The debate about diet and weight is all around us! While we can do our best to change the subject or leave the room, it can also help build resilience to this rhetoric. Share three tips on the blog today to become more resistant to diet conversations!
Food culture is the sea in which we swim. And just like a fish that doesn’t recognize it is in the water because that’s all it knows, so we too can ignore the reality that surrounds us.
Once people learn about food culture and understand it, many people share a common experience of seeing and hearing it everywhere. It can often feel a bit overwhelming and difficult to manage.
There are tangible ways to handle this, like changing the subject, leaving the room, or setting boundaries, which I talk about in my post on 3 ways to navigate the diet conversation, but what about the inner work ;
How can we develop a greater ability to tolerate the discomfort that comes with hearing this? How do we stay strong within ourselves so that we don’t internalize what comes into our sphere?
The answer lies in building resilience.
What is resilience anyway?
Some people may be more able to be resilient than others based on their ability to cope, the resources they have and the way they see the world. But it’s not like you’re either born resilient or not.
According to the APA, our research shows that resilience can be practiced and cultivated with a variety of resources and skills.
So yes, with time, practice and intentionality, you can build your resilience muscles!
3 Tips for Building Diet Resilience
1. Build or build on your non-dieting community.
Connection is key to building resilience. It’s hard to do radical, countercultural work on your own – it can feel extremely lonely and isolated. It can make you question whether or not you are on the right track.
Connect with people who understand and understand how difficult it is to choose to heal your relationship with food in a culture that praises weight loss and prioritizes dieting. Having a few trusted friends who can validate your feelings around the frustration or sadness that your employees were talking about the weight loss challenge at the lunch table again can help you build resilience.
If you don’t have anyone in your life who is on this path, you are not alone! Many people who find their way to intuitive eating don’t know anyone else who chooses a different path. You could try looking for a support group that can meet your needs. There are non-dieting support groups, intuitive eating, there are support groups for plus-sized people navigating an anti-fat culture; There are walking groups for fat people.
If you’re working 1:1 with a clinician who specializes in a weight-based, non-dieting, or intuitive approach to nutrition, they’ll likely have recommendations for local support groups for you.
2. Clarify your values.
Values are like an internal compass that help give direction and meaning to your life. They can help draw you towards a richer and more meaningful life.
Having a clear set of values can also help you stay grounded and grounded when talk of diet and weight loss is all around you.
You can say to yourself something like “this path does not align with my values of compassion, authenticity, trust, and acceptance.”
Then you can take action from a part of your values instead of letting someone else’s actions convince you.
Have you ever done a values exercise? It’s one of my favorite things to do with clients.
To discover your own values, consider buying a deck of cards, or for an easier and more economical route, google “values list” and print one out! Not every set of values will be the same and they will never be exhaustive, so feel free to add your own if you feel something is missing.
Once you have your list of values, try to narrow down your personal values to a list of the top 10. And then a list of the top 5! Maybe even a top 3 list.
You might be wondering:
Is this diet and weight loss rhetoric moving me in the direction of my values or away from my values?
How do these top values relate to my desired relationship with food and body?
3. Take action to achieve your goals.
Making progress toward your goals, no matter how big or small, can be empowering and can help you cultivate feelings of resilience.
This also helps orient you towards your purpose or set of values. Maybe self-care is a value and so one of your goals is to eat regularly throughout the day.
Taking action on this goal might look like:
- setting reminders on your phone every few hours to eat
- making a grocery list to go shopping
- Taking foods at home that are easily accessible / don’t require a lot of effort to make
When you hear someone talk about how they lost 5 pounds, instead of internalizing it and wondering if you should do it too, ask yourself what are the goals I’m working on right now and can I take one small step toward that goal today?
Remember, building resilience is a practice that takes time, effort and intention. Be patient with yourself if discussions of diet and weight loss still challenge you. In the meantime, take care of yourself in the ways you need to, which means don’t hesitate to walk away from the conversation or set a boundary.
And of course, Our team would love to further support you on your journey. Click here to book a nutritional assessment today.
Let me know in the comments below, how do you build resilience in dieting and weight loss reviews?
For more on a non-diet approach, see my posts below:
3 Tips to Improve Body Image
5 Tips to Break the Binge-Restrict Cycle
What is the Hunger Fullness Scale?
The science of diet and weight loss
