It ain't over 'til it's over!
I'll preface this post by saying that diet culture has been hitting it HARD this year. With more people stuck at home, predatory companies, products, and unqualified "health coaches" have attacked the gap in order to make people believe that health means weight loss or a ripped 6-pack.
I think it's PHENOMENAL that more than 25% of Americans have started a healthier living journey these past 7 months.
The problem is that it may not have been as healthy as you hoped.
The big dilemma is not that you didn't hit a goal or your body doesn't look a certain way. It's that you don't feel entirely worthy because you missed that goal.
Wherever you are right now, I want you to say out loud or write down on whatever is close to you; "My worth has zero connection to my weight" AND "My body deserves to be nourished physically, mentally, and emotionally."
If you didn't do it- stop and go back. I see you. Just do it.
I'm here today to tell you that there are still ways to nourish your body and improve your health even if you're feeling defeated by a goal. And to be quite honest, it's all the more reason to press on.
Now let's talk about some science, shall we? 🤓
Let's start with one of the few facts (absolute truths) we know about food science right now:
Weight is not an absolute correlation to health.
Extremely thin people may or may not have optimal health. Overweight people may or may not have optimal health. Average size people may or may not have optimal health.
This leads us to two conclusions:
Weight is just one small piece of the puzzle that makes up a healthy lifestyle
The scale actually has no direct link to your likeliness of suffering many chronic illnesses (there are, of course, exceptions, but let's move forward...)
Now I REALLY don't like to use BMI as a measure of health (it is incredibly outdated, and again, shows only a very minuscule picture of overall health) but this is by far the largest concern of most of my clients.
Doctors still use weight and BMI to measure your health because that's what they've been taught, and the research results against using BMI are relatively new.
This isn't to say that BMI is an inherently bad thing, but it does cause an unnecessary level of fear in people (which we NEVER want to see when it comes to health!)
New studies are showing that the BMI associated with the lowest overall mortality rate is.............3.3 higher than "normal" range.
In other words: a slightly overweight BMI is now accepted as the healthiest in relation to mortality rates.
My question as a nutrition professional is this:
If science is telling us that it's not how small or large our bodies are that matters, but rather the way we treat our body at any size, then why is there still such an enormous focus on achieving the smallest body frame we can...?
Sadly, that was rhetorical. And I know the answer. You do, too.
It's all. About. The money.
😞
We have been trained for decades to believe foods are either good or bad, you can never exercise too much, and you're not truly healthy until your pants size is under an 8.
⚠️Trigger warning⚠️
That's absolute bullshit.
Those ideas have been perpetuated by an industry hungry for money, and the claims they make have little to no scientific grounding.
A magic "fat burner" pill, "skinny coffee", or "carb blocker (????)" syrup will not get you in better shape or to healthier lab results.
But they will play games with your mind until you're convinced that the only way to "look good" in the mirror is to fall back on those baseless (and expensive) products.
This isn't to bash any one person or company in particular.
But I want to get real with you and ask you a serious question. Can I share this space with you right now?
If you use or promote (or somehow this went viral and you are the head of a company that puts out products like this) a "quick fix" for health or weight loss- do you really feel comfortable placing products in people's hands that makes them believe the body they're in now isn't good enough or worthy of hard work...?
Would you feel ok standing behind the products if you got a degree in fitness or nutrition or medicine and learned that some of the ingredients you've been selling could be harmful...?
Could you sleep at night knowing that someone landed themselves in the hospital because the suggested servings of a product weren't right for their unique body...?
I ask these things because I care too much about YOU, as well as the millions of people looking for ways to get healthy that don't have access to proper, educated nutrition and health advice.
I care too much to allow the diet industry to continue to make people believe that they are not good enough until they are a certain size.
What matters more than your number on the scale is how easily you can play outside with your kids or grandkids.
What matters more is your blood pressure levels stabilizing.
What matters more is that your risk for fatty liver disease is reduced.
What matters more is that your cancer markers are gone.
What matters more than weight is health. True internal and mental health.
So. You missed your "summer bod" goals.
SO FREAKING WHAT?!
You're allowed to eat a nourishing bowl of potatoes. You're allowed to want to fit better into your clothes. You're allowed to step back and say "this isn't serving me- I need to find something new".
If you're looking for something new that serves you in ~all~ the ways, here are a few great starting points:
Join the Worthy of Wellness Facebook Group. It's an inclusive, encouraging community where accurate + educated health information, free recipes + exercise videos, and more are shared. It's also 100% FREE!
Take a break from the wellness industry for a bit. Mute/unfollow/unfriend people who are pushing products they aren't educated on that make you feel less than. Don't go to the gym for a week. Come off your diet plan/calorie tracking app/etc for a few days and see how it feels. You can continue to achieve success without feeling less than or pressured to look a certain way.
Check out our new Seasonal Sessions education course. This is a great opportunity to learn the how and why behind some healthy tips + lifestyle changes without the pressure or intensity of an overall lifestyle change for weight loss.
Consider working with a coach. We'd be honored to help you get where you want to go, but we do not work with everyone. We just really may not be the best fit for you at this point in your journey- and that is ok. There are so many trained professionals out there and you have to find what works best for YOU. 💚
So if you are someone who is feeling down because that summer health goal you had came and went like a freight train, reclaim control today.
Get out there and just keep going.
You're worth that and so, so much more.
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