A New Diet Plan

I remember when I first read about how processed foods were designed. First comes the need to satisfy shareholders and in order to do that, focus groups are brought in to help determine the 'crunch factor' of a potato chip or the 'mouth feel' of a cookie filling. Really? Yes. Processed foods, especially highly processed foods, are big business. And when I learned how much money and effort was put into something just so I'd crave it, I said NO - I don't want to be manipulated in that way. It was a very liberating moment and one that moved me away from most processed foods.
The 'diet' industry is no better. There are shareholders to satisfy and focus groups to help determine the best strategies to bring in customers. When you join a commercial diet program, you are investing in a corporation - lock, stock and barrel. You have put your body and soul into the hands of a corporation that 1) offers the same packaged program to millions of people, 2) doesn't understand or care about your uniqueness, and 3) wants your money.
If you're someone who has ever paid to go on a diet, have you ever thought about how much of yourself you've invested in that corporation? How much power you've given them? You pay them and they tell you what to do. Once you lose the weight, you get excited and then what happens? You gain the weight back. These companies know this! They know you'll gain the weight back because it's human nature. Over 95% of those who go on a diet gain the weight back within a year along with a extra few pounds. So what do we do? We sign back up. Maybe not with the same program, but there are plenty to choose from. We search for another program that will bring the success we've been told we need.
I know for myself dieting was a way of life - for 40 years! And I don't think I'm alone. If one diet didn't work, I'd just try another and another until finally one day I realized what I was doing and said "enough"! It's been a few years now, but no dieting. No more giving my money, my dreams, and my power to a corporation that spends millions of dollars trying to seduce me into a promise that can't be kept.
And it's not just that these companies promise we'll lose weight, that's not what bothers me the most. What really gets under my skin is that in order for diet companies to get our attention and purchase their product, they first have to convince us that there's something wrong with us. For me, this is the saddest thing of all and the most harmful because once we've bought into the notion that we're nobody unless we fit some marketing ideal, it sticks.
There is nothing wrong with you. You are a magnificent human being and you are loved beyond measure. A real 'diet program' is one that helps shed the negative thoughts you have around your body. Most of us who feel compelled to diet and lose weight really only need to lose the negative body shaming thoughts we have.
Your body is unique to you! I hope you will listen to how you talk to your body and let any negative thoughts go. That's the kind of 'diet' I want you to be on, a diet plan where you invest in yourself!
 
In love and light,
Deborah