We live in a time in which almost everyone knows the importance of a healthy diet, yet most consider their own way of eating far from the ideal. Unfortunately, when many of us decide it is time to take care of our bodies, we throw ourselves into a super strict regime which places the goal of being ‘healthy’ (no chocolate or sweets… ever) at the centre of our lives, where it eventually begins to dominate it. This approach is rarely effective in the long term and usually results in us burning out (eating nothing but chocolate and sweets…). So, we end up back at the beginning. What now? We take inspiration from this: “The deeds most loved by Allah (are those) done regularly, even if they are small” [Muslim].
With the right intention, caring for our body can be an act of ‘ibadah and taking this approach allows us to put the goal of a healthier diet back in its place, with Allah 
firmly in the centre. Instead of overwhelming ourselves with impossible goals of flawless (aka joyless) eating, let’s instead focus on bringing some easy habits into our lives which, if maintained, can have a big and positive impact on our health.
firmly in the centre. Instead of overwhelming ourselves with impossible goals of flawless (aka joyless) eating, let’s instead focus on bringing some easy habits into our lives which, if maintained, can have a big and positive impact on our health.Hunger-directed eating
Allah has created our bodies in the most perfect way with an in-built system, which tells us when and what we need to eat and when to stop eating it. However, most of us are so used to ignoring these cues that we no longer recognize them. Instead, we outsource this function of our body to things, such as diets which dictate when and what we can eat. Often we are told we need to eat a small meal every 3 hours to avoid becoming hungry and overeating, but hunger is not to be feared – it is simply our bodies communicating their needs to us. The eat every 3 hours ‘rule’ likely originated in the fact that most ‘naturally skinny’ people, i.e. hunger-directed eaters, tend to eat more frequently as they only eat what they need to and stop when they are full. The Prophet 
himself said: “The son of Adam does not fill any vessel worse than his stomach. It is sufficient for the son of Adam to eat a few mouthfuls, to keep him going. If he must do that (fill his stomach), then let him fill one third with food, one third with drink and one third with air” [At-Tirmidhi].
has created our bodies in the most perfect way with an in-built system, which tells us when and what we need to eat and when to stop eating it. However, most of us are so used to ignoring these cues that we no longer recognize them. Instead, we outsource this function of our body to things, such as diets which dictate when and what we can eat. Often we are told we need to eat a small meal every 3 hours to avoid becoming hungry and overeating, but hunger is not to be feared – it is simply our bodies communicating their needs to us. The eat every 3 hours ‘rule’ likely originated in the fact that most ‘naturally skinny’ people, i.e. hunger-directed eaters, tend to eat more frequently as they only eat what they need to and stop when they are full. The Prophet himself said: “The son of Adam does not fill any vessel worse than his stomach. It is sufficient for the son of Adam to eat a few mouthfuls, to keep him going. If he must do that (fill his stomach), then let him fill one third with food, one third with drink and one third with air” [At-Tirmidhi].
