[SPEAKER_00]: Hey there.

[SPEAKER_00]: Welcome to episode 424 of the Find Your Food Voice podcast.

[SPEAKER_00]: Today we are talking about how to control your health and weight without dieting with special guests.

[SPEAKER_00]: Bonnie Rooney, let's get to it.

[SPEAKER_00]: Hey, they're voice finder.

[SPEAKER_00]: I am Julie Duffy Dylan, registered dietitian and your host of the Finder Food Voice Podcast.

[SPEAKER_00]: Thank you for joining me today.

[SPEAKER_00]: And today's episode is a letter episode.

[SPEAKER_00]: What is a letter episode?

[SPEAKER_00]: Well, this is where I have listeners just like you, right in.

[SPEAKER_00]: And they unpack their complicated relationship with food.

[SPEAKER_00]: And today, I have a letter that's actually an archived letter.

[SPEAKER_00]: What that means is, [SPEAKER_00]: This is a letter we've answered before in the podcast, probably hundreds of episodes ago, but we are revisiting it because it's just so good in juicy.

[SPEAKER_00]: And this person who wrote in is someone who works in the health space and is starting to see how harmful dieting is, but also is trying to run a business on how to help people improve their health as a fitness trainer and is wondering [SPEAKER_00]: And I invited Bonnie Roney, who's a fellow register dietitian, to join me on this episode specifically Bonnie to answer this letter for a special reason.

[SPEAKER_00]: And we're going to unpack that in this episode.

[SPEAKER_00]: What I want you to know is that stay for the end, because the very end of this episode is when food rights back.

[SPEAKER_00]: and answers this letterwriter gives us some insight on what to do next.

[SPEAKER_00]: So be sure you stick around for the end to catch the letter back from food.

[SPEAKER_00]: So if you too have a complicated history of food, I want to make sure that you know about the fine-year food voice book.

[SPEAKER_00]: Yes, the fine-year food voice book came out in March and it is ready to be purchased anywhere books are sold and I would love for you to have your own copy.

[SPEAKER_00]: for just $20, you get access to all the tools that I used over a year or two working with clients one on one.

[SPEAKER_00]: So you can get all the resources, all the strategies, all of the support, like I was just sitting across from you and I'm sitting, you're sitting in my green couch right behind me and I'm sitting in the therapist chair and we're talking that's what the Find Your Food Voice book is like.

[SPEAKER_00]: It also includes letters from listener that start every single chapter.

[SPEAKER_00]: You can get to it [SPEAKER_00]: Also, if you want more, if you read the book, you've been listening to the podcast, and you want to dive deeper in some of these topics, especially if you have insulin resistance or PCOS, I invite you to join me over on Substack.

[SPEAKER_00]: That's where I am.

[SPEAKER_00]: Basically, talking about the things I couldn't include in the book, we're diving deeper, and like I said, we are including more [SPEAKER_00]: research deep dies into how to help manage PCOS without dieting.

[SPEAKER_00]: You can get to my sub-sac at findyourfoodvoice.sub-sac.com.

[SPEAKER_00]: And what I'm dropping this episode is the same week that I am dropping my [SPEAKER_00]: PCOS and GLP1 deep dive.

[SPEAKER_00]: And I for the last six weeks have been reading GLP1 and PCOS research.

[SPEAKER_00]: So I've got all my research put together and now I'm just like making it look pretty in my essay.

[SPEAKER_00]: But I'm excited for you to read it because this is like the number one question I get for anyone with PCOS.

[SPEAKER_00]: is jail PO1 is I think answer is I what's going to fix my issues with insulin and all other things and so excited for you to read that and something I want you to know is that every single month on sub-sac I am doing a very thorough deep dive on something in particular that has to do with insulin resistance and PCOS.

[SPEAKER_00]: Because I think you also, with PCOS, deserve to have a healthy relationship with food, to recover from your eating disorder, but I know it's really hard because of how PCOS is managed.

[SPEAKER_00]: There are so many tools.

[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, that's like basically my life's work is to help people with PCOS be able to also enjoy eating again.

