Screw you, diet.
You can take all your twisted thinking, restrictive living and throw yourself off a bridge. I don’t have time for you. I could care less if you think you can help me lose 7lbs in the first week. I spit in the direction of your nicely worded marketing package that used to make me think eating your way for just awhile longer will get me to where I want to be. I cringe at the thought of following your program because you seem to think you are a one-size-fits all. I refuse to take out half the items in the food chain, even if for a week, because the truth is, that’s the only reason why I’d lose 7lbs in one week… is by starving myself. And I don’t need you taking all my money just to give me some overly-chemicalized box of food or a meal-in-a-can type faux food.Your gimmicky commercials and your “results-not-typical” customer testimonials don’t work on me.
The thought of your name on my lips revolts me.
Screw you, diet.
I’m living a healthy life.
Oh don’t you worry, I’m happy. I’m making choices. I’m doing in real life what you only wish you could help others achieve. I’m eating carrots followed by cake. I’m washing my chips and salsa down with water because I want to; because it’s my choice. I’m living a healthy life. I know exactly what it takes to be healthy. Balance. I’m living a healthy life because this is my life. MY LIFE.
Each and every one of my decision is mine – I’m holding my head up and making each choice with pride. When I eat two desserts in one day, I skip dessert the next day; that’s balance. When I’ve worked out for five days in a row and need a break, I take a day off; that’s balance. And when I crave chocolate, I eat a piece and move on with my day; that’s balance.
I’m living a healthy life.
I’ve only got one life, one shot at being healthy today. I don’t need you, diet, to come in and ruin my life. This is my life. It is my responsibility and only my responsibility to do things the way that I know I need to. I’m not going to hide behind you just so that I can cry and whine and blame you when I didn’t make a choice I’m proud of. So screw you, diet. This is my life and I’m in control around here.
Screw you, diet. I’m living a healthy life.
{ 41 comments… read them below or add one }
Love this. Soooooooo much.
Jen,
Good for you I like a girl that kicks ass.. Live life to make yourself happy!!!!
So THERE!
EXCELLENT post. Truly and magnificently, excellent! What a breakthrough. Thanks for sharing! What so. many. need to hear!
this may have been my favorite post ever!
Awesome
Diets suck. Plain and simple they really do. I’m on a diet this month and hate it. Eventually I’d like to find that happy combo where I can eat an occasional sweet here and there, get some exercise time in, and drop a pound or two each month. Work in progress.
I love the part about you making choices with pride. Don’t apologize. Life is short! Enjoy, balance, and you win in the end.
Love it, Jen.
Whenever I’ve dieted, I’ve felt I’d “failed” when I had one slip-up or made one mistake. I’d quit right then and there. The reason why my weight loss is working (slowly) for me this time is that I’m being more realistic and changing my habits gradually and such a way that they are sticking!
I, too, am learning balance.
Cheers~
Amen, sista! Diets do suck and they don’t work!
Amen, sister! I absolutely love this post! For me, this path that I walk (or shuffle, or cycle, or run) is all about *living* my everyday life. I only get one of them, and I get to choose how I live it. Choosing healthier choices is good for me. It’s definitely all about balance (says this Libra). Thanks for posting this!
YES! I’ve never done any restrictive or rigid programs, but obviously entertained the idea when I was 260lbs and desperate. I honestly believed if I could just fork over the INSANE amount of money it would be my “fix”. I’m so glad I didn’t, because obviously my broke 18 year old self couldn’t have afforded it anyway
If they work for people, awesome. Seriously. I’ve been desperate- I’ve been willing to try anything. I get it. I just know that for me, I need to do something to be healthy that I can do forever, and any kind of formal program where I have to buy their food, am on a liquid diet, whatever, is not sustainable for me.
This got long, but all to say, I feel you home skillet. I’ve been chewing on this exact thought a lot this week, and I would fist bump you right now if I could. Keep working through all this and writing about it!
