The Art of Seduction…

…in diet culture.

I was chatting to a friend on WhatsApp the other day, about how seductive all or nothing thinking can be.

All-or-nothing thinking is a compelling way of approaching anything to do with our health or well-being, and it's not just because shiny people sell us the dream. It's because there is something very seductive about dieting, exercise plans, or some extensive bodily overhaul. The belief is that we can fundamentally change who we are by undertaking these plans. That we can eradicate what we perceive to be the negative aspects of ourselves. There is something very alluring about that.

Many of my clients have tried cleanses, juices and endless diets. When we dig down into the motivation behind undertaking these, it's often the idea that they can detox negative feelings, shed something they don't like about themselves.

It's the idea that we can sweep everything out of the way, reset, refresh, and change who we are. The idea that we can do this all at once becomes seductive. The truth? All-or-nothing thinking is doomed to fail.

Imagine, all-or-nothing thinking is like pulling an elastic band a little tighter with every change you believe you have to make.

"I'm going to clean up my eating (pull), and I'm just not going to have any sugar (pull). I am going to exercise every day (pull). I'm going to journal (pull), I'm going to meditate (pull), I'm going to practice mindfulness (pull), I'm not going to use my phone so much (pull), I need to drink more water (pull), I'm going to cut out alcohol (pull) and not only an I going to do this all at once, I'm going to try and sustain this level of tension, this level of effort consistently forever and ever for the rest of my days."

SNAP

The band breaks.

We fail because it isn't sustainable, and then we're left with sore thumbs and hating ourselves, thinking we are rubbish, berating ourselves with thoughts such as "Why can't I do it, and that woman on Instagram does it? She lives on nothing but green juice and charcoal biscuits."

There is no way of eating or living that will change who we fundamentally are because there's nothing wrong with you in the first place. We are just taught that there is. Someone, somewhere, makes a shed load of money out of planting that seed, that thought, into our minds.

So two things. First, I invite you to reflect on what that 'start again on Monday' thought represents. Secondly, can you see the all-or-nothing pattern playing out in your life?

When you seek change from a place aligned with who you are, what you represent, your values, your beliefs, and how you want your life to look. When we make changes from that place in small sustainable actionable ways, you'll be successful, and it will feel right.

Anywho, that was my thought for the day.

Much love and go gently,

Rose x