If you’ve been following me for a while, you know I am obsessed with fitness and healthy foods. But early last year – right around the time I met Eating Psychology coach and BeyondBodyImage.com founder, Florence Gilet – something snapped. As much as I was enjoying exercise and healthy eating, there were times where I was pushing too hard or being too restrictive – almost canceling out the benefits of doing those things. I’d get upset if I didn’t fit into my jeans or feel like a party pooper when refusing to have birthday cake. I asked myself, “Why?”, “What’s the big deal if I skip a workout or eat that slab of chocolate cake?”, “Why don’t I give myself the permission?”, “What in the world am I afraid of?”. Sure, there was a health component to it, but c’mon, a slice of cake won’t go very far in decreasing longevity and the healthiest 80-year-olds I know never had a strenuous workout regimen. The truth is that I wanted to be “good”, not gain weight, and have a feeling of self-control.
When I met Florence, she shared a lot of research with me, demonstrating that being thin was not a factor in being healthy at all – in fact, forcing yourself to weigh less or being too restrictive is actually quite unhealthy mentally, emotionally and physically. We live our lives with this ideal that thin = good, beautiful, successful, etc. and deep down we know that’s incorrect. Yet, many women still go on diets, still cut out food groups, still ask themselves “Should I eat this, should I not?”, still look for solutions to lose weight and still get upset when it doesn’t work out. And when someone does lose weight, they might still be terrified of gaining it all back so they continue restriction and only have “cheat” days here and there. Are we to blame? Of course not! It is a very complex issue because obviously, we feel good when we nourish our bodies well and move every day, but if we overdo it – and there is a fine line – we actually aren’t doing ourselves a favor and sometimes don’t even realize it. And let’s be honest, it’s hard to dismantle the “thin is good” myth that has been ingrained in our minds since childhood, it’s a really hard journey. Unless they have a hard time keeping weight on, most people I know would not like the idea of gaining 10 pounds, I certainly wouldn’t. Nevertheless, being aware and recognizing it is an essential first step. Especially if we are educating children.
This is why I wanted to share this podcast episode with you. Florence is not selling a quick fix, she’s not promising weight loss or changes in your body. Instead, she debunks a lot of myths and offers a really honest approach to wellness that has helped countless women accept their bodies at every size. She talks about the roots of the thin myth, the diet rollercoaster phenomenon, the sneaky ways we restrict ourselves, self-compassion, body neutral parenting and so much more. Hope you enjoy it.
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