Today I want to talk about giving away your power.

I have become more and more interested in the concept of listening to others versus listening to your gut when looking for guidance. This subject applies to any area of your life. We tend to run into trouble when we start taking everyone else’s advice on careers, relationships, following your dreams, where to live, etc. We never really learned that the best guidance is gut guidance. They just don’t teach that in school.

But, I believe where this lesson is the most potent and practical is with FOOD!

The fact that we spend years and decades following someone else’s diet plan, and worrying that we aren’t “doing it right”, and trying to subdue, punish, and control our bodies is nuts!

We jump from diet guru to diet guru, thinking that the answers to our food and body woes lie outside of us, when the only thing we actually need to pay attention to is ourselves.

Sure, we can gather information from the outside world. That’s excellent! We can learn about different foods and nutritional philosophies. We can absorb information that will inform our understanding of nourishment. But your eating and food choices, day by day, should come from what you want and what your body is telling you.

If you feel really far from making that a reality, or feel like your body just doesn’t speak to you, that’s ok. We have to relearn to trust our bodies– and it takes time and energy. We have to drop the fight and commit to listening.

The relationship and trust between you and your body will take some time. But eventually, the more you heal with food, your intuition will become louder and clearer, and the nuances in what you want and need will become stronger and more distinct.

This isn’t to say that I still don’t believe in eating whatever you want, I really do, and it is actually the same thing. Eating with abandon and the intention to nourish is the first step to healing your relationship with food.

Just promise yourself you will listen and give your body what it wants and needs. Perfection is not the name of the game.

Don’t give up your power to diet gurus and nutritional dogma. Commit to listening to your body, because your body wants the best for you, unfailingly.

Do you know about Isabel Foxen Duke?

She is a badass. And I am a huge fan of the work she does with women, food, and their bodies, which is why I am really excited today to share with you guys something awesome she has been working on.

I know sometimes it feels impossible. But at some point, the diet-binge cycle and constant food noise, becomes so intrusive, that the only thing we want more than weight loss, is getting our sanity back. 

And believe it or not, that is a really good place to be.

Isabel Foxen Duke, founder of Stop Fighting Food — is one of the most amazing coaches for helping women shift their perspective around food and their bodies.

Reclaiming women’s sanity around food is Isabel’s genius. Her unique approach gets women out of the diet-binge cycle, and into a state of mind where food stops ruling the world, and starts just being food.

I’m a big fan of her work, I could not be more excited to see what she’s cooked up. I encourage anyone who wants a kick in the ass to sign up for her free videos if you dig her video trailer here.

You don’t need to “keep trying” around food forever — there is a way out of the cycle entirely. And having that guidance from the right person can make all the difference.