Stop Dieting and Start Listening to Your Body

I don’t diet. Ever. Here’s why listening to your body beats restrictive eating plans every single time for sustainable results.

Listen to the episode here…

Why I’ll Never Diet Again (And Why You Shouldn’t Either)

Today, I want to talk about diet. Yep, that four-letter word that I can’t stand.

Maybe you’re like me. Maybe you can relate. I can’t stand the idea of dieting. I don’t like the idea of restricting myself from anything. And that’s not to say that I’m the type of person that just wants to binge all the time. I don’t want to just eat a bunch of crap.

Why Diets Don’t Work for Me

But here’s the thing about diets. They’re temporary. They’re restrictive. And they make you feel like you’re punishing yourself for wanting to be healthy.

That’s not sustainable. That’s not realistic. And that’s definitely not how I want to live my life.

Instead of dieting, I focus on making better choices. I focus on listening to my body. I focus on eating foods that make me feel good, not foods that make me feel guilty.

What This Actually Looks Like

Does that mean I never eat pizza? No. Does that mean I never have dessert? Absolutely not.

What it means is that I pay attention to how food makes me feel. If I eat a huge greasy meal and then feel like garbage for the rest of the day, I remember that. And the next time I’m tempted by that same meal, I ask myself: is it worth feeling terrible later?

Sometimes the answer is yes. Sometimes I want the pizza and I don’t care that I’ll feel sluggish afterward. And that’s okay. Because I’m making a conscious choice, not following some arbitrary diet rules that someone else made up.

The Problem with Restriction

The problem with diets is that they’re all about restriction. Don’t eat this. Don’t eat that. Count your calories. Measure your portions. Track everything.

And for some people, that works. But for me? It just makes me want to rebel. It makes me want to eat all the things I’m not supposed to eat just because someone told me I can’t have them.

So instead, I give myself permission to eat whatever I want. But I also give myself the responsibility to pay attention to how it makes me feel.

Making Sustainable Changes

I focus on adding things to my diet rather than taking things away. I try to drink more water. I try to eat more vegetables. I try to make sure I’m getting enough protein to support my workouts.

But I don’t stress about it. I don’t beat myself up if I have a day where I eat like garbage. Because tomorrow is a new day, and I can make better choices then.

This isn’t a diet. This is a lifestyle change. And lifestyle changes are sustainable. Diets are not.

Food Is Fuel, But It’s Also Enjoyment

Food is fuel for your body. But it’s also something to be enjoyed. It’s a social experience. It’s comfort. It’s culture. It’s tradition.

And I refuse to give all of that up just to fit into someone else’s idea of what healthy eating should look like.

So no, I’m not on a diet. And I’m never going to be on a diet. But I am making better choices. I am listening to my body. And I am living my life in a way that feels sustainable and healthy for me.

That’s what matters.

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Full Transcript- Stop Dieting and Start Listening to Your Body

