Why a “lifestyle diet” is still a restrictive diet

“Do you actually enjoy these flourless spinach-pancakes you made for our Sunday brunch?”, Shaun said to me with a cheeky smirk.  “If you enjoy them that’s great, I’m just making sure you actually prefer them over real pancakes.”

I shrugged my shoulders and said: “Babe, I’m not on a diet. This is a lifestyle! I actually don’t mind these and they’re healthy”, as I kept choking them down on a Sunday morning back in 2016.

When I tasted real pancakes for the first time again during my recovery, I realized that I had been lying to myself for so long that I actually believed this lie more than anyone else did. 

Why restricting food causes long-term damage

I had convinced myself that I was living the fitness-lifestyle and that I was still able to enjoy myself without getting obsessed.

Meanwhile I was 100% completely consumed by it while my body was breaking down.

I had trained myself to eat spinach pancakes and drink green protein kale smoothies, even though I genuinely didn’t enjoy them. 

I was isolating myself from everyone I loved, just so I wouldn’t feel “tempted” to eat something that wasn’t on my list of “healthy foods”. 

To me, that was not a balanced way to live, so I gladly admit to myself that it was in fact restrictive dieting.

Here is an article I wrote about how food deprivation negatively affects our physical health, but also our brain, cognitive behaviours and mental health. It’s a great and informative post on the science behind food deprivation, even if this is part of a “lifestyle, not a diet”.

Here is an important reminder

You are allowed to eat and listen to your body whether it asks for food, rest, movement or self care. Over time, your body will balance out its natural hunger- and fullness cues and you will finally stop thinking about food all the time. Your weight will stabilize for good, without fluctuating and without you feeling guilty around food. It’s a wonderful place to be in.

Read more about this process here.

Also, the Own it Babe Podcast is officially searchable on iTunes, Spotify and Stitcher and my first 3 episodes are going live tomorrow morning!

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