"I'm On A Diet"

Every time we hear the word diet do we automatically think weight loss?

More often than not when someone refers to being on a diet the first thing that jumps to mind is that they are looking to drop a few pounds or lose a certain amount of weight over a period of time. Growing up I thought that every diet revolved around weight loss and that everybody had to be on a diet to look a certain way in order to be socially accepted in society. I grew up at a time where skinny was fashionable and most magazine covers would glamorize an underweight model promoting the new fad weight loss diet. Fast forward a couple of years and thankfully a lot has changed with strong being the new sexy and body positivity being at the core of the wellness movement but are we still living within the diet culture?

Personally, I never like to refer to the word diet when working with clients. I think the word creates an association with restriction/ good v bad foods/ time frame and negativity. The best so called "diet" to be on is one that you don't realize you are on, it is sustainable, enjoyable and fills you with energy and nourishment. Yes, of course there are foods that are more nutrient dense than others such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains but there is no such thing as a good food or a bad food if you are eating in moderation. When you think about it, why do we need to label the foods we eat into a particular category in the first place? From keto, paleo, intermittent fasting, 80:20, low carb, low fat, it's a diet minefield out there! Wouldn't it be much easier to just to just eat the food we want without the need to label? Now don't get me wrong I totally understand having to follow a gluten/dairy free plan due to intolerances, myself I have to follow a Low Fodmap Food Plan as I suffer badly with IBS, (I'm going to follow up this blog with a post about my journey with IBS and following the Fodmap diet)

I understand that everyone has their own specific goal so to break it down simply

Weight Loss= Calorie Deficit (eat less calories than you burn)

Weight Gain= Calorie Surplus (eat more calories than you burn)

Weight Maintenance= Calorie Maintenance (eat the required amount of calories to keep the body the same weight)

There you have it, you don't need to label yourself as a diet you are on or currently following, all you need to do is eat for your end goal and enjoy your food everyday, no diet, no bulls**t!