Table of Contents
Introduction
Diet Mentality: How do you Relate to Your Body and Food? – Today it is widespread to have people in our immediate environment who tell us that they have started dieting, or even perhaps it was you who at some point decided to change the way you eat to lose weight. Maybe you have never been on a diet. But if you are very aware of your diet.
In principle, this should not be a problem, but. What happens when this issue becomes your center of attention? What happens when you focus on carefully analyzing everything you eat and, often, your mood depends on whether or not you have managed to overcome a “temptation” to eat something that you think you should not?
More and more, we find people who come with this complaint and who consider that mealtime has become day-to-day torture. That is why in this article, I will tell you what we call it having a Diet Mindset.
What is the Diet Mentality, and How to Recognize it?
It is a series of recurring beliefs and thoughts related to the diet culture that condition how the person relates to his body and food, which, consequently, alters and limits his life in general—various aspects.
In addition, these beliefs and thoughts cause the person to carry out certain types of behaviors that, in turn, hurt their mood.
Characteristics of a diet mentality are:
- Dichotomous thoughts: That is, classifying foods as good/bad, permitted/prohibited, and healthy/unhealthy.
- The constant count of calories: To not exceed specific daily amounts.
- Meticulous control of the food and avoidance of any social interaction. That implies being “around the table. Since are moments that generate anxiety.
- Have disconnection from the feeling of hunger/satiety: and then eat according to a strict norm in terms of quantity and time of day, without taking into account the body’s physiological needs.
- Fear of lack of control and improvised meals.
Perform Compensation Behaviors: – Diet Mentality
It can be by putting yourself in “restriction mode” or excessive physical exercise. Weight loss and control are associated with achieving happiness and social success.
In addition, people with a diet mentality have a “moral dilemma”. Once they have followed a strict diet (which they consider good behavior), they permit themselves to eat some prohibited food as a reward. For the effort. This ends in self-deception. A balance of guilt and the feeling of having “behaved badly” breaking the rule they should comply with.
These food prohibitions also usually generate a state of anxiety that makes the person enter a continuous vicious circle of deprivation, stress, lack of control/binge. Compensation/deprivation without ever feeling that they have fulfilled their objective. Which perpetuates the loop.
People who suffer from this type of problem define as: a lack of will deregulated and frustrated by unsuccessful attempts to follow strict diets without any deviation. The diet is related to a sense of responsibility and order, so everything that interferes with it generates discomfort and impotence and affects self-esteem and self-concept.
Bear in mind that eating is a basic physiological need every day. It’s allowed. It is easy to understand that people with this mentality can present intense and continuous discomfort. Which is challenging to manage since they live an internal struggle between what they want and what they want.
Recommendations To Put Into Practice – Diet Mentality
It transforms the concept of “diet” into the adoption of decentralized healthy eating habits: that is, not betting all the chips on weight loss. But rather implementing a series of measures related to general self-care from a more permissive position and compassionate.
Avoid isolating yourself as a form of control to put yourself at risk of temptations you think you don’t deserve. Allow yourself to enjoy social encounters with your people again.
Put aside strict goals that imply sacrifice and extreme restriction: set small goals, and if you don’t know how some professionals can help you and guide you to do it in a more manageable and healthy way.
Take care of your language towards food, getting rid of categorizations or moral associations.
Take small daily actions that challenge those beliefs and behaviors of the diet mindset.
Practice conscious eating: That allows “reconciliation” with food and re-experience the enjoyment and pleasure of eating what you like.
Ask for professional help if you think this affects your self-esteem and your life. Without thinking that it is something that you must solve alone or is unimportant. Everything that limits you and makes you suffer is worth working on and giving a place.
Conclusion
At a time like the present. In which social networks and culture in general point more and more to the image of what makes happiness and social success possible. It is essential to be able to give space to reflect on the limitations and the sacrifice that “living to eat” can entail.
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