Nina Kaufmann

If you happen to have worked with me, you know I love teaching about the importance of romanticizing life, in all areas.

Romanticizing your life simply means intentionally finding joy, beauty, and presence in the everyday, and in ordinary activities and routines.

It serves your health because it gently nudges you towards mindfulness – to make anything a joyful moment, you need to be fully present. You need to take time to consider what would make a certain activity joyful, how to make it beautiful in ways that make you happy.
Everything about this nourishes your health – after all, joy is the best food!

When you do your best to romanticize your life, you learn to treat ordinary moments as attention-worthy and delightful.
It’s choosing to make your morning cup of coffee, cocoa or tea an event – even if it means taking only two minutes to sip coffee while listening to bird song, lighting a candle during dinner even if you’re alone, and using your favorite plates, or putting on a playlist and dancing while you cook just for the fun of it.

Romanticizing life is about creating magic in the present moment, and in the ordinary activities.

When it comes to food, this might look like preparing a colorful lunch with care and seasonal, vibrant foods, sitting down without distractions on a nicely set up table, and enjoying each bite like you’re on a vacation—just because it makes you feel nourished and alive.

How Romanticizing Life Heals Your Relationship With Food

1. It Encourages Mindfulness

As mentioned, bringing joy into ordinary experiences requires being present. That’s what mindful eating is all about, and romanticizing your meals invites that presence gently and naturally. Setting the table, plating your food nicely using your favorite plates, or pausing for a deep breath before eating, perhaps expressing gratitude for a nourishing meal allows you to connect with your meal – its taste, smell, and texture. Taking time, truly enjoying your food and eating slowly will help you tune into hunger, fullness, and satisfaction without judgment.

2. It Cultivates Self-Respect and Pleasure

When you view yourself as worthy of joy and care (and, in case you’re curious, we definitely work on that in my Intuitive Eating Coaching!), you’re more likely to choose meals that nourish and satisfy you. And you’re more likely to know what meals those are, because when you’re present in the moment, you get to connect with yourself!

Romanticizing your relationship with food helps move you away from punishment mindset of diet culture and toward compassion and gentle self-care.
You stop eating in a rush or choosing food based on diet rules and start choosing what feels genuinely good, both physically and emotionally.

And if you’re new to intuitive eating, I know you might feel this would mean eating only donuts forever, but luckily that’s never the case! Practicing intuitive eating naturally leads us towards choosing a wide variety of foods—yes, including donuts, but also including nutritious foods. I promise! If this feels like science fiction to you, consider working with me so we can take steps that you need in order to heal.

3. It Shifts Focus from Control to Joy

So much of diet culture is rooted in control – portion control, willpower, discipline. Count this, count that. No pain, no gain.
However, the more you control food, the more food controls you! Let that sink in, please:

The more you control food, the more food controls you!

Romanticizing food invites curiosity and pleasure instead. Developing a healthy, happy relationship with food allows us to enjoy food-body congruence.
That way, instead of listening to some app that has no idea about our lives tell us what and when to eat, you get to ask, What would feel good right now? or What sounds comforting and energizing today? or Sure, pizza sounds great, but it makes me a bit bloated and I have an important meeting coming up, so maybe rice bowl would be a better option.

This shift can make eating a creative, intuitive experience rather than a moral battleground, allowing you to lovingly take care of your health.

Practical Ways to Romanticize Your Eating Experience

You don’t need special or expensive ingredients or elaborate meals to start. Here are some simple, doable ideas to romanticize your relationship with food:

• Make your mealtime a ritual
  Light a candle, use your favorite bowl, eat outside or sit by a sunny window. A small ritual can turn a quick meal into a nurturing pause in your day.
• Use all your senses
  Take in the colors, textures, and aromas of your food. Let yourself experience the full pleasure of eating, not just the taste. Chew your food well, close your eyes for a moment and just be with your food.
• Cook with love (even for yourself)
  Try new, interesting recipes, garnish with fresh herbs, or plate your food like you would for someone you love – because you should be someone you love! Even if it’s just a snack or dessert; enjoying a donut from a beautiful plate with a cup of coffee in your favorite mug bring much more pleasure that quickly (or secretly) gobbling it.
• Eat without multitasking
  Put your phone aside, close your laptop, and just be with your food. This simple act helps you tune into your body’s cues and enjoy your meal fully. And, yes, I’m fully aware this is not a possibility for every meal. Sometimes we eat on a run and that’s okay. However, try doing what you can – if you can get up ten minutes earlier to truly savor your breakfast, try it.
• Celebrate food memories
  Make your grandmother’s soup or that dessert you had on a special trip. Reconnecting with food through memory can bring joy and meaning. It’s definitely one of the ways we can take care of our emotional health (for a much bigger list, check out Peace With Food, or Nurturing Female Hormones.)

Food is more than just calories and nutrients, and as intuitive eaters we get to fully embrace all of the important roles food plays in our lives!

Conclusion

Food really isn’t just fuel; it’s culture, connection, comfort, pleasure and creativity.

I feel like romanticizing your life is a gentle rebellion against the cold, rigid narratives of diet culture.

It’s your way to live more fully, eat more joyfully, and love yourself a little deeper.
And that’s really the whole magic of romanticizing your life: it invites you back into presence, back into pleasure, and ultimately, back into peace with your body.

So, try this: prepare your next meal as if it were a love letter to yourself.

You might just find that healing starts not in rules or restriction, but in wonder, presence, and beauty.

How Intuitive Eating Coaching Can Help

Developing a joyful, healthy relationship with food in a world of diet culture can be one of the greatest challenges we face. However, it’s necessary in order for us to truly nurture our health long term. That’s why I offer personalized coaching to support you through every step of this journey.

Together, we’ll:

• Unpack and heal the root causes of your food struggles.
• Gently release the harmful diet rules and beliefs.
• Rebuild your relationship with your body and food.
• Learn health and nutrition tools that actually work for you, not against you.

Clients often tell me they go from obsessing over food and feeling like they “can’t be trusted” to finally enjoying meals again; in peace, with balance, and without guilt. And that’s all I want for you, being able to live a full, happy, healthy life!

Book a free discovery call today, and let’s see how intuitive eating coaching can help you feel more at home in your body – no more diets, guilt, or stress.
I offer different packages so working with me can fit your lifestyle and your budget. Check them out here.

What It Looks Like to Work with Me

Each client’s journey is unique, but here’s a bit of a framework on how we’ll work together:

• Free Discovery Call – No-pressure chat to see if we’re a good fit. No strings attached!
• 1:1 Coaching Sessions – In-depth, 60-90 minute sessions focused on intuitive eating, mindset shifts, and practical strategies, individualized for your specific needs.
• Unlimited Messaging Support – Have questions, concerns or breakthroughs between sessions? I’ve got you covered.
• Workbooks and Practical Exercises – Tools to help you integrate intuitive eating into your daily life; whether we’re talking intuitive eating journals, gentle nutrition guides or coping with your emotions tools!
• Ongoing Guidance and Accountability – Support that flows with your needs, every step of the way. I’m here to listen—while I will offer insights and advice, I recognize that you’re the expert of your body and your experience. Therefore, everything we work through will be centered around your needs.

Or in the words of my client, “Nina helped me change my relationship with food in a way I never thought it could be possible. She gave me life long tools to empower myself and my health.“

Take the first step toward food freedom—my coaching packages start at only 97€. Click here to learn more!