girls Fan Club--http://www.facebook.com/pages/Nice-Girls-Finish-Fat/114097795301428, and follow me on YouTube-- http://www.youtube.com/user/KarenRKoenig and Twitter--http://twitter.com/KarenRKoenig

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 42 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Sensible, Comprehensive and Grounded December 4, 2006

By DC

Format:Paperback

I bought this book because I was tired of wasting my time thinking, worrying and feeling bad about what I was eating and what I weighed. I tend to overeat, feel bad about what I weigh and how I look, get excited about dieting, lose the weight and then start the cycle all over again!

The author has an excellent style of writing: she is thoughtful and intelligent, without making any wild statements or proclamations. One could say she is practicing the rational thinking that she preaches.

If you are looking for a book to help you lose weight, you may need to look elsewhere. But, this book provides you with much, much more than that: how to have a healthy relationship with food and eating. As an added plus, you will learn how to examine your beliefs (about anything) and choose ones that will leave you happier and healthier. What more could you ask for from a book?

58 of 61 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I recommend this to my message board members November 6, 2005

By Linda Moran

Format:Paperback

This book is back-to-basics and practical. It asks of its readers no more than to examine their own faulty beliefs and replace them with more rational thinking--the kind of enlightening work necessary for true recovery. Known as cognitive therapy, this kind of work is far more effective for weight loss than willpower or diets of any kind.

I own a Yahoo! group to help folks ditch their diets and become normal eaters. Of all the "non-dieting" books, Karen R. Koenig's is the one I most often recommend.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Invaluable resource for intuitive eating May 27, 2007

By Mishagreen

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I highly recommend this book to anyone who struggles with "normal" eating.
My relationship with food has changed forever, though I'm still working through the process. This is not a quick fix, and it's NOT another diet. If you're ready to stop dieting, and learn to deal rationally with your food issues, then buy this book. It's worth every penny.
*****
Wanted to update my review. Since purchasing the book in 2007, my eating gradually "normalized" as I put the concept of intuitive eating into practice. I steadily dropped 97 pounds over the course of 2 years. I've maintained a rational relationship with food, as well as a healthy weight ever since.