How 'eating healthy' is often a diet in disguise
How 'eating healthy' is often a diet in disguise
Monday, September 09, 2019
A common theme for many of my weight loss clients, despite saying they’ve given up dieting, is that they still think like a dieter. In other words, their emotional response to food is the same as if they were still dieting:
- They’re still hypervigilant and often very judgmental about everything they eat.
- They still control or restrict their intake of certain foods.
- They feel ashamed and guilty when they overeat or eat certain foods.
- And they call food ‘good’ and ‘bad’ and see themselves as ‘good’ or ‘bad’ depending on what they’ve eaten, rather than seeing food for what it is. Just food!
Any of this sound familiar to you?
It’s no wonder really, since we live in a diet-obsessed world.
Each week we’re subjected to thousands of dieting messages from TV, the internet, social media along with talk about different types of diets and people’s experience from friends and people we work with.
And as the seasons change and weather starts to warm up, diets and weight loss seems to be all you hear about despite overwhelming evidence proving that DIETS DON'T WORK.
Well, not long term anyway!
Research shows about 99% of people who lose weight on a weight loss diet gain it back again within a year. That’s a pretty clear indication that diets don’t work.
The bigger problem though, is that dieting thoughts usually translate into behaviours that are damaging to your relationship with food and yourself.
That's because dieting doesn't just tell you what food to eat. It fundamentally changes how you think and feel about food and what you eat.
Dieting causes you to feel like food has power over you.
Like you’re ‘addicted’ or have a ‘problem’ with certain foods.
Dieting directly encourages emotional or out-of-control eating.
If you want to lose weight permanently you need to stop allowing diet mentality to permeate your thinking.
You need to see how this way of thinking causes you to feel out of control around food.
You need to understand that one food, one meal, or one day is not going to cause you to gain two kilos overnight or ruin your health.
Not dieting is not a license to overeat.
It’s about replacing the external noise from the dieting industry with your own voice.
By connecting with your intuitive wisdom – your perfect gauge. That part of you that knows which foods are best for YOU.
It’s always been there but modern life and diets train us to ignore it; to get out of touch with our own bodies.
When you’re no longer restricting or taking advice from others, you can eat whatever you want, when you want it. You are no longer obsessing over whether or not you can eat this or that. There’s no guilt or fear when you eat your favourite foods.
You'll eat with awareness.
You'll fully taste and experience the sensations of the food and you can pay attention to how this food makes your body feel.
When you are able to stay present when you choose what you’re going to eat, you’ll become confident in your choices. You can work out how to truly nourish your body and make it healthy, strong and you’ll find your natural weight.
If you continue to think in a restrictive manner, or hoping that a new or better diet is lurking just around the corner, you’ll never free yourself from the dieting rollercoaster.
You’ll continue to go on and off diets for the rest of your life, desperately clinging to them, hoping they’ll get you to your ideal weight. But they never will.
Most importantly, that’s not a happy way to live :(
Hey! I'm Caroline
Dietitian & Eating Psychology Coach
Don't waste your time, destroy your energy levels or mess with your health by going on diets, restricting carbs or counting calories.
Life it to be enjoyed.
I believe you can live life AND manage your weight.
I share my thoughts on how you can do that on this blog...
Become a ninja meal planner!
Make being healthy, easy.
You've just read about the importance of eating well and the easiest way to eat well is to plan for it.
If you don't currently plan your meals or if you're bored with your current intake, this course is sure to inspire you. Click below to find out more...
PAGES
SOCIAL
The information on this website does not replace a one-on-one relationship with a qualified healthcare professional and is not intended as medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.