[SPEAKER_00]: And last month, DeepDive was all the labs that I recommend to people with PCOS to ask their doctor for every single year.

[SPEAKER_00]: Like there's [SPEAKER_00]: there's like certain labs that know your doctor's already ordering like an A1C, but that is not enough.

[SPEAKER_00]: You have other ones that are going to be a much better predictor of like needs that you need to meet besides an A1C.

[SPEAKER_00]: I do include A1C, but there's some better ones, especially as it relates to insulin resistance.

[SPEAKER_00]: So you can get to all that again on my Substack at findyourfoodvoice.substack.com.

[SPEAKER_00]: All right, we are going to hear this episode's letter after a very quick sponsor break.

[SPEAKER_00]: Dear food, body image and diets, when I first started my career as a personal trainer in 2004, I loved the science side of fitness and health.

[SPEAKER_00]: I was fascinated by diet plans, workout plans, and ways to hack your workouts and fitness to transform your body.

[SPEAKER_00]: And I believe that intense workouts and strict diet plans were the key to health.

[SPEAKER_00]: At the same time, I worked so hard to keep myself a certain size.

[SPEAKER_00]: I weighed myself daily and thought that health can be found by tracking calories and doing double workouts a day.

[SPEAKER_00]: I thought I was healthy and I was proud of my discipline, but I was struggling inside.

[SPEAKER_00]: I was always fighting my body and so were my clients.

[SPEAKER_00]: Personal training is well personal and so many people I worked with were in a constant fight with their body.

[SPEAKER_00]: Though for some, their fight looked a little different.

[SPEAKER_00]: On diets, off diets, down 10 pounds of 20, feeling uncomfortable in their body, are trying to restrict their eating and push through workouts in order to get results.

[SPEAKER_00]: And I used to think that the answer was a simple meal plan or rigid exercise program.

[SPEAKER_00]: I thought that it was that simple.

[SPEAKER_00]: I'm done recommending the clients to track every single more soul of food and being good, pushing their bodies through endless cardio or high intensity workouts to make up for poor eating and to be stuck in the endless rollercoaster ride of being on track or off track.

[SPEAKER_00]: failed attempts, disappointment.

[SPEAKER_00]: It sucks.

[SPEAKER_00]: But I'm also the person people turn to to get healthy and lose weight.

[SPEAKER_00]: And while I know that on our studio, we have created a non-intimidating fitness, nutrition and lifestyle coaching program to help our clients get back to feeling good, not by restricting and dieting, but by connecting with their bodies, and to have a focus on feeling good, improving one's health and being a part of a supportive community.

[SPEAKER_00]: But I still struggle [SPEAKER_00]: and start to feel at home when they're body.

[SPEAKER_00]: How do I communicate what we do and reach out to others without the offer to trim their tummies and tone their arms so they can wear a tank top in the summer.

[SPEAKER_00]: Seriously?

[SPEAKER_00]: Can we wear a tank top anyway?

[SPEAKER_00]: Can a health and fitness studio be on the same side as food peace?

[SPEAKER_00]: I guess my question is, how can I balance helping my clients improve their fitness, improve their eating habits?

[SPEAKER_00]: And yes, lose weight while still embracing being confident in a size and self-love.

[SPEAKER_00]: Signed, confused.

[SPEAKER_00]: I'll write voicewinder.

[SPEAKER_00]: That is this episode's letter.

[SPEAKER_00]: And we are going to invite Bonnie on the show in just a second.

[SPEAKER_00]: But I want to let you know a little bit about her work.

[SPEAKER_00]: She's a registered dietician and certified intuitive and counselor on a mission to support women as they rebel against die culture.

[SPEAKER_00]: Become intuitive leaders and transform their relationship with food.

[SPEAKER_00]: through one-on-one support in an online community, Bonnie is a spelling diet myth and societal norms to help women free themselves from guilt and shame surrounding food.

[SPEAKER_00]: When she's not tackling problematic diet beliefs, she enjoys time with her two kids, date nights with her husband, and cooking delicious meals.

[SPEAKER_00]: You can follow Bonnie on Instagram, game knowledge and support via a podcast, and get in touch with her on our website.