I agree with everything you said Angie. I’ve been THAT desperate where I’ve thought about joining a program that pushed their own Carb Blockers and Fat Burners along with extreme restriction. I’ve been tempted, but I know I can’t live the rest of my life like that.
I LOVE this post, Jen!
Those programs are SO tempting! I see them and think “oh, maybe I should just do it for a little bit” but the truth is, this is life, not a diet!
Have a healthy day, Jaime!
um… I love your comment three times as much because you called me “home skillet” — HA!
Amen.
Preach it sister!
Healthiness is the way to go. Diets don’t last. It kills me to see ads for programs that send all of the food to you. Because what happens when you’re done? You gain it all back. Slowly, yes, but still. You haven’t learned how to eat or how to cook; you’ve just depended on someone else to do all the hard work for you.
Are you off the Weight Watchers program? Did something happen?
No, not off Weight Watchers. Weight watchers is a lifestyle, not a diet. I don’t follow a diet, I make balanced choices. Nothing happened. This post is me screaming at the “diet” mentality. I’m standing up and fighting for a healthiness life, not a diet
Ahh, gotcha! Rock on!
This is a great post! – my parents always ask me “oh how’s the diet going?” even after I’ve explained it’s not a diet several times – drives me nuts
Umm, but you are going to Weight Watchers. That is one of the BIGGEST “Diet” PROGRAMS out there.
I’m not on a diet. For me, Weight Watchers is helping me with habits, I’m not following a diet. Others can be on the same program and for them, it is a diet.
It still screams HYPOCRISY to me.
Weight watchers isn’t a diet, it is a life style that teaches you what foods make you feel your best and help you maintain a healthy weight. It’s not something you do in phases, like atkins, it’s doesn’t restrict exercise like Medifast, and it doesn’t require you to eat not real foods like Slimfast. Therefore, it is a way to help you kick start a healthy lifestyle that can be maintained that way for your whole life.
I disagree. Weight watchers restrictions nothing (like diets do). They simply make you accountable for what you put in your mouth and make sure you don’t exceed your allotment for your goals. If I want to eat 4 candy bars today, I am still within my points, but that’s all I can eat for the balance of the day with the exception of veggies. I don’t believe weight watchers is a ‘diet’ as it allows me the balance and be responsible for my choices.
Real food. Real exercise. Real life. That perfectly describes the new Weight Watchers. That hasn’t always been the case but it most certainly is now. Anyway, it’s helpful to many and promotes real whole foods and daily exercise. That’s a good thing, right?
The new PointsPlus system definitely promotes more of lifestyle change than the old points program in my opinion. I could “work the system” before and still be consuming more processed junk food than I should. I defintely felt more restricted/deprived on the old WW system than I do now. Maybe it’s the way I’m looking at the program this time around as well. I just know that as soon as I follow a diet that tells me I can’t have a certain type of food, I completely fixate on that food. On the new WW, I notice I don’t obsess over any one type of food – I’m just focusing on balanced eating throughout the entire day.
Dear Ann, While I’m extremely disappointed that you would even think such of me, I want to remind you that I am living my life to the definition of what healthiness is to me. It is not your right to determine how I live my life when the truth is, you’ve never met me. I’d like to add that http://www.priorfatgirl.com is about me sharing my experiences, struggles and all; this is not a place for me to proclaim my perfectionism. My life, my journey is an evolution – I will continue to adapt to what I need.
This is a place for me to share my life – if you don’t like what you read, if you aren’t enjoying it, I suggest you stop reading.
All I said is that your statements seem a bit hypocritical, that’s all. I found this post to be very comical with you being on Weight Watchers – one of the biggest DIET companies in the WORLD.
It’s really not. It teaches you how to think about what you are eating vs. telling you what you SHOULD eat. You don’t have to eat their food – heck when I was on it, If I needed to induIge in my favorite sweet treat, then I COULD if I planned for it. I think you are living in a dream world where you confuse learning to make healthy choices (Weight Watchers) versus being told what to eat (i.e. medifast, slimfast, slimgenics.) Weight Watchers is about making better food choices not following a strict plan.
