Have you ever thought that when trying to change what you eat or how you eat? Many of us have!
But here’s something you may not know: The challenges you’re experiencing with your eating habits may have nothing to do with willpower.
You may have unknowingly triggered a “biology versus willpower” contest. It’s a contest that trips up many people and discourages them as they try to change how they eat.
What is a “biology versus willpower” contest when it comes to food?
It is when you are trying to change something related to your eating habits and your body misinterprets what you are trying to do.
Over thousands of years, the human body has evolved into a finely tuned living machine. Your body responds to the physical environments you interact with, as well as your emotional state, every second of every day … even when you are asleep.
Your physical environment includes what’s going on outside of you and the environment of your gut microbiome. Yes, the trillions of organisms that live in your intestines can also affect your mood and health. (Read “Gut health: 9 Ways your gut microbiome affects your overall health” to learn more about this.)
While many of these responses in your body developed to protect your ancestors, our modern lifestyle often works against them. They are the “biology” in the “biology versus willpower” contest. These are powerful forces … more potent than most of us can imagine.
Why willpower and eating habits battle with your body’s biology
Sometimes when you’re trying to make what you think is a positive change to benefit your body, your body sees something about those changes as a threat to your survival. The “biology versus willpower” contest starts, and …well, I think you know what typically happens!
For most of us, willpower doesn’t stand a chance when it’s in a contest with your biology. Does that mean you can’t change your eating habits? Not at all!
How to avoid willpower and biology contests
Putting yourself in situations where biology and willpower compete often leads to failure or going back to old eating habits. You can avoid those contests, and you can be more successful in your efforts to change how you eat or lose weight. To do this you need to figure out how to work with the complex systems in your body instead of against them.
One of the best ways to stop going back to the old habits is to partner with someone who understands how our amazing, complex, and sometimes frustrating bodies work.
By working with me, a registered dietitian nutritionist with extensive training, many people have successfully changed their eating habits by adopting new habits and routines that help them avoid “biology versus willpower” contests.
People can make changes on their own, but often they struggle more and are more prone to giving up without the added support and knowledge I provide.
Take the next step to successfully work with your body instead of against it!
Thencontact me or book your free discovery call with me. Use my thousands of hours of studies in nutrition science and years of experience as a registered dietitian nutritionist to benefit you … and avoid those “biology versus willpower” contests.
Having personally struggled with weight and gut health issues, I understand how easy it is to think that food is the enemy especially with the changes our bodies undergo as we age. It doesn’t have to be that way!
I love using my extensive education and coach approach to help people realize it is possible to feel better and be healthier while still enjoying their life and food.
