28 Jul Why Dieting is Hard to Break

I have been incorporating reading into my evening routine with more fiction based books. Instead of my usual personal development reads. I am reading a novel currently, and of course they talk about extreme weight loss methods in a short period of time to fit into a smaller dress size. 

This character was juicing for the past 48 hours and had lost six pounds (on the scale), which she admittedly knew she would gain back the following day (+ two pounds)! Prior to the event, she was so light headed, she felt nauseous and like she was going to pass out. What a great feeling before an important event that you are in charge of making a great first impression.

She did this all to fit in a slinky size 6 dress to wear to her open house a teacher. She had her prior boyfriend’s son in her class the upcoming year and wanted her ex to feel wistful when seeing her and maybe even make his wife jealous.

She also admitted that his wife was lovely and very sweet. She had no intentions of trying to break off their marriage or get back together with him. She loved having their son in her class. It was all for a momentary Feeling.

These desperate measures taken for extreme weight loss are primarily based upon attaching your value to this number, dress size, or are so deeply tied to living and dying based on how others view you. 

Until you work through these limiting beliefs and how you identify yourself, you will continue to be dominated by these overwhelming thoughts that lead to desperate unhealthy actions. 

To come full circle on this story, this character in the book did engage with her ex boyfriend and his wife at the open house. The wife was grateful to have her as a teacher for her son and shared how much her son enjoyed her. There was a short conversation between the character and her ex just filling him in on happenings with her family since their time together.

And that is pretty much it. In the book, of course there was no mention of food choices or other actions the character took after her 48 hour “juice cleanse,” but I am pretty sure you can paint the picture. When you lose six pounds on the scale in two days it is all fluid / water shifts. You cannot lose actual fat in this short amount of time. Your blood sugar is also a roller coaster, and because you felt so restricted the prior days. The next opportunity to eat real food is ravenous, out of control, and fast. 

You are typically going to reach for the most calorie dense foods you can find. And the combination of the quantity of food you eat at once and the higher fat, salt, carb options are going to leave you feeling pretty awful. Digestion is completely thrown off, bloated, gas. And then the mental spiral starts of tremendous shame and guilt around what you just did.

These feelings lead to the desperate measures of going to the opposite extreme of restricting your intake and feeling like you need to punish yourself for what you did. This can be through strenuous exercise or limiting calories. Until your body is so desperate for nutrients, the out of control eating starts again. This cycle is all consuming.

To get out of the restrict – binge cycle, it is so important you are giving your body adequate nutrition throughout the day. This keeps blood sugar stable, which will naturally manage cravings. Hunger hormones will become gentle cues rather than loud knocking. You will be able to make better nutrition choices when you aren’t in a place of desperation for calories and nutrients. And you will be so much kinder to yourself, when you understand how your body works and what you can do to work with it, rather than against it.

If you are looking for support on how to find this beautiful middle ground for yourself, I would love to talk with you more.

Complete my coaching application here and I will personally reach out to you to set up a free call and what next steps would look like!

Xo 

Jennie