Jen, I didn’t know you were on Weight Watchers. I can’t say if it’s a diet or not because I’m not with WW so I think it’s up to the person. Only they really know. What are your thoughts on their partnership with McDonald’s? Do you agree or disagree? Thanks!
Love this! Weight watchers is NOT a diet – you can eat whatever you want. It is a way to learn the fundamentals of what an appropriate amount of food looks like and feels like and how to make choices.
I love this! When I live in balance, I am happier, healthier and I feel alive. Weight Watchers is so great for helping guide me toward balance.
Heck yeah! This is great!!!
Love it. Yep, diets suck.
Power to you!
I agree Jen! What’s the point of living on a diet when all you able to say is no to life?! It’s all about balance and you’re doing it!
Perfect!
EXACTLY! today I celebrate my 3 years of living healthy (i have never called it a diet…cuz i knew I would fail). I am down about 75lbs but working towards more.
WE can do this! Keep up the great work and inspiring all of us to do better!
I wasn’t going to chime in on this until I saw my DIET mentioned.
Look, I don’t like this debate of diet vs. healthy choices. Its like the age old debate of Working mom vs Stay at Home mom. Neither one is right or wrong but each doing what works for them.
Jen, I think its wrong for you to criticize ‘diets’ like this. Because quite a few of your readers, people finding inspiration through you (like me), are reading this and feeling bad about the choices they are making. And while Nutrisystem, Jenny, Medifast and the like may not be for YOU, it is unfair of you to shame those who choose to use them. I’ve done them all, WW many, many, many times over. The only plan I have ever been successful on is Medifast.
And Medifast is not for everyone. Just as ‘healthy choices’ (ahem. Medifast IS a healthy choice) and WW is not for everyone. Some people need a little extra help.
I’m an obsessive over-eater. WW only exacerbated the issue because I was thinking about points incessantly until I’d give up and binge. Being on a plan like Medifast has allowed me the space to identify and work on the issues that caused me to become obese in the first place. And once I hit goal, I will transition from the plan foods to real-world foods. I’ve worked very hard on my ‘diet’ to fix not only the way I eat but to fix ME. And I think we all know that at the root of any successful weight loss plan is a person that has fixed themselves more so than their food.
I won’t try to convince anyone here what the better option is because only the individual can decide that. But I am disappointed by the judgmental tone of this post. And I do have to agree with Ann. Jen, you paid for WW. And I can’t see in your pantry but I’m willing to bet you’ve purchased WW brand foods at some point. A diet is a diet is a diet whether you are eating processed foods, whole foods, raw food, counting points or calories.
I like and respect you Jen and I have followed your blog for ages. But this is terribly disappointing and short sighted.
And to the person that mentioned Medifast, they only restrict exercise in the first 3 weeks to allow your body to adjust to the new plan. But if you were involved in an exercise regimen before starting the plan you may continue exercising.
I love this!! So many people use diets to lose weight and then go off the diet just to gain it all back. Weight watchers is the only program I have ever followed that showed me what real, healthy eating looks like, what portions should be and how to create balance with my choices. Not a diet at all, imo (although I have seen MANY people misuse the system). In some cases, a packaged food diet may be necessary, but that is not the case with Jen, and that is what she was speaking about here.
Weight Watchers is mainly about accountability and support. Food is an addiction, just like drugs or alcohol or nicotine so I think of it like A.A. except at the other end of the alphabet ~ W.W. I will need the accountability of WW for the REST of my life, not for any restrictions (and I don’t use the food products ~no one has to) but because it’s just too dang easy to slide back into old habits and too easy to deny having done so. Too easy to pick back up the crack pipe (oops, I mean m&ms)…
This is awesome! I love your attitude.