How come every time you start a new “diet”, all you can seem to do is obsess about the foods you can’t have. You know…the really BAD ones like fries, cookies, chips or cake. You avoid these foods at all costs, opting for “healthy” choices like salad, celery sticks and rice cakes (sounds exciting, huh?). But what happens next? You get tired of this humdrum way of eating. Your taste buds get bored with the mounds of pale lettuce and meals that would starve a mouse, leading you to the inevitable binge (which is quickly followed by the unavoidable guilt trip).
The backlash of diet deprivation comes from the black and white or “good” vs. “bad” thinking surrounding food - we feel shame when eating “bad” or “unhealthy” foods. Why is the diet mentality so important? Well, our way of thinking about an issue tends to direct how we work to resolve challenges. In the case of the diet mentality, it means that we set ourselves up for struggles with restrictive, negative thinking that almost guarantees defeat.
Labeling certain foods as “off limits” sends the wrong message and will eventually lead us to crave these foods even more. Every food has individual benefits and prospective drawbacks. For example, it’s been said that the antioxidants in certain forms of chocolate can help prevent cancer and heart disease, but this doesn’t mean you should eat a king size bag of dark chocolate M&M’s everyday!
Stop viewing your “diet” as something you turn on and off like a light switch, but rather as a way of life. Make small changes over time, that way it won’t seem so overwhelming. Indulge your cravings from time to time; it may just help to prevent the dreaded BINGE. And remember, it’s all about balance!
Have a great weekend!
- Lauren
Labels: Diet, Lauren, Weight Loss
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