Bring on the Freedom: saying goodbye to your “bad” food list

Often times our understanding of eating is linked to all-or-nothing thinking:

• I can only have twenty-two points a day.
• I have to have everything organic.
• I have to ban all starches and refined foods from my diet.

This kind of thinking is self-righteous in its intentions and often backfires, leading to unhealthy eating! Have you found yourself eating huge amounts of “good” food in order to make up for your desire to have “bad” stuff, only to end up eating the “bad stuff” anyway? I know I have!

I shouldn’t have that brownie. I’d really like to, but I can’t because it’s fattening. Alright…I’ll just have a little piece. Ughhh! I blew it. I ate the whole thing, so I might as well eat the rest of them now. I’m such a pig. I’ll never get over this.

Sound familiar? When we stop restricting foods from our diet and eat with the freedom we’ve been given in Christ, our desire for the foods we’ve denied ourselves lessens. We can allow ourselves to eat the very foods we fear the most. This process is scary, but it’s a necessary step to being set free and living the abundant life for which you’ve been created.

Journaling Questions:

1. Make a list of any foods you have banned from your diet or deemed “bad.” Are there any foods that you currently restrict yourself from eating? If so, why?

2. Foods I have banned:

3. Foods I’m currently restricting from my list of acceptable foods:

4. Why I have banned these foods from my life?

5. Reflect on any occasions you have binged on the foods you listed above.

Question: Do you find yourself engaging in all or nothing thinking when it comes to food and exercise?