Let's talk about food guilt

Hi

Welcome to your weekly wellness tip.

This week I'm talking food. The language that's ingrained in us about whether food is 'good' or 'bad'? It shows up every where, a 'Diet Coke', a 'cheat meal', 'naughty foods' and before you know it eating becomes less about fuelling your body and more about judgement and self evaluation.

My clients often talk about their lack of will power or discipline when it comes to food, which is unfair. Because there's a pressure to make 'perfect' choices all the time. So when you don't, suddenly you feel guilty, berate yourself for not having the will power and most likely think sod it and reach for a food that comforts you in the moment.

Perfection around food and drink choices doesn't exist and it's not how steady weight loss occurs either. Labelling food 'good' or 'bad' leaves little room for normal life with one takeaway, a few 'naughty' snacks and a few glasses of wine ruining a perceived healthy week.

What matters is what you do most of the time, not all of the time and not where every single choice has to be perfect. Try to be curious about your choices without judgement and try asking yourself questions to help you learn about your habits, hunger and food choices. This can bring more awareness to how you are fuelling yourself:

Was this meal satisfying?
Did it keep me full for a while?
Did it include protein, healthy fats and carbohydrates?
Did I actually enjoy it?
How can my next meal be more balanced?

In addition reframing can work well too when old thought patterns crop up when you've not eaten well. Notice the thoughts then try to reframe them:

"I was bad yesterday' change to 'I had more calories than I meant to yesterday and I'm back to normal routine today'
'I need to be stricter with myself' change to 'I need a long term sustainable approach'
'I've fallen off the wagon today' change to 'I'm going to add one food to my next meal that will make it more nutritious'

To eat healthily or lose weight doesn't require perfection, restriction or constantly trying to be 'good'. It comes down to consistency, flexibility and building habits that genuinely fit into your lifestyle.

Antonia x