Why Diets Don’t Work—And What To Do About It
If dieting leaves you discouraged—maybe even a little depressed—this episode of Woman Worriers will give you hope. Host Elizabeth Cush talks with Jenna Hollenstein, a nutrition therapist, about the damage that the “diet culture” has done and how mindful eating can help us get in touch with the wisdom of our bodies.
“We are gently and not so gently guided to have a body that is other than the body that we have.”
Show Notes:
The Diet Culture is driving women into depression, anxiety, disordered eating and worse. Jenna Hollenstein, MS, RDN, CDN, is a “non-diet” dietitian who doesn’t believe in telling people what to eat. In this episode of the Woman Worriers podcast, she talks with host Elizabeth Cush, of Progression Counseling in Annapolis, Md., about the cultural messages that push women to try to change our bodies, the powerful connections between food and emotion, and the consequences of depriving ourselves. She also offers insight—based on her own experience and work with clients—into how meditation, mindful eating and self-compassion offer a solution to the diet dilemma.
Listen and learn:
Why it is so difficult for researchers to find definitive answers about food and nutrition
The concept of Magical Eating and why it is so powerful
What weight-loss diets, “eating for health” and organized religion have in common
Why women are vulnerable to the myths of the diet culture
How the concept of dieting has “shape-shifted” over the years
How the diet culture is passed down through families
Why the diet culture is an issue that reaches beyond food and physical health
The power of the diet culture to make so many of us feel so bad about ourselves
Why dieting can impact our physical and mental health in negative ways
Why most diets don’t work
What happened when healthy men cut their calorie intake in half
Why dieting creates cravings
Why we need to learn to listen to our own bodies
The important lesson of Buddhism that can help our relationship with food and our body
How meditation can help
How to start a self compassion practice
Learn More
> Jenna Hollenstein’s bio
> Eat to Love by Jenna Hollenstein, MS, RDN, CDN
> Intuitive Eating website
> The Religion of Thinness: Satisfying the Spiritual Desires Behind Women’s Obsession with Food and Weight by Michelle M. Lelwica, ThD
> Susan Piver’s Open Heart Project website
> Dr. Kristin Neff’s Self-Compassion website
> Insight Timer meditation app
> Ancel Keys, PhD, calorie-reduction research
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