Spoiler alert: We all are. Whether it’s addiction to unhealthy foods, alcohol, nicotine, drugs (prescription or otherwise), screens, social media, shoes, we all have to deal with addiction, every day. But if we want to happily live to 100, how can we become addicted to things that positively affect us? How can we ensure we live to 100 healthfully versus feeling good till about 80 and then suffering a horrible decline for the remaining 20 years?

THE TRAP OF ADDICTION

People ask me all the time why I “live hard” and how I can be so disciplined all the time. The truth is, addiction. I too love some unhealthy foods or even foods we think are healthy (like pasta) but in the long run are not. I love me a homemade, fresh margarita with real ingredients. Or a glass (or bottle, let’s be honest) of wine. But when I go down that path, even it if it’s just for a few weeks, I notice I start to feel like garbage again. I start eating really crappy food, my sleeping suffers, I have less energy throughout the day, all the things. Then I’m mad that I did that to myself after all the hard work I put in to stay healthy. So while being disciplined is hard and often very boring, I feel amazing and I know I’m increasing my lifespan and health span as a result. But I’ll admit, it’s hard to keep putting instant gratification off for the long game of living to 100. 

What about you? Have you ever found yourself caught in a cycle of unhealthy habits? Or, you’ve done great for a good period of time and you’re feeling amazing, then you fall back into your unhealthy lifestyle? How do you get yourself out of that rut and back on track?

CLICHÉ ALERT: YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT

Type 2 diabetes and heart disease are two of the deadliest diseases in our country. And both of them are preventable and reversible. Did you know that? Guess how. It starts with what you eat. But those who don’t know or care about nutritional science don’t know that or are confused, which I can understand. “Big Food” has done a GREAT job bamboozling everyone into thinking certain products are healthy for you when they are far from it. If you don’t know what Big Food is, it’s this: “Big Food” refers to the large, multinational food corporations that dominate the food industry, influencing what people eat and often prioritizing profits over public health by marketing highly processed and unhealthy foods. Even “natural flavors” aren’t natural, did you know?! They are created in a LAB! It’s a scam and a vicious cycle for Big Food to make lots of money while getting us sick so that Big Pharma can get us sicker with meds upon meds. “Big Pharma” refers to large pharmaceutical companies that dominate the industry, often criticized (rightfully so!) for prioritizing profits over patient health, influencing high drug prices, and lobbying heavily to shape healthcare policies to fill people’s pockets rather than actually make people healthy. Just cut through the BS and eat healthy. Fuel your body with the micronutrients it needs to stay healthy and prevent diseases. 

Once you start eating truly healthfully, you will develop a new positive addiction…to the foods your body needs, not to the calorie-heavy but nutrient-sparse cravings you had had in the past. 

We have higher rates of obesity and diabetes than we’ve ever had in the past. According to Action Against Hunger, we have more food in the world than people and yet 783 million people go undernourished every day. Let that sink in. What does that tell you? We’re eating the wrong stuff! And all that crap is causing diseases in our body. Sooooo, if crap food is causing disease, what do you think will help reverse it? Healthy food, obvs! 

THE REAL COST OF YO-YO DIETING

And while I’m on a roll, stop obsessing over LOSING WEIGHT. Weight loss is a positive side effect of eating healthfully. Are you in it to just look hot for the next summer or year or are you in it to prevent disease and live a long, healthy life? I’m in for the latter. So I eat healthfully, I work out and I do what I can to not expose my body to unhealthy things, first and foremost crap food! I know we all want quick results in this instant gratification society we live in nowadays. But beware of how dangerous the yo-yo effect can be on your body when you constantly go up and down in weight. It’s like suddenly pulling the e-brake in your car while driving full speed on the freeway. Doing it once may not totally fuzz up your car but if you do it over and over again, at some point you’ve trashed your car and you will need a new one. But if the car is your body, you can’t just get a new one. You will have wrecked your body beyond repair. Then what.

Both Dr. Joel Fuhrman, a well-known physician and nutrition expert, and Dr. Mark Hyman, a well-known functional medicine physician, have expressed concerns about the negative effects of yo-yo dieting on the body, in particular:

1. Metabolic Damage: Yo-yo dieting can lead to a slower metabolism. When people drastically cut calories, the body responds by slowing down its metabolic rate to conserve energy. If the diet is not sustainable and weight is regained, the metabolism may not fully recover, making it harder to lose weight in the future. The body’s response to calorie restriction followed by overeating can lead to increased fat storage and a slower metabolism.
2. Muscle Loss: During periods of calorie restriction, the body often loses muscle mass along with fat. When the weight is regained, it is usually in the form of fat, not muscle. This shift in body composition can lead to a higher body fat percentage and a weaker, less healthy body overall.
3. Hormonal Imbalance: Yo-yo dieting can disrupt hormonal balance, particularly hormones like insulin, leptin, and cortisol. These hormones play crucial roles in hunger, satiety, and stress, and their imbalance can contribute to weight gain, insulin resistance, and other metabolic issues.
4. Increased Risk of Chronic Diseases: Both Fuhrman and Hyman warn that yo-yo dieting can increase the risk of developing chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension. The stress on the body from constant weight fluctuations can contribute to inflammation and other health issues, including autoimmune conditions.
5. Emotional and Psychological Impact: The repeated cycles of dieting and regaining weight can take a toll on a person’s mental health. This can lead to feelings of failure, frustration, and a negative relationship with food and body image.
6. Long-Term Weight Gain: Paradoxically, yo-yo dieting often results in long-term weight gain. The body becomes more efficient at storing fat after repeated dieting cycles, making it more challenging to maintain a healthy weight over time.

EMBRACING A LONG-TERM MINDSET

All that to say, a lifestyle change is in order to win the long game…meaning living healthfully and happily to 100. It’s not easy when there’s all this temptation out there at every corner, but if you accept and internalize that all those seemingly yummy foods are just negative addictions and will make you sick and unhealthy in the long run, perhaps it will keep you from giving in.

Start small if a radical “cold turkey” approach isn’t for you. For example, try just these two things for the first 4 weeks of change, then add more from the Nutritarian® lifestyle (the one I follow) as you get more addicted to feeling good:

1. Commit to changing your beverages. Drink only water; sparkling water with fresh lemon, lime, and mint; or any other sparkling water WITHOUT natural flavors, like Spindrift.
2. Commit to no sugar. That includes alcohol! #SorryNotSorry. Sadly, there is added sugar in seemingly everything. I know, it sucks. BUT, you can still have things that have natural sugar, like a piece of fruit or a date. The best thing about cutting out sugar and sugar look-alikes (like stevia, honey, agave, aspartame, sucralose, saccharin, maple syrup). If you’re not sure if the ingredient you are ready is sugar or not, just ask Google or ChatGPT!

It’s hard. Make no mistake; I struggle with it every day too. But I try to think of it this way: how fortunate am I to be able to turn down bad food and instead eat healthy food. There are hundreds of millions of people in the world starving and malnourished who would just be happy with any food, period. Gratefully, we have the privilege; we have the choice. So, in my mind, I want to show gratitude for that privilege and choose what’s best for my body and for my long-term health.

What small, consistent change could you make starting today to lead to long-term health benefits? Check out my latest Instagram reel in case it inspires you to make a change!

I’d love to hear from you ❤️