So you want freedom around food, but you are scared you will gain weight?
I get it.
This is EXACTLY what held me back when I wanted to transition into Intuitive Eating. (If you want to hear more about my personal story, click below).
The same thing that is pulling you into fad diet after fad diet, is the same thing that is keeping you from stepping into intuitive eating - the fear of fat and weight gain. The fear that you may never “lose the weight.”
Again, I GETTTTT it! I was exactly where you are.
This sound familiar:
-constantly thinking about food, your body, and workouts
-body-checking yourself in every mirror and window
-limiting specific food such as carbs, fats, sugars or gluten
-trying to “eat clean,” but dreaming about the “no” foods
-when going “off-track,” you say “ef it, I’ve already ruined it. I’ll start again Monday”
-gassy, bloated, brain fog, period problems, and low energy
-low sex drive or confidence in the bedroom
-lack of confidence in certain clothes (light colours, shorts, bathing suits, etc)
Nailed it?
Ya, that’s because that was me 4 years ago.
I was vegan [partly] as a way to lose weight. I limited myself to very few foods, and my body paid a heavy toll for it.
My energy was so bad that I couldn’t hold a conversation without my mind drifting. I didn’t have my period. I was always gassy. And my sex drive was in the toilet.
But, I looked good, right?
Well, that’s subjective.
Some days I thought I looked good. Most days I picked apart my body more than ever.
One of the most important things I learned is that I can take steps to accept my body at any size. Body positivity seemed far fetched at the time, so I resonated more with body neutrality.
My body did so much for me every day. I could accept it for where it was at, and be grateful for what it did. I didn’t need to love every inch of it every second of every day.
Slowly, but surely, I started to implement more body-image work. To me, this was essential to start with before the nutrition part of things.
That’s why in The Glow Project there is such a heavy influence on mindset.
If you ignore the reason you are staying stuck in this cycle, then you will never escape. Nutrition programs that do not take your mental health into consideration just don’t cut it anymore. Your mind is part of your body, and many practitioners forget to address this.
So, you’re nervous to gain weight? May I ask you this?
Who told you that weight gain was bad?
So, you’re nervous if you do not pursue weight loss, you are “giving up?” May I ask you this?
Who told you that to be worthy, you have to be striving to lose weight?
So, you’re nervous other people will judge you for doing this?
Who taught you that you are on this Earth to please other people?
And let me ask you one more question…
If your [future] daughter or best friend was going through the symptoms you are going through right now, what would you tell her to do? Would you tell her to try JUST ONE MORE DIET before trying intuitive eating?
Is the pain of staying where you are strong enough to at least TRY to work through the mental side of things? You can start there. You can take baby steps. Just start.
For more information on how I can help you tackle this obsession with food, exercise and your body, check out The Glow Project.