The Destructive Force of Diet Culture
How many times have you heard your friend/parent/partner say to you, "I have been so bad today! I had pizza for lunch! I feel so guilty! I will definitely have to work twice as hard at the gym tonight to burn that off!!!" ? Or how about, "Can you believe I've gained weight!? Guess who is only going to be eating salad for a month..." ? Or what about this, "I am so fat....why can't I be as thin as this woman/man on Instagram?" ?
I have no doubt that you have heard something along these lines at least once today and I have no doubt that these comments have entered your psyche in such a way that it is making you wonder, "Hey, maybe I am not that thin either, maybe I need to go on a diet...I should probably go to the gym tonight as well, you know, to burn some calories." This is diet culture and diet culture is one of the most damaging social constructions towards our mental health as it tells us constantly that our level of self-worth is based on our aesthetic appeal, how much we weigh, how little we eat and therefore how controlling we are. I have had my own battle with diet culture, and I still struggle to filter it out of my system, but the key to disabling this toxic 'norm' is to be informed about it. Educating people on the harmful affects of diet culture in order to provoke change and create a greater environment that fosters acceptance, is something that I am extremely passionate about so I thought it would only be natural for me to make it Sugar Maddy's first official post (OMG HOW EXCITING!). So let's have a little look at diet culture, and hopefully teach you some ways to combat this extremely silly stigma!
One of the many aspects of diet culture that infuriates me is the way that it can shape-shift itself to appear to be something quite positive and proactive, such as selling itself as a 'healthy lifestyle'. When in fact dieting is NOT a healthy lifestyle for many as it provokes other debilitating problems such as obsessive control over food intake, excessive amounts of exercise, anxiety attacks when either of these things are out of our control, and eventually (in some cases) depressive moods where one begins to question how worthy they are if they can't reach that 'perfect' weight/look/lifestyle. Whilst initially going on a diet to get 'healthy' appears to be quite a positive lifestyle change, more often than not, it becomes poisonous to our psyche and can have a major impact on the way that we perceive our body and overall self.
Diet culture is the voice in the back of your mind that constantly berates you for not being good enough, pretty enough, thin enough. It's the ideology that once you reach that goal weight, achieve the 'perfect' body, slave away at the gym, mentally abuse yourself to try harder, eat less and sweat more, you will finally be happy. Diet culture makes you believe that becoming content and fulfilled within yourself will only happen when you diet. It forces you to compare yourself to others, to make you feel inferior to someone else based on appearance. Even worse, it makes you tear down your fellow friends in order to make you feel slightly more secure in yourself. Diet culture needs to end, and it can only end if you stop engaging in it.
Here are a few ways to disengage from Diet Culture, and therefore, increase your level of self-love:
I have no doubt that you have heard something along these lines at least once today and I have no doubt that these comments have entered your psyche in such a way that it is making you wonder, "Hey, maybe I am not that thin either, maybe I need to go on a diet...I should probably go to the gym tonight as well, you know, to burn some calories." This is diet culture and diet culture is one of the most damaging social constructions towards our mental health as it tells us constantly that our level of self-worth is based on our aesthetic appeal, how much we weigh, how little we eat and therefore how controlling we are. I have had my own battle with diet culture, and I still struggle to filter it out of my system, but the key to disabling this toxic 'norm' is to be informed about it. Educating people on the harmful affects of diet culture in order to provoke change and create a greater environment that fosters acceptance, is something that I am extremely passionate about so I thought it would only be natural for me to make it Sugar Maddy's first official post (OMG HOW EXCITING!). So let's have a little look at diet culture, and hopefully teach you some ways to combat this extremely silly stigma!
One of the many aspects of diet culture that infuriates me is the way that it can shape-shift itself to appear to be something quite positive and proactive, such as selling itself as a 'healthy lifestyle'. When in fact dieting is NOT a healthy lifestyle for many as it provokes other debilitating problems such as obsessive control over food intake, excessive amounts of exercise, anxiety attacks when either of these things are out of our control, and eventually (in some cases) depressive moods where one begins to question how worthy they are if they can't reach that 'perfect' weight/look/lifestyle. Whilst initially going on a diet to get 'healthy' appears to be quite a positive lifestyle change, more often than not, it becomes poisonous to our psyche and can have a major impact on the way that we perceive our body and overall self.
Diet culture is the voice in the back of your mind that constantly berates you for not being good enough, pretty enough, thin enough. It's the ideology that once you reach that goal weight, achieve the 'perfect' body, slave away at the gym, mentally abuse yourself to try harder, eat less and sweat more, you will finally be happy. Diet culture makes you believe that becoming content and fulfilled within yourself will only happen when you diet. It forces you to compare yourself to others, to make you feel inferior to someone else based on appearance. Even worse, it makes you tear down your fellow friends in order to make you feel slightly more secure in yourself. Diet culture needs to end, and it can only end if you stop engaging in it.
Here are a few ways to disengage from Diet Culture, and therefore, increase your level of self-love:
- Stop the comparison. There is only ONE version of you in this whole universe (how awesome is that!) so why the fuck are you trying to be like someone else?! Embrace who you are, stop denying yourself your own pleasures.
- Talk to yourself in the same way you would talk to your family or friends. I am incredibly guilty of bullying my own psyche all the time (I'm learning to get better I promise!), but this isn't and shouldn't be the norm! It should be normal for us to believe and openly converse about the aspects of us that we love because they make us US! You wouldn't speak the way you do to your Mum, so why do you feel like it is okay to speak like that to yourself?
- Therefore, you need to become your own number 1 fan. Remember that no one else has to live your life and other people's opinions of you do not matter. They are not living your life, you are, so listen to your own mind and if it feels right and makes you happy, eat the god damn chocolate bar!
- Unfollow the #fitspo. Yes you heard me right, it is time to unfollow those women/men whom you find so appealing that you aspire to be like them and they make you feel worthless because you don't look like them. Trust me, once you unfollow them and focus on your amazing qualities alone, without comparison, you'll understand why I wanted you to unfollow them.
At the end of the day it is up to YOU to realise that you deserve so much more than what Diet Culture can ever give you. You deserve to feel comfortable in your own skin, you deserve to do whatever makes you fee happy, you do not have to slave at the gym when in reality, the real you would rather snuggle up on the lounge with a cup of tea/wine and a book, you deserve to feel worthy regardless of your exterior. Do not listen to the voices and influences of Diet Culture that say your self-worth is based on your appearance. Your self-worth is high, all the time, no matter what.
Fuck Diet Culture, eat carbs, read a book, skip the gym, take care, love yourself.
Lots of love,
Sugar Maddy xoxo.
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