[SPEAKER_00]: All the links to those are in our show notes.

[SPEAKER_00]: But without further ado, let's welcome Bonnie Rooney [SPEAKER_00]: Hey, Bonnie, welcome to the show.

[SPEAKER_01]: Thank you so much for having me, Julie.

[SPEAKER_00]: Oh, I'm so glad to talk with you again.

[SPEAKER_00]: And did you get a chance to read this episode's letter?

[SPEAKER_01]: I did.

[SPEAKER_01]: I, it brought up so much for me.

[SPEAKER_00]: Oh, well, let's unpack this.

[SPEAKER_00]: So what was your first impression when you're reading it?

[SPEAKER_00]: Like, what was going on?

[SPEAKER_01]: It brought up a lot of good things I should say.

[SPEAKER_01]: And probably one of the first impressions that came up for me when I read it was this piece of an identity shift that I relate to so much.

[SPEAKER_01]: And that identity shift from your reader who shared that she used to be so invested in this paradigm that she worked in.

[SPEAKER_01]: As a personal trainer, helping people die it and follow strict plans and exercise and do all of the quote-unquote write things that we hear about all the time, help them achieve their goals, find success that we hear about which success in our world is typically weight loss.

[SPEAKER_01]: So, very invested in that, but now at this place where she's realizing, and I say, she, I'm actually not entirely sure, I'm just making an assumption.

[SPEAKER_00]: We don't know.

[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, that's fine.

[SPEAKER_01]: But she's realizing that, [SPEAKER_01]: What she did in the past wasn't helpful for her clients and it wasn't helpful for her because she was struggling with her body for so long and I almost sense a piece of grieving happening right now to like my life used to be this way I used to do all of this for work I used to help people in this way and now [SPEAKER_01]: It's not something that aligns with my values today.

[SPEAKER_01]: So what do I do now?

[SPEAKER_01]: There's this piece of, I'm unsure what to do.

[SPEAKER_01]: And I'll share as a registered dietitian, I do into a dividing.

[SPEAKER_01]: I have a way inclusive approach to nutrition.

[SPEAKER_01]: So I really align myself with the way that you're, [SPEAKER_01]: Listener is working to get towards, but I wasn't always this way.

[SPEAKER_01]: So when I first started out as a dietitian like many others, I sold weight loss and specifically I did it through a low carb approach, which is not something I would interesting.

[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, not something I would ever stand behind.

[SPEAKER_01]: Any more, but it got to a point where I realized I was causing more harm than good, and my values began to change because I started to learn about how harmful my approach was, not to myself, to my clients, to the people who came across my message.

[SPEAKER_01]: selling weight loss, helping people change their bodies, and come to terms with the fact that I would have to own that.

[SPEAKER_00]: Yes.

[SPEAKER_00]: Well, so something that I want to name is I think for so many of us that work in health or the medical field could relate to this letter.

[SPEAKER_00]: Some people are not [SPEAKER_00]: not moving in the same direction as this letter writer, but those of us who have can totally probably pinpoint like when they were there when this person is.

[SPEAKER_00]: And so thank you for sharing about your experience.

[SPEAKER_00]: And when I was reading this, I recalled all the things that I remember going through and there was a lot of grief.

[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, thankfully, because, you know, I'm someone from the [SPEAKER_00]: So like so much of my shift happened before we even had much social media, like I think it was just like my space and that's it.

[SPEAKER_00]: And so I don't have as much record, you know, there's not this like a way to look back.

[SPEAKER_00]: By the time I even had my blog, I was already in a place where I was firmly rooted in intuitive eating, I still was, you know.

[SPEAKER_00]: fucking up.

[SPEAKER_00]: But you know, I was like, I wasn't, yeah, there wasn't like this imprint out there like that.

[SPEAKER_00]: And so naming the platform piece, I think, is really important.

[SPEAKER_00]: And also, when you said, like, this person is kind of like, they're moving and they're they're figuring it out.

[SPEAKER_00]: And when I was reading this letter, I was like, oh, I think they think they already have.

[SPEAKER_00]: But there still is more to come.

[SPEAKER_00]: Did you get that too?

