End Diets Forever
/How are you doing? Have you made any progress selecting a nutrition plan that aligns with your radiant future self? Did you notice I said "nutrition plan" instead of "diet"? Yes, I purposely did not use the D word. In my mind that word means a restrictive, regimented torture utilized to reach a certain weight. That's not how your future self wants to live, is it?
I'm a diet expert. I've been on one most of my adult life. I've dabbled with calorie counting, vegetarianism, veganism, raw veganism, all diets recommended by Jillian Michaels or Shaun T. My longest lasting diet involved:
- six meals a day
- a protein and a carb at every meal
- low fat foods
- sugar substitutes
- a "free day"
I was riding the low fat, high carb roller coaster. I would start the day with a protein shake filled with fake sugar and chemicals. I would start feeling hungry within an hour and eagerly count down the minutes to my next meal, perhaps egg whites and a low fat tortilla. I might have a chicken breast with broccoli and a dry baked potato (NO BUTTER! The insanity.) for lunch, followed by two more equally boring meals and then a sugar filled protein bar before bed.
Meal prep took an entire day and I was always hungry. Except for on my free day, when all hell would break loose. I would eat as much junk food as I could until I felt sick. The next day I would suffer through an epic food hangover. The crazy thing is that on Monday I would wake up thinking about sugar and eagerly looking forward to my next free day.
To be fair, I did manage to maintain my weight while eating an insane amount of junk food one day a week. But the other six days were so hard and restrictive. And I had a variety of health issues: adult acne, insomnia, constipation, gas, bloating, and a fasting glucose level that was approaching the pre-diabetes level.
There was so much fear, stress, emotion, time, obsessing, and restriction bottled up in that lifestyle. I know now that it was the obstacle that prevented me from living the life of my dreams.
I'm telling you this because my life feels exactly the opposite now. I eat delicious, satiating food whenever I am hungry. At 43, I easily maintain my weight, my skin is clear, I sleep like a rock, my bloating and digestive issues disappeared, and I have unlimited energy. Most importantly, preparing and eating food gives me so much joy!
If you can relate to my story at all, I want you to know that:
You can end diets forever, release and maintain your weight, and feel more amazing than you could ever imagine was possible!
To start, I truly believe that you need to be mentally ready. If you haven't already, I encourage you to read or listen to my "Reclaiming Your Health" series (here or here).
Then I suggest you design a nutrition plan that aligns with your future health self, but that meets the following conditions:
- minimal/no processed foods
- no hydrogenated or trans fats (vegetable and seed oils, margarine, shortening)
- minimal sugar/sweeteners
If you really want to kick the processed foods/sugar addiction, I recommend not eating them for at least four weeks. In my experience this is how long it takes to rid the body of the desire for junk food and sugar, to experience the beauty of a life fueled by vibrant foods, to make the shift to complete food freedom.
I'm not going to lie, the first week or two of such a transition generally sucks. But if you can make it to week three or four, you can transform your life forever! If you are interested in learning more about a four week cleanse of this nature, send me an email (katie@awakenyourglow.com), leave me a comment, or fill out the contact form. I'd love to hear from you!