A Blissful Life 10/22/24: My Journey With Diet Culture

From a fairly young age, I have been conscious of what I put into my body. Over the years, I have tried many different ways of dieting and not dieting. From the Special K diet and Weight Watchers in high school, to Vegetarianism and Intermittent Fasting in my 20s and early 30s, I was always looking for a way to eat that made me look and feel good.

Figuring out what works for me has most definitely been a journey. More often than not, my previous efforts left me out of balance. Hunger spikes, mood swings, brain fog, hormone imbalances, weight fluctuations... I would look around and see people who seemed to feel so good in their bodies and think, “This should not be this difficult. If they can do it, so can I.”

No matter what diet I was on at the moment, the common denominator was that it felt like deprivation. Growing up, society taught me that if I wanted to lose weight and look good I had to restrict calories and do a lot of cardio. Oh, and forget about lifting weights, because that makes you bulky. I believed this for years, only to discover later that it was restricting calories and running the treadmill into the ground that put my body into a chronically stressed state and kept me trapped in all of the uncomfortable symptoms I mentioned above.

Fast forward to today, after years of educating myself, along with plenty of trial and error, I have found a sustainable way of eating (and exercising) that optimizes my body and makes me feel better than I ever have before. I think I look better than ever, too.

So, what changed?

Instead of focusing on calories, I focus on blood sugar. At the beginning, I wore a glucose monitor for about a month to understand how foods, types of exercise, and daily activities affect my blood sugar. Using what I learned during that time as a guide, I have completely shifted what and how I feed myself. Since then, my hormones have leveled out, I’ve come off many of the supplements I was previously on, my energy and mood are much more stable, my mind is clear, and my body looks the way I want it to look. I also don’t feel deprived– I know that if I get hungry, I can eat!

Next, I ditched intermittent fasting and started eating 3 protein-rich meals per day, sometimes with a protein-rich snack mid-morning and/or mid-afternoon. My focus is high protein, low sugar. I do not skip mealtimes, in fact, I take them as an opportunity to break from whatever I am doing and reset, while refueling.

Exercise is also part of my shift. I no longer center my workouts around cardio. Instead, I lift weights 5 days/week, focusing on a different body part each day. Often I warm up with about 15 minutes of cardio, but if my body feels like it needs a rest, I skip it. Additionally, I practice yoga asana and do Pilates a few times each week.

Finally, I let myself indulge in a treat when I want it, which is usually once every couple of weeks. When I do this, I set myself up for success by having protein before the dessert (to minimize blood sugar spike), and not eating it too close to bedtime.

As you read this, please remember that we are all different, and what we need to thrive may also be different. If your diet and lifestyle are not helping you feel and look your best, I encourage you to try something new! Don’t know where to start? Reach out to me at 917-318-1168 to learn more about Transformational Health Coaching. The better you are, the better your life and loved ones will be!