How to change your relationship with food
As humans, it’s clear that our relationship with food plays a crucial role in our lives. It impacts our physical health, emotional well-being, and so much more. But sadly, sometimes that relationship can become unhealthy. When we have a bad relationship with food, we might find ourselves eating too much or too often, which can ultimately lead to poor health. It’s a cycle that can be difficult to break, but it’s important to try and improve our relationship with food in order to live healthier happier lives. Whatever your history with food is, here are some tips on how to change your relationship with food for the better without a restrictive diet.
What are unhealthy relationships with food?
An unhealthy relationship with food is a pattern of behaviour that involves using food in a way that is detrimental to one’s physical or emotional well-being. This type of relationship with food can take many forms and can have a variety of underlying causes. One common form of an unhealthy relationship with food is disordered eating. Disordered eating can include behaviours such as restrictive eating, binge eating, purging, or overexercising. These behaviours can lead to physical and emotional distress, and can even be dangerous in severe cases.
Another form of an unhealthy relationship with food is emotional eating, people tend to use food as a coping mechanism. This is when someone eats in response to their emotions, rather than because they are physically hungry. For example, someone who eats to cope with stress or boredom is engaging in emotional eating. This type of eating can lead to weight gain and other health problems.
Cultural and societal influences can also contribute to an unhealthy relationship with food. The media and societal norms often portray unrealistic body standards and promote unhealthy diet and exercise habits. This can lead to negative body image and unhealthy relationships with food.
It’s worth noting that an unhealthy relationship with food can take many different forms. It’s not always obvious when someone has an unhealthy relationship with food, and it’s important to be aware of the signs and to seek help if needed.
Some common signs of an unhealthy relationship with food include obsession with weight, body image, food obsession, frequent dieting, and difficulty enjoying food without feeling bad, guilt or shame. If you notice any of these signs in yourself or someone you care about, it’s important to seek help.
What does a healthy relationship with food look like?
A healthy relationship with food goes beyond just making healthy food choices. It’s about being mindful and present when we eat, listening to our body’s cues, and not restricting or overindulging.
When we have a healthier relationship with food, we eat without feeling guilty or ashamed. We can listen to our body’s signals of hunger and fullness, and eat until we are comfortably full and we don’t overeat for the sake of it. We can also enjoy a wide variety of foods without feeling like any food is off-limits.
In contrast, someone with an unhealthy relationship with food may restrict their food intake, only eating certain “approved” foods and avoiding others. They may also engage in binge eating, eating large amounts of food when it’s in a short period of time. This can lead to feelings of guilt and shame, which can perpetuate the cycle of unhealthy eating habits.
In summary, a healthy relationship with food involves listening to our body’s cues and responding to them without judgment or shame. It involves being fully present around food, and not restricting or overindulging. If we are struggling with our relationship with food, seeking support from a registered dietitian can be helpful. With persistence and support, we can develop a healthier and more fulfilling relationship with food.
Do you want your relationship with food to look like this? Do you want to put the nice foods into your diet? Don’t want to dread eating certain foods that you hate? Then keep reading and take tips to help below.
9 tips on ways to reset your relationship with food:
- 1. Practice mindful eating. This means paying attention to your body’s signals of hunger and fullness, and eating slowly and without distractions.
- 2. Ditch the diet mentality. Diets often involve restricting certain foods and can lead to an unhealthy relationship with food. Instead, focus on making healthy and balanced food choices.
- 3. Don’t use food as a reward or punishment. This can lead to emotional eating and can reinforce negative beliefs about food.
- 4. Listen to your body’s signals and responding to them without judgment or shame.
- 5. Challenge negative thoughts and beliefs about food and your body. These thoughts can lead to unhealthy behaviours and can be changed with time and effort.
- 6. Don’t avoid or restrict certain foods. This can lead to feelings of deprivation and can ultimately lead to binge eating. Don’t compare yourself to others. Everyone is different, and it’s important to focus on your own health and well-being.
- 7. Engage in physical activity for the enjoyment and health benefits, rather than as a means to control your weight or appearance.
- 8. Be patient with yourself. Improving your relationship with food is a journey, and it may take time and effort to develop healthy habits around food.
- 9. Be kind to yourself and celebrate small victories along the way. You will be looking at food in a totally different way in no time.
Bonus tip:
Understanding natural hunger and being able to recognise is one of the most powerful skills to have when it comes to making healthy choices about food, We can develop this skill easily.
Have you found yourself feeling like you’re starving not long after having a meal, and thought to yourself “I can’t be hungry already”? You’re not the only one and many people struggle with the exact problem.
So, Instead of reaching for a snack or meal every time you feel hungry, take a pause and try drinking a glass of water first. This can help you determine if your body is truly hungry or if you are just feeling thirsty.
Another helpful tip is to go for a walk or engage in some light physical activity. This can help you determine if you are truly hungry or if you are just bored or stressed.
This is how we at Turtle Method will transform your relationship with food
First off, let’s explain who we are;
We are a women’s health and wellness app that has helped thousands of people improve their relationship with food and reach their health goals, whether they want to lose weight or gain weight.
Did you know that there are no good or bad foods, and you are able to eat anything you like? (in moderation)
Yes, you can still lose weight while eating the types of food you love. Yes, that even includes snacks like chocolate and crisps, we encourage it for weight loss.
You don’t have to be hungry all the time to lose weight. We provide straightforward guidance on how to lose weight and keep it off for good. Our goal is to help you make life-lasting changes to your lifestyle for better health and happiness.
Our free 14-day nutrition masterclass will better your relationship with food. It will empower you to break free from the constraints of diet culture and see food as your friend again, helping you to stop guilt eating. (You can eat your own food preferences) You no longer will have to feel like you’re eating terribly or you can’t eat this and can’t eat that.
Our app will calculate your ideal number of calories and macro intake to support your weight loss or weight gain goals. We use powerful Artificial Intelligence (AI) within our app, which we have trained on data from over 60,000 members. This means it will automatically adjust your caloric and macro targets after a weekly review, so you don’t have to worry about making changes yourself.
Additionally, our masterclass will connect you with like-minded individuals who are also working towards their nutrition goals, providing accountability and support through WhatsApp & Facebook groups. You can ask questions and others are in the same boat as you.
You will also have access to over 500 recipes and meal prep videos to help you create easy, high-protein, and affordable meals that you can continue to use throughout your journey.
Why is our 14-day masterclass free?
It’s simple, we want to test our app capabilities out and see what’s possible in 14 days with the right support, app, and community. Why don’t you call a friend and join us at the same time? You don’t need to enter card details to trial our app for 14 days.
Develop a healthier relationship with food and health, eat mindfully and get rid of any food issues/bad habits that you may have about food. It is not that hard when it comes to change your lifestyle when using our app. Just try for yourself, you have nothing to lose.
I am ready to change my relationship with food – Download app now