00:00:12
What’s up, you guys? Famous Ashton Grant here,
00:00:14
and welcome to More Movement, Please. Today,
00:00:17
I want to talk about diet. Yep, that four -letter
00:00:20
word that I can’t stand. Maybe you’re like me.
00:00:23
Maybe you can relate. I can’t stand the idea
00:00:25
of dieting. I don’t like the idea of restricting
00:00:28
myself from anything. And that’s not to say that
00:00:31
I’m the type of person that just wants to binge
00:00:32
all the time. I don’t want to just eat a bunch
00:00:34
of crap. But I don’t want to change what I’m
00:00:39
eating. to the point that I start feeling like
00:00:42
I’m restricted, which could lead me to binging.
00:00:46
That said, whenever I started working out as
00:00:50
much as I am now, I was unable to eat and drink
00:00:56
the way that I was before getting serious. And
00:01:01
that’s not because I was intentionally restricting
00:01:04
myself. It’s because my body started craving
00:01:08
certain things. And here’s what I mean by that.
00:01:11
That first week that I was going from two or
00:01:15
three hours of fitness a week to that first week
00:01:18
of doing that 19 classes, I reached for water
00:01:23
more than I ever have in my whole life. I needed
00:01:26
all the water because I was sweating so much
00:01:29
from all the working out. Makes sense, right?
00:01:32
So I constantly was needing more water. As a
00:01:37
result, I wasn’t wanting soda as much, not just
00:01:40
because I wanted more hydration, but also because
00:01:44
anytime I would drink soda, it felt bad. Like
00:01:49
it just wasn’t enjoyable in the way that it used
00:01:52
to be. So even though I’m a soda girly, I wasn’t
00:01:55
enjoying the experience of drinking soda. The
00:01:58
other interesting thing that happened is that
00:02:00
when I started working out as much as I was,
00:02:03
am. When I started working out more, I was unable
00:02:08
to eat the same portions that I was eating previously.
00:02:14
I was catching myself getting so full that I
00:02:18
could not eat another bite. I don’t know if it
00:02:20
was because my body was shocked from suddenly
00:02:24
working out as much as I had been, or if it was
00:02:27
because my body was going, hey, you’ve been eating
00:02:30
too much and you should stop. So what naturally
00:02:34
started to happen is that I was not finishing
00:02:38
my meals. And as a result, I started changing
00:02:41
the recipes that I was doing or that I had been
00:02:44
making to have smaller portions. And this wasn’t
00:02:47
like I was, again, I was not trying to restrict
00:02:50
myself. It was simply the fact that I literally
00:02:52
felt if I ate another bite of certain foods,
00:02:55
I was going to be sick. And so we’re now. more
00:03:01
than a hundred days in to this wild fitness journey.
00:03:05
And I don’t want to say that it has leveled out
00:03:08
because that’s simply not true. I’m still not
00:03:11
able to eat the portion sizes that I was previously,
00:03:13
but I am noticing that I am able to eat just
00:03:18
a little bit more, but I’m choosing not to. And
00:03:21
it’s not because I don’t want it. I mean, there
00:03:24
are times I’m not going to lie. I will just sit
00:03:27
there and eat the entire meal. even though I’m
00:03:29
stuffed and even though I don’t want any more,
00:03:32
because there is something to be said for if
00:03:34
you really love a meal, go all in, right? But
00:03:37
I don’t recommend that. And I’m sure any person
00:03:41
that’s listening to this, if you’re a nutritionist
00:03:43
or you’re a physical trainer, you’re probably
00:03:44
like cringing at the fact that I literally just
00:03:47
said there are some times that I will stuff myself.
00:03:50
The thing is, though, it’s not that I’m… trying
00:03:53
to advocate for it. I know when I make that decision
00:03:56
what I’m doing. And yes, I pay for it. I feel
00:04:00
the pain of the fact that I overstuffed myself.
00:04:04
So in truth, no, I’ve not dieted per se, but
00:04:09
I have naturally changed the way that I’m eating.
00:04:12
And the funny thing is, not only am I changing
00:04:16
the portion sizes, I am catching myself reaching
00:04:19
for healthier options because I can feel a difference
00:04:22
in my performance when I do. And this isn’t about
00:04:26
again, I want to I just want to make this abundantly
00:04:29
clear. It’s not about restriction. It’s about
00:04:31
I am feeling that my body is craving different
00:04:34
things now. And so I’m reaching for those. And
00:04:37
to me, that’s a much healthier way of going about
00:04:40
changing what you’re consuming than to sit there
00:04:42
and say, oh, well, I have to be in a calorie
00:04:44
deficit of 500 calories so I can’t have. X, Y,
00:04:49
or Z. I feel like if you’re going to change what
00:04:52
you’re eating or change your portions, then it
00:04:56
should be because your body is telling you to,
00:05:00
not because you’re telling your body to. Does
00:05:03
that make sense? I hope that makes sense. Because
00:05:06
I feel a difference whenever I’m reaching for
00:05:11
certain things. So I’ve caught myself. going,
00:05:14
no, I don’t want this cookie. What I actually
00:05:17
want is a banana because if I eat the banana,
00:05:20
I can feel the potassium. I can feel it’s better
00:05:24
in my system than I would feel after eating that
00:05:27
cookie. And so I guess what I want to do today
00:05:30
is challenge you not to think of things as dieting.
00:05:33
Think of it as what does your body need? Because
00:05:36
if you actually start listening to your body,
00:05:39
it’s kind of amazing how it will literally tell
00:05:41
you what you do and do not want. The reality
00:05:43
is that I can catch myself going, oh, I really
00:05:47
want to have, you know, let’s just call it a
00:05:50
candy bar or a bag of chips or something like
00:05:55
that. My body literally will go absolutely not
00:05:59
after like the first or second bite sometimes.
00:06:02
And it’s not because I want to restrict myself,
00:06:05
but it’s because I don’t feel good whenever I
00:06:08
consume it. And why would you do something to
00:06:10
yourself that you’re not enjoying? Right. Although
00:06:12
then then again, some of you might be listening
00:06:14
to this going, well, I hate squats. So I guess
00:06:16
I should stop doing that. It doesn’t feel good,
00:06:18
but it’s good for you. Right. So you should still
00:06:21
do the squats. But maybe if you eat a candy bar
00:06:24
and you feel like, wow, that candy bar did not
00:06:26
make me feel good. How about don’t eat that candy
00:06:29
bar? You know, that’s kind of how I’m feeling
00:06:32
right now. I just wanted to share these thoughts.
00:06:34
The big thing to me is if you are going to try
00:06:38
to lose weight. Yes, of course. Doctors will
00:06:41
probably tell you like, hey, you need to limit
00:06:43
the amount of calories you’re consuming, need
00:06:46
to be in a calorie deficit. I understand all
00:06:48
that. If you really listen to your body, it will
00:06:51
tell you what you need. And I think you’ll find
00:06:54
that if you start doing that rather than trying
00:06:56
to focus on the numbers of calories that you’re
00:06:59
consuming. you might notice that your body is
00:07:03
telling you that it wants something that’s healthier
00:07:05
for you. That’s been my experience. It’s what
00:07:07
I’ve been feeling and what I just wanted to share
00:07:10
today. So today, as you’re consuming, you know,
00:07:15
meals and drinks and whatever it is you normally
00:07:18
consume, check in with yourself. See how you’re
00:07:22
feeling as you are consuming these things. Is
00:07:25
it really worth what you’re consuming? Because
00:07:29
if you’re not enjoying it, What’s the point?
00:07:33
I hope this tip helps somebody. I hope it makes
00:07:36
sense. And onwards and upwards, my friends. Have
00:07:40
you worked out today?