What Should I Eat?
As both a therapist and dietitian, my niche has always been working with people who have struggled with their relationship with food and body.
I work with people in a much deeper way than I used to, but if you’ve struggled with food in the past your work will eventually still lead you back to answering the question, what should I be eating?
Our world vastly overcomplicates food. Like religion, it is steeped in dogma and the more you research nutrition science and functional medicine, the more confused you might become.
Generally speaking, there are about four main schools of thought.
The ancestral nutrition researchers who push high fat, high protein, low carb diets (think keto, paleo)
The plant based nutrition researchers who push high carb, moderate protein, lower fat diets (like vegetarian & vegan)
The middle of the road nutrition experts like registered dietitians who push diets that balance all the food groups
And, the intuitive eaters who put nutrition science on the back burner in favor of weight-neutral care and first honoring cravings and desire (anti-diet culture movement and body positive approaches)
I myself was caught in the tangle of this confusing food world for a long time, continually searching for the one answer or the one truth when it comes to food and the perfect human diet.
Here’s what I’ve come to understand now… If we are relying on guidance from outside of us then we are going to struggle to heal.
As practitioners this means that if we’re teaching our clients that there’s only one way to eat or heal through food, we are taking them away from their power.
There is no one on the planet who can tell you what to eat. The only teacher you should be listening to when it comes to food and self-care, is the the inner wisdom of your own mind, body and spirit.
With that said, we have oftentimes been led so far astray it can be helpful to find teachers who your intuition resonates with. We can learn from each other and apply different things to our lives to see how they impact us, but ultimately its up to us to decide if what we’re trying is working for us.
Proceed with caution if you’re learning from a teacher who’s telling you that their prescribed diet is the only one that works or that it’s non-negotiable in any way.
As someone who has personally struggled with my own food challenges, I can tell you I’ve experimented with every possible avenue of eating. What I’ve come to understand through my own process is that your state of mind is ultimately more important than the actual food you’re eating.
Yes, food can have an impact on our physical bodies, but we also know that the mind is often powerful enough to influence or change that impact (think placebo affect). So instead of stressing about your food choices, the first step should always be to work on releasing any guilt or shame about those choices.
I’ve met people who can thrive on all kinds of different diets. I believe some folks thrive on keto, some on plant based vegan diets, and some on eating whatever the heck they want (my beloved husband).
What’s most important is that you are in a conscious relationship with your food and eating behavior. Stepping into your higher awareness and noticing with curiosity how different food choices or behaviors impact your well-being.
Personally, I’ve noticed that I ebb and flow into all styles of eating. At times, I find myself craving warmer, heavier foods and more animal products. When the weather is warmer I lean more toward cooler plant based foods. And there are still other times where I’m very fluid and carefree with my food choices, leaning into cravings and what the world is offering me at any given moment.
I do believe in the power of food, but for me this power comes from the power of the mind and how we think about food. Any food choice can be nourishing if consumed lovingly and without guilt. As we work to release toxic shame-based thoughts and feelings around our food choices, it becomes easier to notice what the body, mind and spirit are asking for.
I have found that the more my clients give themselves permission around food (true and genuine permission!) the sooner their food challenges begin to resolve themselves. We might naturally find ourselves eating more of the foods that make us feel our best, without feeling hungry or deprived of other things. Or we might finally make peace with living a life free of food stress by just allowing ourselves to nourish the body with what is easiest or most readily available.
Ultimately, what’s most important is that you begin to engage with your own body and step out of the fight in favor of a dance. The dance with food is more fluid and less rigid. It allows for relationship and sensuality, but it also allows for missteps.
Like anything else, you’re always learning. So I encourage you to try taking the pressure off yourself and just allow yourself to love food and eating again. You can trust that your intuition will be guiding you.