This is truly the trickiest time to be a runner! Fall races are all done, so our motivation to get outside and run in the colder, darker days of winter may not be as high as it was over the summer. You may feel less obligation to run right now without any impending races.
Sound familiar??
So you may think that because you're running less, you need a diet to make sure you stay healthy this winter??
It is really tempting to reach for a diet or say mean things to yourself when you are feeling like you are not on top of your stuff. But, alas, diets do not work. At the two year mark, 85% of diets have failed, and that number jumps to 95% at the three year mark. Dieting is not sustainable, wreaks havoc on your metabolism, and often causes a lot of unnecessary stress to your system. I promise there's a better solution than dieting...
Let's talk about your HUMAN brain
Hate to break this to ya, but you are a human being and you have a human brain!!! :) What this means is that we can predict the way you are going to behave around a set of food rules or diet because your human brain is predictable!
For example, when we tell our brain to not eat bread what happens is the primitive part of our brain perceives that as scarcity. It thinks there is not enough bread in the world! Even though logically you know that there is so much bread to be had! So the primitive part of your brain will actually drive you to ˆwant to eat all the bread, pizza, flatbreads, bagels you see!.
When the primitive brain is in the driver's seat, over eating and bingeing tends to happen. Remember, your brain thinks food is scarce, and evolutionarily your body wants to "stock up" on this scarce resource.
Dieting does not work with your brain chemistry, it is setting you up to no longer be able to listen to your hunger cues.
Another important thing to remember is that everyone is going to have different needs
Here are some questions I ask in Food Freedom Fit Fam.
What are you training for?
Are you injured?
What is your physical activity like?
What is a realistic lifestyle for the commitments that you have?
We need to start adjusting the way you are eating to align with your activity level. Making sure if you are more active that you are eating enough. Also making sure if you are in a less active season that you are still eating enough and that you are eating nutrient dense foods that are going to keep you fuller longer. You need to start thinking, "What does my unique body need right now so that I can successfully fuel it?" Food Freedom Fit Fam sets you up so whether you're in a high activity or rest season, you know how to confidently fuel.
I want to share a story about one of my Food Freedom Fit Fam graduates, her name is Rachel. She had been struggling with dieting since she was a teenager. She didn't understand how to fuel her body as an active woman. She is insanely active, I have no idea how she does it all!! She trains for marathons and has two young boys and runs a business! When we started working together we needed to make sure she was eating enough to support her body by giving it enough food. We were doing this to make sure her brain felt calm, so that it knew there was enough food & nothing was scarce. She also needed to learn that food was her friend. Food helped her become a more powerful athlete, mom and marathon runner. In Food Freedom Fit Fam, Rachel learned how to make peace with food so she could confidently fuel her marathon training plans & stop the cycle of under and over eating. Isn't that what we all want? Peace of mind around food! Can you imagine having that for you?
Want to learn more about joining Food Freedom Fit Fam? Click here so we can chat! When you apply, I will set up a time to chat with you more to make sure you're the perfect fit before extending an invitation for you to join!
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