On Facebook and Instagram this week I asked the question: If you could wave a magic wand and change anything about your relationship with your food and body, what would that be? What would that look like for you, and what does it even mean to have a relationship with your food and your body? Today we're exploring this topic and I'd love your thoughts as well! If you could wave a magic wand & change anything about your relationship with food, what would it be? What about your relationship with your body? Are you familiar with the expression "our thoughts create our reality"? This is not only true in our lives and our relationships, it also rings true when thinking about our relationship with food, as well as our relationship with our body. So often we don’t even think about the fact that we have a relationship with our food & body. If you are in a space where you have never considered the concept of relationship with your food or your body, this is a great place to begin! Maybe you're feeling completely overwhelmed by the void between where you are in your relationship with your body & food compared to where you want to be. I understand this feeling of exhaustion also! For years I lived completely ruled by numbers. I would start my day by weighing myself, and that number would dictate the mood of the rest of my day. My peer group and work friends would spend endless hours discussing their latest diet and workout routines, beating themselves up for being "bad" the day prior. I found myself depleted and run down by the end of the day, but would force myself go to an exercise class in order to feel like I had earned that glass of wine with dinner. After dinner I couldn’t help myself- I just had to have something sweet to end the meal. Except one piece of chocolate never did the trick. Since I had deprived myself by being “good” all day, my body refused to let me stop at just one piece of sugary sweetness- I needed more, until I had eaten half the bag of candy, the tub of ice cream, 5 cookies, you get the idea. Or I would find myself a few pieces of candy deep and think “well this day of dieting is wasted so I might as well finish off the bag. Diet starts TOMORROW”. I would go to bed full of shame and anger towards myself for my inability to stick with any diet. And the following day, the cycle started all over again. What an exhausting way to live! You deserve to live a life beyond the scale, the constant diet talk, and feeling out of control around food Just like any relationship, building a relationship with your body & food will take time and will involve small steps to build trust along the way.
Start with listening to the way you speak to yourself throughout the day. We all speak to ourselves throughout our day, even if we don't realize it. So begin to bring awareness to the messages you're sending to your body and food- bring this awareness as if you are viewing it from a place of observation, not from a place of judgement. For example, if you find yourself craving french fries at lunch but instead you speak to yourself "you can't have those, they go straight to your hips", observe that thought without going down the rabbit hole of judgement towards that thought. Observe it as if you were watching yourself in that moment. As you continue to observe your thoughts, begin to assess how you speak to yourself. Are you filling yourself up with words of gentleness and love, or do you fill yourself with criticism and shame? This can be a powerful exploration! Now you can take it one step further by asking yourself if you would say these same words to someone you love. Just like our healthy relationships with loved ones, it's important to lift ourselves up with affirmations and love. If you would never speak to a loved one in the ways you speak to yourself, it's time to begin to change some of the messaging you send to our bodies and towards the food you consume. How are you developing and nurturing a relationship with your body & food? I look forward to continuing to take this journey of discovery and healing with you! |
About Jessica Leigh WellbeingAt Jessica Leigh Wellbeing, I support women in discovering the wisdom in their body's cravings.
I utilize a customized multi-faceted approach that addresses the psychology of eating, intuitive movement, energy healing, bodywork & more. Break Free From Food & Body ObsessionSign up below to get my my FREE 4-part video series, and explore how we, as women, have been taught to hate our bodies, while gaining practical tools to step into a transformed relationship with food and your body.
These engaging videos will empower you to envision a life outside of food & body preoccupation, and will include interactive opportunities & exercises to continue your journey even after the videos are over. Sign up to receive your FREE 4-part video series below!
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