Diet Is a 4-Letter Word
Growing up, there was a magnet on our fridge that said, “Diet is a 4 letter word.” It was yellow and had an image of a fat man with his stomach flopping over into a wheelbarrow that he was pushing. I never understood it until I realized that “a 4 letter word” meant that it was a bad word. And it’s true. In society, we have demonized the word “diet.” But, the true definition of diet is “the kinds of food that a person, animal, or community habitually eats.” Over time, the word has taken on a new meaning – that of a means to lose weight. (Duh!)
A quick search of “most popular diets” on the interwebs will get you millions of results in under 2 seconds. These days, there are so many options to choose from, so much information, and so many different opinions on what is “best” in terms of health, fat loss, or weight management.
All of the “experts” think that their diet is the best. Scrolling through Instagram, you’ll find die-hard adherents to one diet aggressively defending their positions, their love of said diet, and critically slamming anything other than their chosen lifestyle. Looking at more middle of the road people, those without a dutiful allegiance to any type of lifestyle or something to gain from promoting a certain eating style, finds that many trainers and nutritionists say the same thing (at least in terms of fat loss or weight loss) – “Everything works – as long as you’re in a calorie deficit!” It’s repeated over and over again by those (including myself) who promote the idea that a calorie deficit coupled with consistency, patience, and adherence is really the “lifestyle” that works for fat loss.
What’s the point of all this? The point is this – just like our bodies are all different, what works for our bodies is going to be different. Genetics play a role, gender, age, activity level – it all plays a part. If you know me, you know that I’ve had my fair share of weight and body image issues throughout my life. I have had a love/hate relationship with food for the better part of 25 years. I’ve suffered with bingeing disorders, overeating, undereating, over-exercising, and body dysmorphia. I’m pretty transparent about my struggles, especially now that I’ve gotten to a place where I’m generally happy with the state of my body. Although I step on my scale every morning, I have eliminated my emotional ties to the number that appears. I see the scale and weighing myself as one tool in an arsenal to measure my health, my weight loss or maintenance, and my fitness.
And now, I’m on a new mission. One that, I hope, will allow me to assist others in unlocking the not-so-secret keys to finally taking off the weight for good, to picking up new, positive habits, laying old ones to rest, and to learning just what it means to believe in yourself and your abilities. To foster your self-esteem and self-efficacy so that you can be an even more extraordinary version of the YOU that already is!
I’d love for you to come on this journey with me. There will be a wealth of information here and on Instagram, and as things progress, there will be new, incredible opportunities to learn, grow, and create systems to crush your goals! I can’t wait to see what we all do together!
To your (and my) health,
~julie
