- How has it been affecting you and your life?
- How do you feel about these effects?
- How urgent is it that you reach your fat loss goal?
- What would happen if your fat loss goal was put on hold for now?
If you keep trying to look for the next diet, the next fitness program or the next supplement, as promising as they may sound, none of them are going to be your solution until your food relationship is addressed.
I know some things may have served you in the past and worked for a while, but deep down you know you can’t cut corners anymore because it always leads you back to where you started. And perhaps worse off.
Aiming to lose weight or change your body composition while you are struggling with having a healthy relationship with food is like adding fuel to a fire when you’re actually trying to put it out. In order to put the fire out, you’d need to work on rebuilding your food relationship first before considering to diet.
🔥Dieting = Fuel to the fire
💦Healthy Food Relationship = Water to put out the fire
SO WHAT DOES A HEALTHY RELATIONSHIP WITH FOOD LOOK LIKE?
Well, I would say it can be quite subjective and tough to define exactly, but it comes down to our attitudes about food and eating, and the components of what makes up ‘normal eating’, such as:
✅ being flexible in your eating
✅ not having arbitrary food rules
✅ not restricting or depriving yourself
✅ trusting your body & honouring your hunger & fullness cues eating when you’re hungry & stopping when you’re full, most of the time
✅ sometimes eating because you’re sad, happy, bored, or because the dessert looks good & you’re not hungry, but you want some
✅ not beating yourself up whenever you indulge
✅ understanding that you are not what you eat & your diet doesn’t define you (or your weight)
✅ recognizing that food isn’t something to be feared or controlled
✅ taking advantage of meaningful food-related experiences & social interactions such as grabbing a muffin at a coffee shop with a friend without stressing about how many calories or carbs it has
Normal eating means tuning into trusting your body’s wisdom by honouring and respecting the fluctuations of your appetite and food choices. This constant flux means we are flexible in our approach to eating, allowing ourselves to enjoy what we eat and appreciate our healthy body.
RED FLAGS TO KNOW WHEN YOUR DIET IS NOT SUPPORTING YOU:
🚩 I still use food to soothe negative emotions
🚩 I get upset with myself whenever I indulge
🚩 I always eat more than I intend to
🚩 I have rigid food rules with little flexibility
🚩 I avoid certain foods high in X, Y, Z
🚩 I feel stressed/anxious around food, especially when eating out
🚩 I avoid eating in social situations because I don’t know what food will be served
🚩 I eat when I’m bored, lonely, sad or stressed
🚩 I only eat at specific times or not eat after a specific time
🚩 I have forbidden foods I don’t allow myself to eat
🚩 I lose control around food/binge often
🚩 I think of food and my body all day/every day
🚩 I can’t stop counting calories/tracking macros
🚩 I always choose the ‘healthiest’ option on the menu rather than what I really want
🚩 I cut out whole food groups without a medical (allergy) or ethical reason
🚩 I use judgemental language around food (ex: good/bad, clean/dirty, ‘junk food’, etc)
🚩 I regularly skip meals in order to ‘make up’ for eating
🚩 I punish myself for eating with exercise, or use exercise to ‘earn’ food
Developing a healthy relationship with food doesn’t happen overnight. It can take several months to years to heal your relationship with food. Just like there’s no quick fix for weight loss, there’s no quick fix to heal your relationship with food. A psychologist or trained nutritionist can help you along your journey.
If you’re ready to improve your health, your relationship with your body, make peace with food and get the most out of life (yes even during a lockdown!), I invite you to book a free 30 minute discovery call to chat about how we can work together to get you to that place! ❤️
Leave A Comment