All Food Fits
Can you imagine eating the same food for the rest of your life? I would be bored, and I do not have that much willpower. Learning not to restrict food has been challenging over the years. I have done every diet and have started new on more Mondays than I can count. Living the FASTer Way and working on my mindset (discovering how I think & it has not been pretty) has helped me grow slowly into who I want to be.
Mother-n-law
I want to live active, not on blood pressure or diabetes medicine, I want to be dancing, putting up my Christmas decorations and floating the canal in my 80s, just like my mother-n-law.
Do you find yourself labeling your food as good or bad, healthy or unhealthy? Telling yourself, "I can't have that, it's not on my plan, or it's bad for me." I was there once, and I sometimes slip back to this thinking, especially when I am around others who comment, let's be bad and eat the cookies.
We should enjoy food; it is fuel and nourishing to our bodies. You are not a bad person when you eat the cookies or have the wine. If you have extra weight you need to lose, this does not make you a bad person, so why do we give moral value to our food? Food is food.
Treating food as energy and enjoyment, begin listening to your body for signs of hunger, have a craving, or celebrate with friends and family and decide to eat. This sounds simple, but it is hard changing the mindset.
It takes practice. It takes failing and figuring out why you failed. Was it emotions, stress, tiredness, reward, or rebellion? Becoming the person who eats when she is hungry and what she wants to eat is a food freedom I strive for. Listening to the podcast "Losing 100 pounds with Corinne" has given me tools to work through an all-or-nothing mindset and slowly change my perfectionist thinking. Living the FASTer Way for the last five years has shown me how not to restrict food and to use food as fuel—observing how food makes my body feel has also been a game changer. If I want painful joints and bloating, I eat sugar, bread, and alcohol. If I want to feel less bloated and with energy, I limit my intake of these foods. It's about moderation and understanding all food fits into your life without shame or guilt. Food does not get to wear a halo for health or devil horns for unhealthy.
Are you ready to start changing your mindset on how you see food?
The FASTer Way online health and nutrition program starts on August 14th. If you are a returning friend or family, use the code RESTART and get 40$ off and finish summer strong. Tell Coach Lesley, Cheryl sent you.