Diet isn't a four letter word

This is a rant. Bear with me.

I get so tired of hearing about diets. Or people talking about being on a diet. Or asking if I'm on a diet. Diet, diet, diet.

No. The Whole 30 isn't a 'diet'. Yes, the Whole 30 is a diet.

At my homeschool table, the word diet is used when we talk about what animals eat. Mr. Panda isn't 'on a diet' when he eats bamboo. His diet is bamboo. Diet means what you eat.

Eating healthy isn't the same as "being on a diet". Just because the general population of America is so used to take-out and fast food, that doesn't mean that people that aren't constantly eating take-out and fast food are doing something extraordinary.

In fact, labeling something "a diet" is setting yourself up for failure. Eventually, you will choose something that isn't on your plan. Enter guilt. We'll you've blow breakfast, might as well do what you want the rest of the day. And two weeks later that diet is nothing but a distant memory.

Instead, choose to eat healthier (whatever you decide that means for you).

Eating healthier isn't a quick fix. It isn't a band-aid weight loss plan. It's taking control of what you put in your mouth. It's your diet. Not you being on a diet.

Oddly enough when you eat healthier, you will lose weight. Not at a rate to win The Biggest Loser. But when you aren't only eating junk, your body will change. The less junk you eat, the faster your body will change. And if you listen to your body you will learn what foods to fuel it with to get the best results. (I have a lot of opinions about this, but I'll save them for another time.)

Eating healthy foods is my diet. No, I'm not 'on a diet'.

This also means if you see me in public and I'm eating junk. I know. Because I'm not 'on a diet'. I am free to choose what I want. I'm not accountable to any one fad.

Still for the next few weeks I'm going to do the Whole 30 challenge (note: challenge, not diet). It's my way of listening to my body and seeing what foods fuel it the best. Will I be perfect? I haven't been so far. But that's part of it being a challenge. If it were easy it wouldn't be called a challenge. Do I wish I would make different choices? Sure. I'd like to be perfect at everything I do. But I know I'm not perfect. And I don't expect anyone else to be.

I will always talk about how people make mistakes. I make mistakes. If you take away nothing else from my blog, I want everyone to realize, it's okay to make mistakes. You just pick up right where you are and move forward. Every time you make a mistake, you learn.

At this rate, I should be a genius by now. HA!