Diets Always Start On Mondays :The diet/binge cycle illustrated

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You know how it is, you’ve been overeating, your jeans are tight, and you feel like crap. You say to yourself, “Ok, this is out of control. I have to do something. I’m such a pig. I’m starting a diet on Monday”.

For some reason, diets always start on Mondays. So you feel relieved and optimistic knowing that this eating chaos will soon end.

Come Monday, you are eager and ready. You are following your diet rules and plan perfectly, and life is good. Eventually, weight might start to come off and people begin to notice. You feel a tad self-righteous, enjoying the attention and success of all your sacrifices. Who wouldn’t?

As time passes, though, temptation and deprivation kick in and your eyes start to wander onto your friend’s plate, soon followed by sneaking just a french fry or two, and you think, “Omg, so good! Look what I’ve been missing this whole time!” You can’t get those pesky food thoughts out of your head and, over time, you start to sneak more and more forbidden foods.

This is the tipping point you know too well. One bad day at work, a single false move from a friend, or a particularly hungry day can set off a cascade of eating frenzy like no other.

Say goodbye to the food restrictions, bland diet food, and logging points, you’re going for it and hard. You binge out on the forbidden foods that you have been missing for far too long. Unfortunately, the food binge is not limited to that single event, and a period of overeating begins.

Overtime, you gain back all the weight and often even more. The positive comments from your friends and family have long since ceased. And in the silence, you feel great shame. You tell yourself that you have no willpower; you are embarrassed to be seen in public; you feel depressed, anxious, and like a failure; you envy people who are thin and generally feel “less-than” because of your body size.

You sit in this dark pool of negative thoughts and overeating until, one day, when you’ve finally had enough and say, “Ok, this is out of control. I have to do something. I’m such a pig. I’m starting a diet on Monday”. For some reason, diets always start on Mondays.

Let go of the guilt, shame, and judgement once and for all. Be gentle with yourself as you learn to nourish your mind, body, and soul from a completely new perspective.