Why diets don’t work…..for me!

I have always had a hard time with the word diet. Perhaps it is because when I hit puberty, I must have tried every diet out there. From the Atkins diet, to Fit for Life , the zero carb diet, the high protein diet, the deprive yourself for ever diet(just made that one up, but that is what is felt like!)  I am even a lifetime member of Weight Watchers. Now, don’t get me wrong as you know I am all for eating well, but I have concerns when I hear the word diet. First thing that comes to my mind is deprivation and when I feel deprived , guess what?? Yep, I eat and I eat the deprived foods! Then it becomes a vicious cycle.

According to the dictionary, the word diet actually means ” the kinds of food that a person, animal or community habitually eats.” Over the years the other more “sinister” definition has appeared. “A special course of food to which one restricts oneself…” There it is, “restricts” which in my mind means deprive!! Just take a look at the actual word diet, it contains the word die??!!!

When we eat sensibly and exercise our bodies  “going on a diet” will not be necessary. Sure we have to cutback and change the foods we eat if we are to lose weight. We all know that we need to have fewer calories in and more calories to burn if weight loss is our goal. Shouldn’t we be teaching people and our children how to eat? What to eat? rather than teach them words like fat, thin, diet? Shouldn’t we be educating people on a healthy lifestyle rather than flaunting the next best diet to remove unwanted pounds in a week??

No wonder obesity is such a problem. According to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention,39.8% of adults in 2015/16 were obese! The mixed messages that are sent to the public are enough to make you eat!! Fast food chains advertising healthier foods, the media is abuzz with the next and best weight loss pill, models are constantly in unattainable clothing for the average person, so how on earth are we expected to educate and navigate around all of this information?

For starters, it is wonderful to see new role models in the modelling and TV industry. More and more plus size models are making their presence known, the most famous right now is Ashleigh Graham who is very focused on a healthy lifestyle and is constantly posting Instagram pictures of her workouts with her husband. Michelle Obama during the Obama administration was passionate about getting kids moving and launched a task force on childhood obesity. She created much public awareness to improve children’s diet and health. The Taskforce aimed to educate kids and their families on nutrition, explain the importance of exercise and teach kids how to make the best and most informed decision on what to eat.What I loved about this campaign was that they set up 5 steps to success:

1. Move everyday
2. Try new fruits and veggies
3. drink lots of water
4. do jumping jacks to break up tv time
5. help make dinner

We can take these 5 steps to success and apply it to our lives too and the we will never have to diet again. In fact the only “diet” we will be doing is a healthy diet lifestyle.

1.Exercise is key to an overall feeling of wellbeing. It gets the blood circulating, it prevents fatigue, it gives us energy, it clears our head, it can take away menstrual cramps and feelings of depression.

2.We should all being trying new fruit and veggies. Eat seasonally and learn to cook with what is available and locally grown. With the  huge amount of information online you will never not find an easy and healthy recipe to learn how to master.

3.Drink lots of water. We will discuss water another time but for now, what is important to know is to hydrate, hydrate, hydrate! Water is great for weight loss as often we are not hungry , we are just thirsty. Your skin will love you, your hair will love you and it is a great way to flush out toxins.

4. Jumping jacks are fun, but the point of this is to not sit in front of a computer or tv screen without moving.

5. Helping make dinner will give kids and adults alike a chance to spend time together, learn new recipes, try new foods and have an input of what they will eat.

We are all busy but if we learn how to eat sensibly and healthy and learn how to replace the high fat food with healthier alternatives, we will not have a need anymore to diet. Sure there are foods we must restrict namely the sugary white foods that are really a danger to our health but we can learn to replace them so we do not feel deprived.

Change is scary for sure, but once we learn to update, change and rehaul our diets(not the deprivation meaning) we will develop great healthy habits which will want us to learn more. Do not think that I mean we should never eat anything white and processed again, but if we eat healthy and make sensible choices 90% of the time, then it will be ok to have that piece of cake or ice cream .

You might be thinking who am I to take advice from? I am not a Dr or a nutritionist and do not profess to be one. I am a concerned person who has decided to educate myself and be my own health advocate. In fact I have become so passionate about what I do that I am taking a Diploma of Nutrition to better educate myself .

If you would like to educate yourself more and if you have guts and are brave enough(just kidding) join me on our 30 day clean eating challenge . Get access to daily support, weekly recipes and shopping lists. Learn  a lot with like minded people in the comfort of your home to  keep you on track.

No dieting allowed!

No more diets