Does embracing the anti-diet life mean I have to give up on my health?

Does the idea of allowing all foods make you think of "eating junk food all day" and giving up on nutrition?

If you had asked me this question a few years ago, I would have raised my hand. I didn't want to UNlearn my hard-earned nutritional prowess. As a health coach, I had dedicated time and energy to understanding how food could help my body thrive. Eating "clean" actually felt good.

EXCEPT for the pesky binges.

I saw the binges as getting in the way of my nutritional discipline. I did not understand that my nutritional discipline was causing my binges.

Here's the part that gets missed in the anti-diet message: it does not have to be one or the other. You do not have to surrender your physical health in order to recover.

The process of allowing all foods, while temporarily suspending your strict adherence to nutritional wisdom, actually gives you more freedom in the long run to choose foods that fuel your body well without sacrificing your mental health in doing so.

I used to choose "clean foods" from the point of view of fear, pressure, and identity attachment.

I now eat many of those same foods from the point of view of preference, attunement, and pleasure.

I also enjoy a variety of other "fun" foods when the mood strikes me, because those foods have more to do with my health than I had previously considered. I no longer experience the stress spikes associated with eating them, which is a major aspect of your mental health.

Allowing all foods gives your health room to expand. If you enjoy "healthy" foods, there is room for that in recovery.