Changing my relationship with food at 53
This is not your normal dieting story.
It’s a midlife transformation story. I’d accepted my body was changing. But something wasn’t right.
I was a Personal Trainer, I was fit and I understood nutrition. But, even though I was eating well, I was constantly snacking and giving in to cravings.
One day an image popped up in my head of a woman sat on a sofa; eating her emotions, distracting herself from the discomfort she was feeling about her life. Letting food be her comfort, taking the easy way out and at the same time, being trapped in her comfort zone, unable to get out and do the things she really wanted to do.
That was me. That was what I’d become. I was shocked.
Once I got that picture in my mind, everything changed.
I didn’t want to be like that.
I wanted to be strong, not just physically, but mentally.
And that was how I was finally able to find the strength and motivation to break free from cravings.
But that didn’t mean going back to restrictive dieting, counting calories, cutting out carbs, being hungry all the time, searching through cupboards looking for the biggest lowest calorie snack I could find.
I’d been there before, and hated thinking about food all the time.
What I wanted more than anything was freedom from thinking about food all day long.
I wanted my brain back and to do more with my life - much more than obsess about eating.
I wanted to be the opposite of that woman sat on the sofa eating all day and that’s what I am working towards everyday now, someone who is doing more each day, growing in confidence and using that space in my brain to create a more fulfilling and active life.
The freedom you get when you start fuelling your life instead of being ruled by food is incredible. I experience this everyday and so do my clients.
You can’t get up a hill easily when you are carrying a couple of extra stone.
Getting out of my comfort zone in my 50s meant getting out into nature, walking, running and cycling up hills. I loved it.
The view from the top of a hill after a tough climb was exhilarating. And I wanted to get better at it. To be fitter, stronger, more capable.
When you Google how to get better at cycling uphill, the first answer is lose weight. Typical
It wasn’t the answer I was looking for, or wanted.
But eventually it started to fit in with my goals; getting out of my comfort zone, having adventures, eating to fuel myself, doing challenges.
So I went all in.
I timed the weight loss phase for Autumn/Winter, when we wouldn’t be cycling.
Now, with a new gravel bike, and our first camping trip of the season booked, I’m ready to see how hills feel now I’m 2 stone lighter, and also to start my new training phase, building up the strength and endurance for a tough 100 mile event Tim and I are doing in September.
I’ve cycled 100 miles before (on the flat), and it was more boring than hard. But this will be different. It’s hilly, it’s exposed, it’s wild. There are cycling sections and running/walking sections and we’re camping in a field half way, with a 1 mile kayak across what could be a windy loch at the end. And I’ve never been in a kayak.
This will take my training to a new level. And also my knowledge of nutrition, because this needs a different strategy than 3 meals a day. I’ll be eating to fuel my training and my recovery and also while I’m on the bike and running long distances to keep me going.
So I’m excited to see what this brings and I’ll be sharing the journey here. So like and follow to see how it goes.
CHANGE YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH FOOD
Let me support you through the same progress for your own mid-life transformation for the next 8 weeks. Join my programme today and get personal support from me and a small group of women on the same journey.
An 8 week programme to help midlife women win the battle with food, start strength training and find a better way to support your body through midlife to get lean and strong for good.