You Have A Third Option
We have got to change the conversation about our bodies.
Yes. Diet culture sucks and fat shaming is abhorrent. Full stop.
When you’re growing up, feeling like you aren’t good enough unless you’re skinny is damaging and life-altering. I have been there, but reacting to all these decades of bullshit by swinging way over to the other extreme is equally as damaging. Our culture has created a divide in our society. This separation is leading people to believe that we only have two choices for our bodies:
1. Starve ourselves and suffer to be thin and accepted.
OR
2. Say fuck it, eat whatever we want, and try to love our body at any size.
Here's the problem, we lose in both of these scenarios. It's like being anti-hustle culture in the workplace and the only alternative discussed is learning to be happy being broke. While this is OK for some, it’s not for the vast majority. This dichotomy prevents us from seeing a way out. You aren’t just stuck in a grey area, there is a third option. You’ll find me screaming it from the rooftops for as long as I have breath.
We can condition our bodies to:
★ Not have constant hunger and craving
★ Burn our own body fat for fuel
★ Build and protect muscle and bone mass
★ Create a strong, healthy, thriving human body as we age.
I was trained as an RD in the 90s and they've had it all wrong. Why? Because many of the recommendations are outdated and revolve around preventing deficiencies and supporting the food industry/lobbyists, not health. Optimal health is not driving the messaging today. I got sick and was obese by age 40 by living the lifestyle that I was taught. I had to learn how to heal my body with real nutrition and change my relationship with food. At almost 51, I’m 20-40% leaner than I was in my 20s, 30s and early 40s, with less hunger, cravings, and exercise.
No one talks about the 3rd option because it doesn’t sell anything... No processed food, no surgeries no RX drugs required! Our lives are at stake here. Almost 90% of the country is metabolically unwell (high blood pressure, high triglycerides, high blood sugar, high waist circumference or a low HDL) it’s the root of most diseases.
⇢ Almost 75% of the US is overweight or obese.
⇢ Over 21% of kids over age 6 are obese.
⇢ The American Academy of Pediatrics is recommending weight loss surgery and RX drugs to children over age 12.
And I don't give a shit about what people look like. I care about their lives. You can carry 50 or 100% of extra body fat in your 20s and 30s and do pretty well. Maybe even into your 40s... but then the inflammation will begin to affect your daily living. It's not just that we're unwell, in pain, suffering and dying earlier than necessary - but the magic of our lives is at stake. We're not living our dreams, pursuing our passions and feeling strong and vital as we age and that is a tragedy. I was technically obese at age 40, even though I wore size 12 jeans, my body was over 40% fat and I felt horrible. I knew I would only feel worse with age and hormone changes. And I was just getting through life, I wasn't living it. I want you to know, you don't have to starve yourself or live in the gym to be in a body you love that looks, moves and feels amazing.
You have a third option.