A non-diet approach: a flexible (and more real) way of eating

Is it possible to eat with freedom?

Imagine if you didn’t have to think about how many calories you’ve eaten, or worry about what foods contain carbs, or turning down invites to parties?
 
What if you could live life without the constant battle of “eating healthy” and just…. Eat?

I’m here to tell you… You can.

The non-diet approach ditches the diet mentality and restriction and shifts your focus to nourishing your body with what it needs – physically and emotionally. It encourages you to recognise and act on your internal body cues to help you rebuild body trust.
 
Dieting has become the solution when weight is regarded as a problem, and weight is now synonymous with health. But when copious amounts of research state that intentional weight loss cannot be sustained for more than 5 years – its fair to say dieting doesn’t work.
 
We are all innately born with the ability to self-regulate our appetites and to eat intuitively – have you watched how a small child will choose between cake, sandwiches, fruit, popcorn at a birthday party with moral neutrality? Nothing to them is good or bad – it’s just food. And often they will happily leave food when they’re full, relying on their internal cue telling them they’ve had enough.
 
Sadly as adults (and early childhood) society influences us to ignore these inner cues and listen to external rules, that eventually permeate and transform into chronic dieting behaviours. This is known as diet culture and it’s important you begin to identify and reject this mentality as it won’t serve you when you’re trying to move forward and embrace flexible and enjoyable eating habits. The non diet approach avoids weighing and measuring of food and your body. It discourages recording detailed intricate food diaries, obsessive meal planning, rigid timing of meals, specific weight goals or use of ‘diet’ foods as these only separate you further from your internal drivers of how to eat intuitively. There are no good or bad foods in the non diet approach.
 
The biggest fear when stepping into the non diet space is the fear of losing control. The fear of ‘blowing out’ and overeating when there are no rules or restrictions in place. However, when you work with a non diet dietitian, the reality is very different and rarely does this happen in both research and practice.
 
The most important thing that can happen when you embrace a non diet approach is the sense of liberty and confidence around your food choices while your body responds more intuitively to continue that cycle of nourishment and nurturing.
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