Blog

Dietician Sheela Seharawat

It’s once again time for the New Year to arrive and above all, time for the diet industry to bombard and lure us with enticing diets to get slim and healthy resolutions for the New Year. Everywhere it’s going to be endless articles on diets and how our daily foods filled with organic yields, fruits and vegetables and supplements would turn us with a whole new personality.

It’s all nonsense and we all must consider that no diet works, however guilty we may feel. We all have seen it happening year after year, the same old stories been dressed up in new clothes. Even the ones that support flurry lifestyle amendments with fun with weight loss as their main goals are nothing, but the same old diets that have been done in new attires.

Diet companies have also become smarter with the fact that people these days have become aware of these cosmetic changes that companies have been doing and have started questioning the potency of this guilt and shame-based promotions. And it is why they have been rebranding the age-old frenetic. They have turned more innovative and crafty.

Let's dig into some of the shreds of evidence to the contrary:

We all have heard of weight-cycling. Whatever weight we lose we over some time re-gain, and sometimes even with some extra. This is a phenomenon that burdens our body with increased stress and is a pure waste of time and harmful too. We all can lose weight with a diet but not for long or permanently. It is one of the major reasons why the diet companies are successful and make money – because they fail time and again; and we go back.

What, if we are interested in improving our health? Diet companies will keep on making us fall in the trap of guilt and persuade lifestyle changes and it is never a good idea. At times losing weight is never possible, and particularly when someone has acute health conditions, which is again beyond our controls. Many amongst us have other priorities in life and that too is important. Whoever and whatever, we may be, both shaming and guilt are not at all good for us as it overloads us with intense stress.

It is always true that when we feel secure and happy, we are not a valuable customer for the diet companies. It's always a safer bet for the diet industry to not encourage the target audience to feel happy and secure as then they would not be able to fool us and make money.

We should look towards to discover and involve in activities and things that can add value, the sense of joy and fulfillment to our life. We need to understand that we are non-negotiable; we all have the right to live in peace and sanctity in our bodies. With this valuable belief in our minds, here are some measures that we should adopt this New Year that is more joyous, our body accepts with open arms and disdaining diets.

Health cannot be measured with anybody’s worth. For us humans, health is of intrinsic value. There have been numerous measures and approaches to measure health, but no real value can be found. In a simple state, health is all about how well we are physically, mentally, emotionally and socially. If we score well in all the parameters, we are in good health.

Think of the joys that can be added to our life rather than discovering things to take away.

If someone has a poor relationship with food, look for intuitive eating. Intuitive eating has nothing to do with food diets, meals, plans and even will power. It is an approach towards health and food that teaches us to get in touch with our body signals like hunger, fullness and even satisfaction. It is a way we teach our body to trust food again.

Look for activities you enjoy. Dance, hop, skip, run or swim whatever you like. The purpose is pure enjoyment and fun, and nothing more.

If you are curvy and choosing clothes is disheartening, look for fashion designs and styles that suit distinguished bodies. Look for the patterns and colors that you love wearing and there is no reason that you will not find one. Clothes are not meant to make you feel low.

Engage in activities that make you feel good. Get involved in activities that give you joy, that which makes you feel good. Don't think that you can only enjoy them if you could be thinner.

Find a community of likeminded people. Some people have the same issues and thoughts that you also have. Look for such groups where you can freely discuss issues like body images and shamming. The feeling of guilt and shame often creates isolation, makes you feel lonely. It is an amazing feeling when you meet and discuss such issues with similar people, and get the importance of being heard and understood.

Challenge your assumptions. Stop admiring and comparing yourself with other people’s health and body, because by doing so you are judging yourself on other’s parameters.

Forget the old ‘New Year, New You’. It is not possible to flourish with impossible goals and giant leaps. You have to start believing that you are bold, beautiful and flawless just like anyone else.

Always remember, that unless you come out of the feeling of isolation from others and the society, you will keep on being nudged by messages every single day that will further push you towards dissatisfaction with yourself. It is not your fault. Be compassionate with yourself, you are worth the more.