Why I Hate the Word "Diet"

The word diet seems to have a negative connotation to it.  It assumes you only eat healthy all the time and never let yourself indulge on dessert or anything bad.  It assumes you are depriving yourself of what you want only to sit there and obsess over the number on the scale.  I hate the word diet.  No one likes to be on a diet because you are constantly surrounded by food choices that aren't a part of it, and if you're not eating what everyone else is eating around you, you are somehow left out and feeling guilty.  It shouldn't have to be that way.


Let's redefine the word diet.  How about instead we start using the phrase, "lifestyle change."  While the word diet tends to imply a short term goal, lifestyle changes do not.  They imply a long term goal for your body's greater good.  A lifestyle change can be subtle, slow, fast, or steady.  It is something that is introduced at your own pace.  Rather than beating yourself up over eating that cookie or slice of cake, a lifestyle change can allow you to enjoy those things without feeling so guilty about it.


By slowly introducing more vegetables and healthy foods, the more of it you will start to crave, and the more likely it will be for it to start becoming a habit.  The more you exercise, that more that will start to become a habit too. Once you have it in your mind that you are creating a lifestyle, and not just a short term goal, eating an occasional desert or slice of pizza won't feel like such a horrible thing. Everything in moderation, but make sure the things you want to become your habits outweigh the bad things that surround your life.