I spoke with two women this week, let’s call them Joan and Veronica, that started dieting and struggling with their weight when they were 8 years old. (*$% Ugh! )
Over the past few decades, they’ve both created their own perspective around their relationship with food. Some common beliefs or perspectives of long-time dieters can sound like this:
I’ll always struggle with sugar and carbs.
My weight has always been a battle for me.
I need to be diligent and really organized with meal plans to stay on track.
I can’t have one bite of dessert without spiraling out of control.
I’m not consistent at working out. Getting to the gym takes a lot of effort.
Joan and Veronica suspected that something was keeping them stuck, but they couldn’t put their finger on it.
Your own perspective, the beliefs, and thoughts you’ve collected, are often quiet and subtle. You’ve carried them around for so long that you may not even notice them. They may nag at you like a pebble would at the bottom of your sneaker.
And this is one of the biggest challenges when changing your relationship with food.
Your perspective doesn’t force you into a big ugly cry that brings you to your knees. Instead, you learn to live with these beliefs and likely don’t realize the impact it has on making changes in the future.
Our perspective and the beliefs we hold can either work for us or work against us. When we believe things will “always” be a certain way, we’re trapped. It’s hard to create a new way out.
I’ll tell you what I shared with Joan and Veronica.
You can change your relationship with food. You can leave dieting behind and practice trusting your body. These beliefs can be undone (often it’s easier than you could ever imagine!).
The first critical step is to recognize the perspective you’ve created. Then, challenge it. Is it true that you’ll always struggle with food? Is it true that after one bite of a dessert you’ll spiral out of control?
When you no longer have a limiting perspective, you can create a relationship with food that feels right to you. You can then move into ease. What’s possible for you with your relationship with food?
I just love that perspective! Don’t you?