[SPEAKER_00]: Like, they're coming along, but they're not quite there yet.

[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, yeah, I got a big sense of that because it's like, there's this tension between my my past belief system and today's current values, but now what do I do?

[SPEAKER_01]: Yes, there's a lot of unknowns that it sounds like still need to be figured out.

[SPEAKER_00]: Yes, yeah, yeah, there's that tension.

[SPEAKER_00]: I think is so important.

[SPEAKER_00]: when I was in that place of that tension, I felt so lonely.

[SPEAKER_00]: I didn't have a lot of people yet what that was doing this work.

[SPEAKER_00]: And I remember meeting the first folks who were doing non-diet work.

[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, even just reading the intuitive eating book was like, and itself was really important because I'm like, oh my gosh, there's other dietitians.

[SPEAKER_00]: I don't have to quit this work.

[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, what was it like for you in that spot when you were [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, trying to connect it all and move it into the direction you're going to go.

[SPEAKER_01]: It was really scary.

[SPEAKER_01]: I thought about it for a while and I [SPEAKER_01]: I went through conversations like your listener with myself a lot.

[SPEAKER_01]: I talked to my husband about it a lot and I basically came down to the consensus of, I can't continue doing what I'm doing.

[SPEAKER_01]: So I either have to quit being a dietitian and doing this online all together or I create a new path for myself and I own what I've done and I talk about how and why I decided to make this change.

[SPEAKER_01]: And I did that and it was terrifying.

[SPEAKER_01]: You know what?

[SPEAKER_01]: People were a lot more encouraging of this change when I made it than I thought they would be.

[SPEAKER_01]: I thought people were going to judge me in time.

[SPEAKER_01]: I thought I was going to get a lot of backlash and I did get some.

[SPEAKER_01]: Don't get me wrong.

[SPEAKER_00]: Sure.

[SPEAKER_01]: But I got way more encouragement and positive feedback from people that outweighed some of the negativity that I received.

[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, yeah, cling to those people who are giving you that positive feedback, you know, and certainly, you know, people who have already gone down that path.

[SPEAKER_00]: I think it's really important to look to those those folks.

[SPEAKER_00]: I guess that's the cool part of having social media and platforms being built as you can see other people who've gone before.

[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, and I think it's important to also kind of dive into how you and I when we read it were like, oh, she's coming along, but she's not quite there yet.

[SPEAKER_00]: How do you know when someone's like, just kind of like just started a dig into it, but not quite to the part that really gets to the good.

[SPEAKER_00]: Like the healing space, you know?

[SPEAKER_01]: That's a great question.

[SPEAKER_01]: I think that in this letter, there are so many questions around what do I do.

[SPEAKER_01]: I didn't sense a lot of confidence of like, this is what I need to do.

[SPEAKER_01]: And I also sense a lot of personal responsibility from your writer that she still, even though she wants to practice in a different way, she still feels a sense of responsibility with getting clients a certain type of an outcome.

[SPEAKER_01]: And so still has this pressure to achieve outcomes that are typically popular to work towards in a fitness space like where she's working.

[SPEAKER_01]: And so I think because of that and that pressure is like, well, what do I do?

[SPEAKER_01]: How do I still help people work towards their goals and work more in alignment when they've values today?

[SPEAKER_01]: How do I do that?

[SPEAKER_01]: I think because of those two questions existing at the same time it made me think, hmm, [SPEAKER_01]: Maybe there is a little bit more work to do, which that's okay.

[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, yeah, for sure.

[SPEAKER_01]: We all get to where we are because we had these thoughts and we had these questions ourselves and we gave ourselves permission to get uncomfortable and kind of work through all of this and I just want to give your.

[SPEAKER_01]: She's a personal trainer and we need more personal trainers.

[SPEAKER_01]: Yes.

[SPEAKER_01]: Who are talking about having a healthy relationship with food, having a healthy relationship with your body, engaging in movement that feels good to your body.

[SPEAKER_01]: I also got so excited reading this thinking we're going to have another personal trainer out there who isn't [SPEAKER_01]: causing harm to people and that's amazing.

