Does eating nutritious food (or embracing Gentle Nutrition) make you feel like you’re restricting again?

This is an issue that comes into my DMs regularly! And I get it, because I remember going through it. When you’re dieting, eating nutrient-dense food is a morally-sanctioned win. When you start anti-dieting, the last thing you’re focused on is eating vegetables and grilled chicken — there’s been enough of that and it’s time to reintegrate the foods you’ve been missing.

But what happens when the honeymoon phase of the recovery process is fading away and you actually find yourself wanting nutritious food? Is that anti-anti-dieting? Will you risk relapse? How can you do it without sliding back into a dieting mindset?

These are very real questions that sometimes warrant their own coaching program! (I run a Gentle Nutrition Group periodically throughout the year, and sometimes coach 1:1 with this specific focus.) Here are some things to consider if this has been coming up for you:

Diet and anti-diet have become black & white concepts.

Diet culture and anti-diet culture stand for very different things, but nothing in this world is completely black and white. Maybe your old diet introduced you to new recipes that you actually love, or helped you realize that eating protein with meals really does feel satisfying. There is a big difference between nutrition (feels supportive) and dieting (feels oppressive). Anti-diet culture is not against making choices that actually feel good, even if some of those choices are also embraced by diet culture.

Nutrition reminds you of dieting.

For many people, eating foods like salmon or chicken, broccoli and salads, apples and blueberries (insert "healthy choice" here) is synonymous with dieting. Unfortunately, diet culture has hijacked food and put it into categories of "good" and "bad," so eating "good" foods can remind you of your restriction days. Take these foods back from diet culture. Nutritional variety feels good, and we are allowed to feel good. Reclaim these foods back into your life with flexibility. It's nutrition, not dieting.

It feels like the fun is over.

If you still operate with an All or Nothing mentality, introducing "healthy" foods back into your life can be mistaken for giving up "fun" foods. For example, you might think: I feel like I want to have the salad bar for lunch--I guess that means I shouldn't have a big ol' sandwich anymore. Instead, it means: some days I'll want the salad, and other days I'll want the sandwich (or both). Ask yourself what you *want* on any given day, taking into account mood, physical needs, hunger, convenience, etc. The choice is still yours.

You still want to lose weight.

The desire to lose weight may never go away, which can make Gentle Nutrition feel like a slippery slope. What if the desire to lose weight turns into controlling food again? You are allowed to desire weight loss--but acting on the desire and compromising recovery is a different thing. If you find yourself creating rigid rules around Gentle Nutrition (in a covert attempt to lose weight), reassess. Trial and error is your friend. You can practice Gentle Nutrition AND feel a desire for weight loss WITHOUT compromising your recovery (make sure you're in a later phase of recovery before trialing).

Its too early.

Recovery is messy and uncomfortable. It's tempting to want to rush into the arms of Gentle Nutrition, where it feels safe and reminiscent of being "in control." But Gentle Nutrition, when taken up too early, can be code for regression. Make sure you are solid in your recovery before you attempt this stage. That means feeling safe around all foods, not restricting (physically or mentally), and having reliable hunger and fullness signals. If the whole concept triggers you, it's probably too early. Give yourself more time. <3

My programs focus on Intuitive Eating for beginners as well as more advanced stages like this. You can move through this phase without compromising your recovery or backsliding into the dieting mindset. Eating nutritious foods is part of intuitive eating! Apply to work with me to learn more.