I come from a family with a history of obesity, and like I mention in my book, Breaking the Chains of Obesity, 107 Tools, I grew up eating junk food. From chocolate chip pancakes to pizza and even pints of different flavored ice creams to choose from, I would indulge in all my food pleasures throughout my childhood. It wasn’t until my teenage years when I started to correlate this type of eating to my body image. Thank goodness I was an athlete growing up because if I wasn’t, who knows what type of body I would have.
With that said, it has only been over the last 10 years of my fitness career that I’ve taken my nutrition to the levels at which it stands today. I eat organically, I cut out both processed and virtually all high glycemic carbohydrates, I avoid sugar, I avoid caffeine, and I barely drink alcohol. I am very active and appear and feel very young and vivacious. This is why I eat this way. I love feeling great. I love sleeping well. I love feeling positive every day. I love feeling young. I love my sharp mind.
Do I ever eat “junk food?” Yes I do. And when I do it, I eat whatever I want. In other words, I never eat “healthier” diet food just to avoid calories, fat and carbs. I fulfill my deepest childhood pleasures by reaching for the carrot cake, pizza or Carvel ice cream cone if I feel like it. If I’m going to eat junk food, it better be worth every lick and every bite. It better bring me back to my childhood years when family surrounded me and the taste brought me to heaven. And I encourage you to do the same.
If you are on a weight loss journey, get the JZ Fitness Nutrition app, available on iTunes and Android. Learn it and embody it. If you do that every day and treat yourself once or twice a month to whatever you want, you will never be on a weight loss journey again. I understand that it might take time for some of you to lose weight, but at the end of the day, learning how to live an optimal life, with treats intermingled throughout the month, will allow you to lead a fulfilling life without always feeling guilty about your nutrition choices. I teach people to eat for fuel. But if you have the occasional Sprinkles cupcake because you’re in control and you want to celebrate occasionally, then just do it. Stop feeling bad about it. Just don’t do it more than twice a month. Fair enough?
Check out THIS clip which stimulated my thoughts around this post.
Jenn Zerling (“JZ”) is the wellness ambassador for Stay Fit Housing guests. JZ is a life-long athlete, lover of life and people, and wishes to help America break the chains of obesity. She provides customized nutrition coaching and fitness training services designed to help all guests optimize Stay Fit Living. JZ’s fitness and nutrition writings can be found in multiple media resources (including JZFitness.com), and her JZ Fitness Nutrition app is available on iTunes and Android.