Eating SKILLS vs. Dieting

 

If you had to grade yourself today – right now! – on your eating and nutrition skills, would you get an A, B, C … or …?

 

(haha:  I’m talking about “healthy” eating here, for the record.)

 

Most of us think of eating/nutrition as something we should just automatically KNOW about …

 

… or we even label them as virtues.

 

EXAMPLE:  I can’t even count how many times clients have told me they have been “good” or “bad” when it comes to food.

 

SPOILER ALERT:  I do NOT apply value judgements to food.  There is only what's appropriate or inappropriate for a person's specific context.  That's it.

 

But there really ARE skills involved – things like meal planning, grocery shopping, meal prep (aka cooking!), knowing which foods fill you up, which ones make you feel hungry, etc.

 

Understanding portion sizes is also a skill.  In fact, I just released my latest ebook to help with this, "Your Handy Portion Guide"

 

Some of us were never taught these things growing up!  Or we’ve been taught so many conflicting things, it’s hard to know WHAT to believe.

 

Focusing on building these skills is a GREAT mindset switch.

 

It is empowering (vs. restricting) because it’s NOT about deprivation – it’s about creating a healthy and fit lifestyle that you actually enjoy within your specific health and wellness context.

 

A few more learnable skills (obviously this depends on your goals & lifestyle):

 

  • Finding 3-4 breakfast options that taste great and keep you filled up till lunchtime
  • Knowing how to meal prep during busy weeks
  • Protein: understanding how to make sure you’re getting enough for your specific needs
  • Veggies: finding ways to work them into your meals (the green fibrous ones are my favorites for best results)
  • Getting great at once-weekly grocery shopping (& streamlining it so you can get in and out fast)
  • Discovering snacks that satisfy you AND don’t derail your progress OR discovering that you're eating so well at your meals that you don't even feel the need to snack at all.

 

Taking time to master these kinds of skills move my clients closer to their goals … and gives them a foundation of self-knowledge, resilience, and independence that will last a lifetime.

 

Just something to think about!

 

Committed to your health,