[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, yeah, because there's plenty of personal trainers who kind of will talk about body positivity or being weight inclusive, but yet still focusing on the things that we find to be so harmful and [SPEAKER_00]: Oh, yeah, the other thing I keep thinking about too is, and I think this is because I, the most of the ways that I'm interacting on a one with folks is through helping clinicians and there's something about when a clinician is going through something with the experience and a session or in a class.

[SPEAKER_00]: It's also something else that people that you know the client or people in the class are going through too and so by this letterwriter like continuing to move forward like keep going it's going to help your clients to be able to do the same thing because they can't do any work that you haven't done right so yeah and so don't feel the pressure like I'm sure Bonnie you've been you've experienced that part where you feel like putting the corner with a client who's like [SPEAKER_00]: but I need to lose weight.

[SPEAKER_00]: I need a meal plan.

[SPEAKER_00]: I need to eat less or I need to cut carbs, you know, kind of like a pressure to do the diet anyway.

[SPEAKER_00]: Have you been there?

[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, yeah, and I think.

[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, get through it.

[SPEAKER_01]: And you know what, in my earlier days, I did put so much pressure on myself to want to fix what my clients came to me.

[SPEAKER_01]: For in that sense, if they were terrified of food, if they were wanting to change their body size and an instant like I wanted to I wanted to fix it for them.

[SPEAKER_01]: Yes, because they were so worried about it, but what I've learned over the years and I think is a testament to how much work I've done with.

[SPEAKER_01]: my own healing my relationship with food and continuing this as a professional is that I don't I don't feel that kind of panic to fix people's concerns right away because I know we can't do that.

[SPEAKER_00]: That as a supervisor, I'm very happy to hear that.

[SPEAKER_00]: I think that's really great.

[SPEAKER_00]: I think it's better for everybody, right?

[SPEAKER_00]: And especially thinking about food, it's so much of the fixing has nothing to do with an individual anyway.

[SPEAKER_00]: You know, we don't have that kind of power.

[SPEAKER_00]: And it's so much bigger.

[SPEAKER_00]: You know, the thing that I remember when I, when I was in that spot, I mean, I can remember being in this spot exactly what this person is and like crying a lot, I was so stressed and sleep well, I have psoriasis and one of them stress my stress is so horrible and I remember it was like awful and the thing that helped me to kind of move the needle a little bit was thinking about.

[SPEAKER_00]: all the clients I worked with.

[SPEAKER_00]: And so many people would be doing the same behaviors, but like the weights were never changing the same.

[SPEAKER_00]: And so I was like, well, weight loss isn't a behavior.

[SPEAKER_00]: You know, it just isn't.

[SPEAKER_00]: I have proof.

[SPEAKER_00]: You know, I have so many people that I've seen now that it hasn't.

[SPEAKER_00]: worked out in that way.

[SPEAKER_00]: And so, you know, as a personal trainer, you can help people learn how to do certain movement and how to incorporate movement and strength training into their life, but you can't guarantee anything, right?

[SPEAKER_00]: So, um, I know for me when I remember using that phrase, like, weight loss isn't a behavior.

[SPEAKER_00]: I can teach you how to include more fruits and vegetables, or, you know, whatever behavior we were talking about.

[SPEAKER_00]: And I wonder for this letterwriter, [SPEAKER_00]: like when someone's trying to like, well, can I lose weight if I go to this class?

[SPEAKER_00]: You know, something just to play around with and see how that fits.

[SPEAKER_00]: Are there any things that helped you kind of go in that direction?

[SPEAKER_00]: Any kind of like, I don't know, phrases or mantras that kind of helped you?

[SPEAKER_01]: That is such a good question.

[SPEAKER_01]: phrases or montres that help.

[SPEAKER_00]: I totally play on the spot so don't worry if you do.

[SPEAKER_01]: You know, I like to think about what's in my control and what's out of my control.

[SPEAKER_01]: I do this for a lot of different things.

[SPEAKER_01]: And.

[SPEAKER_01]: So with this, this specifically, when we're talking about our clients coming to us or people coming to us wanting to lose weight or wanting us to fix whatever problem they have with food immediately, if we can draw a little circle and within that circle, we look at these are the things that I have control over.

