Comfort food is not the enemy!

Personally, I feel life is too short. I love my favorite foods once in a while. a few weeks ago… I had a health scare that turned out to be nothing, but the reason I am sharing this is because I feel we all need to enjoy our life.

It’s part of being human. It’s normal. It’s ok.

But the problem with diets is that you usually have to GIVE UP your favorite comfort food!

They expect you to toss your potato chips, your toast with Nutella, your bag of Dove chocolates, and your Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte!

Though we know deep down inside that we shouldn’t attach emotions to food, we do. The smells, the tastes, the warmth, whatever reminds us of a time we felt safe, happy, or loved.

And guess what, just because you’re dieting doesn’t mean that you won’t want your comfort food.

Eat Your Comfort Foods AND Wear Your Skinny Jeans.

Those two things may seem mutually exclusive, but they don’t have to be.

I want you to think for a moment about your favorite comfort food. Recall the smell. Feel it between your fingers. Now, the taste. Is it sweet? Salty? Tangy?

Whatever it is, it’s something you might crave to calm you down, perk you up, improve your mood, celebrate, or just help you feel like you’re in control of something, anything!

Think about how you feel when you take a bite. Where does that bite transport you? Do you feel safe, warm, loved, happy? There is an emotion attached to that comfort food. You may not be able to explain why it makes you feel that way, but it does!

Now, for just a moment, imagine that I told you that you can’t have that food anymore! You’re on a diet, and that means no more of whatever food gives you that warm fuzzy feeling in the pit of your belly.

There is something about being told “no” that makes us want it even more. We begin to crave our comfort food. We lament the diet. If only we didn’t have these restrictions! If only we could have just one bite!

That’s usually the tipping point. When you get one bite, you can’t stop. Cheating on your diet becomes giving up. Why bother? You already ate a whole cheesecake. How can you go back?

Now, let’s scratch that whole scenario and work from the view point of making healthychanges that can INCLUDE your favorite comfort food.

Dieting doesn’t allow comfort food but PERMANENT weight loss from power habits that change your life without sacrifice ALLOW your favorite comfort food AND your favorite jeans!

Have you ever heard of the 80/20 rule? It means that 80% of the time, you stay on track, while 20% of the time, you can have foods that are outside of your typical, healthy meal plan.

What’s so magical about this rule? It means that a brownie on occasion is perfectly ok! It also means that if you usually eat healthy, it’s ok to join your family for pizza night.

When you aren’t restricting yourself to a completely “perfect” diet, then you will find yourself a lot more willing to make the changes you need to stick with a healthier lifestyle.

A little wiggle room in your diet will lead to wiggle room in your jeans!