Fuck Diets
So did that headline get your attention? I hope so because it’s supposed to.
I wish I could hear you all scream it at the top of your lungs right now – “FUCK DIETS!!!”
Because it’s the gosh-darn truth. Diets suck. Lit-er-al-ly diets suck the life out of you. And I am not kidding here, now let me explain:
Diets were birthed out of fear – they were created not to ‘get people healthy’ but to ingrain a fear in people of being fat, to make people believe that there is something wrong with the body that they already have because losing weight is going to make everything better and you’ll be happier and healthier and live happily ever after with a six pack. That’s shaming, that’s fear-mongering and that’s bullshit.
Newsflash!!! You don’t have to change a damn thing about you to be anything.
Diets are unrealistic. How crappy is it that you have to ‘give up’ all these wonderful foods and fight against ‘willpower’ in which you blame yourself (not the diet mind you!) when you ‘give in’ to those oh-so-delicious foods due to your ‘lack of willpower??’
Diets hook you with the quick fix. Because nobody knows how to be patient anymore. You sit at a red light for one second too long and the person behind you honks. The internet speed slows down for 30 seconds and you go bonkers. Everything these days is high-speed. Slowing down is not a luxury in this go-go-go and do-do-do American culture. Dieting can just be yet another way to distract and avoid the deeper pain we feel or lack of control in our lives.
And believe me, there is nothing about you that needs to be fixed because you, my dear, are not broken.
Side question: when did appetite become such a terrible thing?? Bullshit. Did you know that our appetite is part of our innate survival system? It’s called hunger and fullness and it’s been that way since the Dawn Of Time. And it’a about time we started listening to it, rather than trying to alter it.
Now I know there are diets out there that have good intentions or that claim that they’re ‘not a diet, it’s a lifestyle.’ Really though?! I encourage you to really challenge this statement. And of course! If you’ve found something that works for you, power on sister! I support you! But I would venture to say that that is not the majority of the people who struggle with weight or their relationship with food.
I think many people out there are confused, overwhelmed and frustration with their weight, dieting and their unhealthy relationship with food and body.
So here’s what works…
Now trust me, I’ve done hundreds of hours of research, I’ve paid my way through school to understand at a Soul level what works when it comes to sustainable weight loss, health and happiness. And ya wanna know what? It’s much simpler than you think.
FOOD FREEDOM
You’ve got to loosen your grip on your goals, girl. It’s a necessity. Now I know this may sound counterproductive, but you’ve got to trust me. You’ve got to stop trying to control, count, monitor, guilt, shame, stress about what it is you’re eating, when you’re eating, all of it. It’s doing you no good, and as a matter of fact, it’s hurting you. It’s damaging at such a deeper level than the physical.
Each time you restrict or go on another diet, you are silently telling yourself that you are not good enough the way you are. That you don’t deserve to eat foods that bring you pleasure, that something about you needs to be fixed. So ask yourself the next time you want to go on a diet, “Is this coming from a hateful place or a loving place?”
BODY ACCEPTANCE
Did you know that this is the very body that you have indeed been given? This very one that you sit with at this very moment. And did you know that the shape of your body right now may be the very shape that it stays until the day you die? And also, maybe it isn’t. The point is, we don’t know! So why not soften into the very vessel that houses what really matters – your goddamn beautiful Soul.
SELF LOVE
There are about 5,268,724 things on this planet more important than your diet and how you look. Truly. And one of those, and I would even venture to say it’s in the top 3, is the relationship you have with yourself. You’ve got to be on your own team if you want to succeed. You’ve got to cheer yourself on, pat yourself on the back, relax, take the pressure off, stop comparing and judging and pushing yourself to be somewhere you aren’t. Stop. It.
We’ve got to choose love. Deep, unconditional, all-bets-in love.
Well there you have it. If you want health and happiness, this is where I believe you start. Stop hiding behind the distraction of a diet and start getting to the root. This food challenge is a doorway to deeper healing, so go there. That is my deepest hope for you this year, and guess what? You deserve it.