As a dietitian I am constantly bombarded with these “buzz words;” it’s just the nature of the diet-obsessed world we live in. They are so much a part of our language that we’ve become desensitized to them so much so that these conversations have become commonplace and even expected. We want to arm you with the knowledge to see through this diet culture BS and better understand the science backing up what could potentially be harmful – not helpful – to your health.

Diet talk is EVERYWHERE. It’s on television, in magazines, at the grocery store, the dentist, the hair salon…we can’t avoid it. We’ve written about diet talk in previous posts: here, here and here, but with the holidays now in full swing we wanted to expand on this topic and provide a little refresher to help keep you armed and ready for how to manage.

Raise your hand if you’ve ever felt so consumed with calorie counting that you start to no longer see food for food, but as instead as a total number of calories. Instead of choosing foods because they are your favorites or because you know they are going to look and taste good and be satisfying, you choose them because the “number” is appealing or maybe the calories in that food item are so low that you feel that the food item is “better” suited for your diet.

Get started with Intuitive Eating and say goodbye to diets for good.

We are all born with the innate ability to be intuitive eaters. As babies, we cry when we are hungry. We purse our lips and shake our heads in disagreement when we’re no longer interested in food. We know when to start and when to stop eating. Over time, there are many factors that may interrupt this natural cycle of eating, such as parental influences, dieting beliefs, clean plate club philosophy, and cultural stigma placed on food. We begin to ignore those natural signals by avoiding or restricting foods or food groups; ultimately hindering our ability to listen to our bodies Intuitive eating focuses on nourishing your body and learning to reconnect with those natural signals to self regulate, allowing you to find a weight that your body is meant to thrive at (not just a number you are seeking).

There is a reason why the diet industry is a billion dollar industry. Diets don’t work! But they are good at training you to keep reinvesting in their empty promises. Want a better alternative that you can truly enjoy?