Food therapy

I met with one of my coaching clients today who is working to change his eating and exercise habits so that he can lose weight and control his blood sugar levels. He's lost 10 pounds in the past 3 weeks due to hard work, determination, setting specific goals, and carrying through with those goals. He also has a lot of support and encouragement at home. Today he met with his physician, who asked him about working with me. My client calls it "food therapy". I love it!

We don't talk about what to eat and what to not eat. Instead, we talk about how he chooses what to eat, how different foods act in his body, and which foods fit into his goals of weight loss and controlling blood sugar. Our work together is all about defining past eating habits and figuring out what he wants his new eating habits to look like.

For most of us, food is more than simply fuel for our body. Food is tied up with emotions, traditions, celebrations, habits, and family heritage. We can't just give up eating, like people can choose to give up smoking or drinking alcohol. Each person comes to making changes in their eating habits in their own, individual way, which is what makes food therapy so interesting and exciting to me. Each person charts their own course, with their own specific goals in mind.

If you're struggling with changing your eating or exercise habits, perhaps for health reasons or maybe for other personal reasons, think about shifting your focus to food therapy. It's not what you "should" do, but rather what you "want" to do.