Imagine Me…, LLC

Have you ever told yourself, “As soon as I lose some weight, I will ______ (fill in the blank)? I have heard so many people say this and have been guilty of it myself. Some of the ones I hear are:

“When I lose weight, I will…

Go to the beach or hang out at the pool.
Buy some good clothes.
Start walking, riding a bike, etc.
Feel better about myself.
Finally be happy.
Go on a cruise.
Treat myself to a manicure and/or pedicure.
Start dating again.
Wear the type of clothes I like.

And the list can go on and on. What would you fill the blank in with? What are you putting off until you change your body?

Well, the real question is “WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR???” You don’t have to wait for anything. You can go to the beach or pool TODAY. You can buy the good clothes for yourself NOW, just the way you are. You can choose to feel better about yourself each and every new day. Go on that cruise, start dating again, wear the clothes you want to!

Waiting for your body to change to allow yourself to do certain things is a form of self-deprivation, or “restriction”. Do you restrict the type of clothes you buy until you can buy the “right” size? Do you restrict yourself from enjoying the beach or pool because you “can’t be seen in a swimsuit”? Restriction, whether it is in the form of food restriction (anorexia), or in other areas, is not conducive to living a full and joyful life. Try to make peace with your body, learn to love and enjoy it. Enjoy all the things your body lets you do. Don’t restrict yourself. That will only restrict your joy in life.

Lighten up and do the things that you enjoy, and treat yourself well. You will be a happier person for it and will be available to others in your life, instead of always worrying about what you “can’t do until you lose weight”. Stop being at war with your body!

“Food babble” is an interesting phenomenon in our society. What is it? It’s a term we use that refers to the language people use in our society when they talk about food. When someone says “that’s good food or that’s bad food”, they are speaking food babble. When someone says “oh, that’s got too many carbs for me to eat”, or “that’s just too sinful, I can’t eat THAT”, we call that food babble. The way we speak is often brought on by the latest diet trend. Not too many years ago food babble was all about fat content in food. Everyone was learning to check food labels and talking about fat grams. Today, carbohydrates are the hot topic of food babble.

Wherever you go, whether on a retreat, to a party, at home or out to eat it is amazing how much food babble you can hear. It is also astounding how much you will say yourself without even realizing your are speaking babble. Imagine a weekend with over one hundred folks. Along with all their talking about which foods they can or can’t (or should or shouldn’t) eat, it is interesting to watch their behavior. In addition to regular mealtime, everyone has brought along snack food, chips, dip, chocolates, cheese, crackers, fruit and a vast assortment of other special treats. The conversation turns to how they shouldn’t eat any of those “bad” foods they had brought. Some go ahead and eat them, talking about how they are going to have to get back on their diets when they return home. It was as if they are given special food permission to eat these particular foods while they are away for the weekend yet they would not be allowed to eat them after returning home.

As we work with the complex issues surrounding eating disorders or with people hoping to improve their quality of life, it saddens us to see so many putting restrictions and rigid rules on themselves. Any time one makes a food a “forbidden” food, it sets that person up for harsh self-judgement and despair. As with almost everything in life, balance is the key. Eating some chocolate or some carbs is not going to make one overweight or unhappy.

Eating is a celebrated event in many cultures and our society has turned it into a fear-based event. People are often wondering, “is it safe to eat that?”, “will it make me FAT?”. We try to help people listen to their body cues and to trust their hunger and satiety signals. Eating when you are hungry, stopping as soon as you are full is a simple process most people have forgotten how to do. To us, it seems the diet industry is taking monetary and psychological advantage of people’s fear about food. Just listen to the commercials on TV or radio and you will hear all sorts of food babble. Along with promises of a better life, there is the constant pressure that we should fear particular types of food. It is overwhelming to see people spending so much time money and energy on trying to be perfect.

Are you willing to try for a day to catch yourself and go for a day without any food babble? Free yourself from the food babble frenzy and start enjoying the taste, energy and pleasure that food can give to each of you.