❌ I don’t drink my sugar. When it comes to sugar, I use a sugar “credit” system where I give myself one daily sugar allowance. Sugar is already in everything and a lot of times cannot be avoided entirely, but when it comes to having something sweet & sugar filled, I decide whether or not it’s worth using my credit.
Since I have only one credit for the day, I get to decide which one is really going to be worth it. I will never choose a soda or highly sugary drink over a slice of pie or cake. It’s simply not worth it. So when you’re sitting down at a restaurant and order a soda, for example, you are choosing that soda over dessert. Because soda IS dessert. With my sugar credit system, you cannot have both a soft drink and a dessert in the same day, let alone the same meal.Examples:
For breakfast, I’ll have an omelette. If I’m offered a donut, and I choose the donut, I’ve used my credit for that day. (You get one dessert credit)
For lunch, I’ll have chickpea pasta with salmon and veggies. If I’m offered a cookie, and I choose the cookie, I’ve used my credit for that day.
For dinner, I’ll have fish with veggies. If I’m offered a soft drink, I will NOT choose it, and will instead choose a more satisfying dessert, like a brownie!
This recent Thanksgiving, I passed up on all the apple cider (sugar) and opted for the sweet potato pie.
✅ I normalize veggies for breakfast. No meal is complete with vegetables. In the U.S., and perhaps elsewhere, it’s not common to find vegetables on the menu for breakfast unless it’s in an omelette. You have waffles (sugar), and donuts (sugar), and eggs, bacon, toast with jam (sugar), and hashbrowns, and just a ton of carby options. Notice this next time you go to breakfast. Next time you’re making bacon and eggs, steam some spinach or bokchoy or broccoli or beets. Add in veggies.
❌ I don’t use a reward system. My diet, my way of eating and being and living in my body, is not a game. I don’t give myself “rewards” in the form of sweets or pasta or pizza or whatever because I was “good all week”.
✅ I live low GI as a way of life, not a diet. I live a low glycemic diet, the same way a person in India lives an Indian diet or Korean person lives a Korean diet. It’s a way of life, it’s culture, and I treat it as such.
❌ I don’t label food as good or bad. Food is neutral. I either choose a certain food or I don’t. But I have no additional thoughts or feelings about it. I live by guiding principle and act accordingly. (see: number 8)
✅ I create my own traditions. It’s ok to not do something that your parents and grandparents used to do. It’s ok to do something different than what your siblings do for themselves or their children. It’s OK to have your own ideas and principles and traditions.
❌ I don’t guilt, shame, or punish myself. “I ate too much pie, why don’t I have any self control???”. There was a time when I’d spiral, but not in the past 15 years. There was a time when I’d punish myself for “eating bad” the previous day and as my punishment, I’d eat a salad the next day. [I can write an entire piece on how we label vegetables as a form of torture]. Guilt, shame, and punishment have NO place in my diet, my way of life.
✅ I follow my ABC’s. ABC stands for “always be contributing”, and this means I am always contributing to the thing that I want. If it’s good health or losing weight or controlling my blood sugar or healing my gut, when I approach food, I ask myself , “how can I best contribute to my gut?” and then make a choice.
❌ I don’t explain my choices. This is perhaps the hardest thing for most, especially women, constantly being bombarded with questions on why they’re eating a certain way or choosing a certain thing. Your diet is yours. You are choosing what’s best for your body (you know your body better than anyone), and you don’t have to explain that. Next time someone asks or has a comment, you can say, “this is what I choose” or “this is my diet”.
✅ I let go and accept. There are times where my normal daily options are simply not available. When I’m traveling, I let go and joyfully accept the foods of the culture I find myself in. You know, when in Rome. When I’m in Mexico, I eat Mexican food. When I’m in Italy, I eat Italian food. When I’m at a baseball game, I eat the hotdog.
Lastly, (yes, number 11) I don’t judge anyone ever for their food choices. These are meant to give you insight into how I think about diet and nutrition and my own living principles. These things have served me, without restricting me. They may shift your perspective, and that’s what counts.
You may notice that this list is mostly mindset. Because the truth is, food is food. Food is neutral. It’s our thoughts and feelings about food that make it something else. Something to fear, love, hate, enjoy, villainize, praise, and on and on.
I have settled into myself, into my body, and into my life, on what is true for me. What supports me. What loves me. What heals me. What is the kindest most, loving thing. With certainty. And I help other women do the same.
These words are 100% human (me, Jen) – written without AI assistance