My Story
When I reached my teenage years, I was already dieting, always feeling like I had to look a certain way to fit in. This continued throughout my adult life, I would go from one diet to the next but never achieving the unrealistic goals that I had set for myself. I would severely restrict my food intake during the week which would then lead to binge cycles during the weekend. I had fallen off track again!!
I constantly felt tired miserable and had strong feelings of failure. I had always had an all or nothing personality, this was the same for my diet, everything had to be perfect, or it was simply not good enough. If I ate some chocolate or any high calorie food, I would have feelings of extreme guilt but then think well that’s it I’ve ruin this week so I might as well start again on Monday. I spent so much of my life in this sad never-ending cycle of being on a diet and falling off the diet, what a sad existence.
I am someone who has also enjoyed exercise and playing sport and I have always been a keen runner. I love the energy that it gives me, there is nothing like that rush of endorphins post workout to make you feel like you can achieve anything. However, when I was desperate to reach my unrealistic goal weight, I started to use exercise to burn more calories doing multiple sessions a day and sometimes not taking a rest for long periods of time. I know now what a damaging affect this can have on the body. I reached a point back in 2019 when I was unable to run for a long period of time as I had picked up so many injuries as my body just couldn’t take anymore. At the time I really couldn’t understand why this was happening to me after all I was meant to be so fit and healthy right?
At this time, I noticed a deterioration in my health, I wasn’t sleeping well so I was tired and feeling anxious all the time, my hair started to fall out, and I reached a point where my periods completely stop. I was 42 years old and not in a good place both physically and mentally and I knew it was time to make a change. The really sad thing is that to everyone else looking at me they assumed that I was happy and healthy.
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I thought I knew what was healthy when it came to food, but I had always followed all the trends over the years that were forced upon us by the media. I was guilty of only ever thinking about the quantity of food that I ate when I was dieting rather than focusing on what I was putting on my plate. I started to take a real interest in nutrition and wanted to understand more about the effect food has on our bodies and more importantly as a woman in her forties, our hormones.
I began to study for my nutrition coaching qualification in 2020 and what an eye opener this was for me. I truly began to understand the importance of nourishing the body which completely transformed my thinking about food and diet. Whilst I was studying, I developed an interest in the women’s health modules, in particular the effects of nutrition on our hormones and our general well being.
I decided to go on and study for the Women’s Coaching Specialist qualification. I wanted to gain a greater understanding of coaching Women and the challenges that they face when it comes to nutrition and exercise.
I finally realised that I needed to ditch the diets and start to eat to nourish my body. This is not a process that has happened overnight, and it does take time, but it is completely achievable for every woman. I started to really take care of my mental health as well as my physical health. I started a self-routine of meditation and yoga and making sure I took plenty of rest and time for myself. I gave my body the time it needed to heal which included periods of complete rest from intense exercise which was hard for me to do. In time I gradually started to feel a lot better and healthy again. I developed an appreciation for my body and acceptance of my changing body shape.
I am now in place where I eat a balanced diet, yes this does include all foods. I am mindful of the foods that I eat but most importantly I am kind to myself, and I have learnt to prioritise me. You only get one body, so you need to treat it right. I now feel happy and in control of my choices. Yes, there will always be times when I overindulge, I am not perfect, and no one is or should be. There is no such thing as the perfect diet, only one that is suited to the individual that makes them feel amazing.
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If you resonate with my story and are ready to make changes to your health and well being, I'm here to help you achieve your goals by creating a healthy sustainable lifestyle so you never have to diet again.