I love diet books. I have a ton of them kicking around my house but I don't really use them because, let's face it, as much as we might love a new diet book full of skinny pictures and fat promises we really hate dieting. I. Really. Hate. Dieting. Diet books are fun but dieting...not so much. Eating is fun. Cupcakes are fun. Dreaming about being thin while eating cupcakes is fun but putting the rubber to the road and making the effort to control your own diet is basically anti-fun. For me, dieting is right up there with paying bills and root canals. I. Really. Hate. Dieting. |
So the logical step is to avoid dieting. Dieting isn't natural anyway, right? Refusing yourself the foods you want make you crave them more and ultimately cause you to fall off the wagon.
Instead of dieting we decide to 'change our eating habits'.
"I am not dieting, really. I am just eating healthier."
Eating healthier. Well, that should work, right? So we stock up on 'healthy foods' that include things like 100 calorie snack packs, granola bars and supermarket salads. The weird thing is that we don't lose weight. We don't even feel better. We are just packing stuff into our gut to stave off the hunger in a sincere but misguided attempt to become healthy. The problem is that health doesn't come pre-packaged on the grocery shelf.
That's when we give up and give in. If we aren't feeling any better AND we aren't losing any weight why not at least eat things that we enjoy?
"I am not dieting, really. I am just eating healthier."
Eating healthier. Well, that should work, right? So we stock up on 'healthy foods' that include things like 100 calorie snack packs, granola bars and supermarket salads. The weird thing is that we don't lose weight. We don't even feel better. We are just packing stuff into our gut to stave off the hunger in a sincere but misguided attempt to become healthy. The problem is that health doesn't come pre-packaged on the grocery shelf.
That's when we give up and give in. If we aren't feeling any better AND we aren't losing any weight why not at least eat things that we enjoy?
The food industry's secret: junk food is a drug
Food is our drug of choice. It's what we use to celebrate, to congregate and to intoxicate. It feels good, it's legal and, for the most part, is socially acceptable. It's also readily available and affordable. (I am going to assume that you live in an area where the last statement is true since you are reading a blog about diets).
A study in the journal of Nature Neuroscience found that eating junk food doesn’t just satisfy cravings—it creates them. This study reveals that the gluttony for unhealthy fatty food is not driven by personal failing or lack of resolution, but by powerful chemical reactions in the brain. In other words, junk food is addictive. Credit: NewEurope |
And like a drug you end up feeling like an old dog turd after the initial 'high' has worn off. Remember those episodes as a teenager hunched over the porcelain throne after a night of drinking and promising to God, Jesus and your dead grandmother that you would never touch the demon liquor again? (yeah, me neither). However, binge eating can produce the same response from your body and your emotions. Sickness. Agitation. Shame. Seriously, what kind of person are you anyway?
Drugs are bad, mmkay?
All drugs can be bad to varying degrees. We can all agree that whatever illicit drugs have beat the shit out of Lindsay Lohan are dangerous and appalling. The substance that upholstered Christina Aguilera's athletic frame are not truly in the same league however both of these young ladies have poisoned their minds and bodies.
We are abusing ourselves.
When we eat garbage because we are in a hurry we are abusing ourselves.
When we shove swill down our throats to help assuage our anxiety or depression we are abusing ourselves.
When we starve ourselves to try to finally lose some weight and then binge after a day of Muck-Shakes we are abusing ourselves.
When we emotionally beat ourselves up over every diet failure we are abusing ourselves.
We are abusing ourselves.
When we eat garbage because we are in a hurry we are abusing ourselves.
When we shove swill down our throats to help assuage our anxiety or depression we are abusing ourselves.
When we starve ourselves to try to finally lose some weight and then binge after a day of Muck-Shakes we are abusing ourselves.
When we emotionally beat ourselves up over every diet failure we are abusing ourselves.
Take a minute to imagine a child you love...yours or maybe a relative or friend's child...and just picture yourself treating that sweet little thing the way you have been treating yourself? Feeding her crap and then yelling at her because she started getting chubby. Starving her for a day and then dumping a load of twinkies in her lap when she started to cry. WTF? You know you wouldn't be that much of a douche to that child so WHY are you doing it to yourself? |
So, should I just give up?
Nothing will work so why should we bother? Should we just give up?
Not exactly.
We can still take charge of our lives. We can live in a way that will enhance instead of destroy our brains and our bodies. We have control of what we do every day and it's easier than you might think.
We can do this together, you and I and everyone else in blog-land and I will show you how I have given up the diet and changed my life.
Not exactly.
We can still take charge of our lives. We can live in a way that will enhance instead of destroy our brains and our bodies. We have control of what we do every day and it's easier than you might think.
We can do this together, you and I and everyone else in blog-land and I will show you how I have given up the diet and changed my life.