Starling Fitness: Daily writings on Fitness, Diet, and Health

I saw this motivational poster on thefitnesselements and I didn’t know what to think about it.

It reads:

There is no diet that will do what healthy eating does.

This seemed like arguing semantics to me. ANY plan of eating you choose could be considered your diet. Any plan of healthy eating is, in fact, a diet.

Then again, this poster does remind me of a truth that I have found.

Diets just don’t appeal to me anymore.

I used to scour fitness magazines and book stores, looking for “inspiration.” Whenever eating healthy became hard, I would look for a new way of eating that would solve my problems. Until I learned the truth about my eating disorder.

It’s NEVER About The Food

Whenever I am having a hard time eating healthy, I know that something ELSE is wrong in my life. Maybe I was rude to someone and didn’t apologize. Maybe I was hurt by something someone said. Maybe I am holding onto a grudge or resentment that I just need to let go.

Whatever my problem, it is NEVER about the food. If I am tempted to eat poorly, I do NOT need a new diet. I need to apologize to someone, forgive them or accept them as they are. There is something in my life emotionally that I need to deal with, not a diet.

The truth is, it’s also never about the exercise either. Whenever I am tempted to really bump up my exercise program, that is yet ANOTHER indication that something is off in my life. I don’t need to increase my speed or do hill work. I need to apologize to someone, forgive them or accept them as they are.

This motivational poster is RIGHT. There is no diet that can do what healthy eating does. In fact, diets and new exercise regimes can’t do anything for me except give me a clue that something else is amiss in my life.