5 approaches to nutrition that could be holding you back

We often think that knowing what and how much to eat is at the forefront of our weight loss success. I argue that it is more than what we put into our bodies that makes weight loss/management sustainable.

More often than not the clients I see have had success in losing weight. However, often that story is followed by gaining weight back when life isn’t perfect or easy. That is because the habits that are needed to make healthy eating a lifestyle are just not there.

Hard truth: The diet you tried - did not work if you have gained the weight back.

So what is that secret sauce that helps us maintain healthy eating habits over the long haul?

MINDSET!!

What is mindset?

Mindset is a person’s way of thinking and their opinions but more than that it can be explained by the set of attitudes or beliefs that we hold. Our beliefs and attitudes impact everything we do and become even more important when we are faced with obstacles.

Mindset plays a huge role in how we show up when things get difficult and boring. And making nutrition changes for life can very well be tedious, slow and boring.

There are many types of mindsets (abundance mindset, scarcity mindset, fixed mindset, growth mindset, etc.). What I have realized is that a positive and growth mindsets specifically around food and nutrition, has a huge impact on someone's nutrition journey.

A growth and positive mindset allows us to approach challenges with curiosity. Looking at obstacles as something to solve rather than accepting that this is just the way things are.

If we can somehow shift our mindset around the following 4 ideas it could just be enough to get you unstuck and continue moving forward. I find that people who struggle with the following four ways of thinking are the people who struggle with progress the most.

All or nothing thinking

How many times have you said to yourself “I’ll start on Monday”

OR

you go out for the night and have a piece of cake and now think your diet is ruined so you might as well have the pizza and the beer and more cake. You are not alone, I used to think this way too.

All or nothing thinking is an example of thinking in extremes. You are either going to do all the things all the time or do nothing at all. When you step back and look at this approach, how beneficial is this approach for your health ang goals really? It’s not!

When we think in extremes - we ultimately end up right where we started. Usually not letting enough time pass to start building healthier habits.

How can we get away from thinking in extremes? If you continue with an all or nothing mindset, in one year you more than likely will be where you started. However, if you are able to not let your extremism snowball you are one step closer to eliminating this yo yo effect. When you start to shorten the time that you are “off the horse” you are learning that 1. It is ok to have meals that are not “perfect”

2. You are learning what balanced eating means to you and

3. You are choosing yourself and staying in control of your choices.

You want results and you want them like..yesterday.

Slow down and smell the roses would ya?

Diet culture - well our culture in general has fed us this idea of instant gratification. From weight loss pills that promise instant results to fad diets that do the same. OR we give up because we have been eating really well and the scale has not moved and we give up. In both scenarios we have to accept some hard truths.

Weight loss and your health journey can be challenging. Your weight gain most likely did not happen overnight, losing it sustainably is not an overnight miracle. Now I'm not saying you can’t lose weight in a short period of time - you absolutely can but is that what you are after?

If you accept from the get go that this is a long term commitment: A marriage contract between yourself and your goals then you are committing for a lifetime. So slow down, take your time figuring out what works for you, take small but meaningful steps that can be done over and over and enjoy the small wins along the way.

You know what to do, you just need to do it

I have heard this so many times. And I can relate. For most of us - we do know what to do. But we aren’t doing it. WHY? Thinking and doing are two different things. Sit down, make a game plan, get the support you need. Get to the root of why you aren't doing it and get real with yourself that something isn’t working. Maybe it is not enough to know what to do.

Change the attitude.

It is pretty evident by now that people who enjoy eating healthy and going to the gym will be more consistent doing those behaviours. Believing that eating healthy and going to the gym is beneficial for health is not a good enough reason to stay consistent for most people. You need to like what you are doing to keep doing it.

Now, as far as movement goes, this is easy - find a way to move that you like. Join a class, go for a walk. Move your body in whichever way feels good for you.

Nutrition is a bit of a different story - how are you ever going to enjoy eating more veggies instead of chocolate?

I suggest focusing on how eating properly makes you feel and fall in love with that feeling. This can take time, but notice how being in control builds confidence, how you have more energy at the gym and in your daily life, how you have less mood swings or

headaches, less bloat. Focus on how these changes make you feel and remember them when you want to slide back to your old ways.

You don’t really believe you can do it

Fear of failure is real! You have tried so many things and you just end up more confused and angry than before. Fear stands in the way of success. You play small in case it just doesn't work out. You don't fully commit because you know how this story ends. It usually ends with loss of motivation and shame.

Let go of your old identity. Instead of telling yourself you are the woman that fails, tell yourself you are a woman that can do hard things. Start writing a different story and finding ways to prove that story to yourself. The way to do this with nutrition is picking small habits that you know you can master. Something like drinking water, cooking 2 home meals per week and building confidence from there.

Another way to use your identity as a tool to move toward change is instead of telling yourself you are “getting healthy” change this to you “are healthy”. What is the difference you might ask, someone who is getting healthy has more room for excuses. A person that is healthy just does the thing they need to do. It is who they are not who they want to be.

Oftentimes it is our own mindsets that keep us stuck. The big message here is to recognize how we approach obstacles. How we do so will dictate if we overcome them or if we let them control or outcome. If we tackle obstacles from a palace of growth we are more likely to succeed and keep going when things are hard.

Get after it,

Dee

DeeRDNutrition

MSc, RD, PN1