After my two weeks of Chloe Ting’s shred, I was feeling strong and invincible… that is, until I went home. It seems that old habits die hard. And those habits include over-sized bowls of ice cream, late night nibbles, and the all-too-often breakfast from my favorite local restaurant.
My family was never properly educated about food. In fact, I don’t think most of us are. Do you know how to read the food labels on the back of our packaged edibles? I certainly don’t. I just use my taste buds to tell me what’s good and what isn’t. Not exactly nutritious accuracy at its finest.
These habits, which dictated the first 18 years of my life, were easier to forget when living in my never-never land of Koh Tao, but being back in my childhood home seems to have instantly reverted me to tried and true habits.
I had worked so hard on my self-image, only to feel like I was in a game of shoots and ladders where I was all the way back at the start again. The land of short-shorts, crop tops, and tinee ‘kinis frame women in a very particular, harsh light. Shall we throw social media into this mix?
Nonetheless, I am determined to remain steadfast on this path of positivity I have set for myself. Old habits die hard, but new habits can still find strength and blossom in the sunlight. These are just a few of the points I try to remind myself of:
- Forgive yourself. No one is perfect, and food can’t tell you that you’re not.
- Be kind to yourself.
- Don’t focus on the scale. Numbers are not everything. Everyone’s weight is different depending on their body shape, size, and muscle mass.
- Start small. Kicking yourself with a huge diet isn’t sustainable. Start by saying no to something small like an afternoon snack or dessert.
And last, but not least…
- Don’t forget to enjoy life!
Yes, food is important, but I refuse to let it dictate how I feel. After all, part of what makes home home, is the comfort food. The key is to take everything in moderation… and sometimes exceed that moderation with three bowls of ice cream. But only sometimes, of course…
