As mothers we often throw the word “Diet” around like it’s some type of martyr behavior, in that we are voluntarily suffering for the sake of something else other than ourselves, when it’s ourselves that are the very reason why we endure this restrictive activity.
Most women do it fundamentally to lose weight. It can be assumed that if someone eats more wholesome foods, and in lesser amounts, that weight loss will follow.
So we take this principle of dieting and weave it into the fabric of how we handle our fluctuating body compositions, oftentimes, announcing it to those around us as justification that we are capable of enduring that which we expect to be uncomfortable yet “healthy”.
We proudly wear our white robes and red vestments as we turn down certain foods that may bring us enjoyment, go along with the latest diet trends, look for opportunities to save others with some of our new-found nutritional knowledge and look for ways to be a leader in our plight for weight loss.
We end the journey with a result we hang our crown on, only to begin it once again at a future date, when we are called to embark on it again.
As mothers, we have been so brainwashed from living in our modern-day “diet culture” society that we accept all of the myths and misconceptions that come along with it. This includes the practice of demonizing certain foods over others, labeling them “good” and “bad” as if they have the power to possess us to gain weight immediately upon consumption, and worshiping thinness as the idolized vision of what represents wellness.
Along with these practices, we learn to place everything in a box, sadly, along with our own mental health. We overlook the dysfunctions associated with our behaviors, as we are convinced that through them, we are achieving some form of higher morality and virtue through the pursuit of this so-called “wellness” we hope to obtain through our dieting. https://www.instagram.com/reel/DACGHcvSlfu/?igsh=MzRlODBiNWFIZA==
Dieting can be successful in our weight loss attempts initially, but over time, it’s repetitive activity can often lead to failure due to our lack of knowledge regarding the science behind it.
Weight loss can be effectively achieved with a calorie deficit and eating foods that are not calorie dense, therefore increasing our satiety. However, what happens that we don’t account for, is that along with a lowered body weight, our calorie requirements are also lowered.
Additionally, if we restrict our calories too aggressively over time, along with this lowered calorie requirement, our body learns to adapt through a process called “metabolic adaptation”. Through this process, our bodies are innately programmed to survive on lower calories during a restriction, therefore, lessening our overall calorie requirements even more.
So, along with a lowered body weight combined with metabolic adaptation, our overall calorie requirements can be driven down low enough to be unsustainable in the long-term.
We can learn through education, that if we practice dieting too aggressively and for too long, we will do ourselves a much bigger disservice than having an occasional slice of cake.
So, how do we prevent this downside of dieting from happening? The answer lies in understanding the science behind it, and allowing this knowledge to work in our favor.
For example, we need to enter a dieting phase with our fitness, with the intent that it’s temporary, doing it long enough to reach our goals and quickly getting out. By doing this, we can avoid metabolic adaptation and keep our calorie ceiling as high as possible.
We should also take “breaks” intermittently within our diet phases, to trick our bodies into thinking that calories are still available. We can also be mindful of re-evaluating our body weight as it lowers, to ensure that we know how many calories as well as what makes them up in terms of our macronutrients, will support our bodies as we maintain this new body weight we’ve achieved. Additionally, we can learn to stop treating dieting like a moral code, treating everything, including food, that doesn’t align with our intentions as dishonorable.
We need to understand that a calorie deficit can still be achieved with an occasional dessert here and there. We can learn through education, that if we practice dieting too aggressively and for too long, we will do ourselves a much bigger disservice than having an occasional slice of cake.
And, once we have the knowledge to finally overcome the myths and misconceptions our diet culture likes to teach, we can come up with a different acronym for the word, DIET. I propose it stands for “Deliberately I’ll Eat That!”