[SPEAKER_01]: And then outside of the circle are all the things we don't have control over.

[SPEAKER_01]: So inside the circle for me as a dietitian, I have control over helping people rebuild trust with their bodies.

[SPEAKER_01]: I can give them the tools and the practices to help them get more in touch with their hunger cues, with their fullness cues.

[SPEAKER_01]: I know the resources to help them begin to make peace with food.

[SPEAKER_01]: I know how to encourage them to engage in more joyful movement, heal their relationships with exercise, the things that are outside of my control always are how frantic people come to me as you know, like how.

[SPEAKER_01]: What kind of fear are they holding?

[SPEAKER_01]: What kind of answers do they want really quickly?

[SPEAKER_01]: I don't have control over that.

[SPEAKER_01]: Other things outside of my control diet culture.

[SPEAKER_01]: I don't have control of all the messages that we hear every single day.

[SPEAKER_01]: You can have clients coming to you who just came from the gym where the gym was selling.

[SPEAKER_01]: You do our program for 30 days.

[SPEAKER_01]: And then you'll have this result.

[SPEAKER_01]: And you'll lose excounts, right?

[SPEAKER_01]: So people are getting those messages everywhere they go.

[SPEAKER_01]: So I can't control what they've heard outside.

[SPEAKER_01]: on the outside before they come and see me.

[SPEAKER_01]: So by reminding myself of that like these are the things I can actually do and wait right that wait is something we have to include wait is outside of my control is outside of everyone's control I cannot control.

[SPEAKER_01]: what someone's weight will do when I support them with healing their relationship.

[SPEAKER_00]: Right, right, right.

[SPEAKER_00]: And that doesn't make you as a failure.

[SPEAKER_00]: It's just like really just acknowledging the reality, right?

[SPEAKER_00]: And that's where I'm so glad you brought up grief, because I think that's where the whole lot of the grief is.

[SPEAKER_00]: Especially as a healthcare provider, we've been led to believe that we have all this control.

[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, to think about the ignorance that I experienced when I finished my training in nutrition, thinking, oh, I just tell people information and these things will change.

[SPEAKER_01]: Wouldn't that be great?

[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, I say that, but then at the same time, I've really enjoyed everything that I've learned along the way with, yeah, of course.

[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, of course.

[SPEAKER_01]: And, you know, how we are so much more complex than a text about?

[SPEAKER_00]: Yes, exactly.

[SPEAKER_00]: until I actually was working with clients.

[SPEAKER_00]: And also for us, for you and me, Bonnie, in the room, we're in there, too.

[SPEAKER_00]: And the human experience of helping someone when you have, you also have your own relationship with food and body and movement.

[SPEAKER_00]: So that's the other thing I was thinking about for this letterwriter is like, oh, I want to give you a big hug.

[SPEAKER_00]: And [SPEAKER_00]: let you know that Yoke would through this.

[SPEAKER_00]: This is really hard work and it's really important.

[SPEAKER_00]: So keep going.

[SPEAKER_00]: And before we wrap up because we're running out of time, are there any other steps that you'd recommend?

[SPEAKER_00]: Any other resources that you think are helpful for someone in this space?

[SPEAKER_01]: Let me think.

[SPEAKER_01]: I think when I think about resources to support your letter writer here, the first thing I think of is community and how important it is.

[SPEAKER_01]: So by writing to you, listening to this podcast, that is one form of community.

[SPEAKER_01]: And I'm wondering if there are any other [SPEAKER_01]: community resources that your letter writer can lean on, whether that's personal trainers, who are who maybe have already kind of figured this out or who are currently figuring this out, whether it's people online that they can follow and learn from, maybe it's some books, Facebook groups, what kind of community can you lean on?

[SPEAKER_01]: Because it can feel lonely and isolating, [SPEAKER_01]: doing this work when you feel like you're one of the only ones and sometimes and yeah sometimes in fitness spaces you you might feel like you're the only one even though it sounds like your letterwriter works in a place that a studio that's really done a lot of great work to bring about non intimidating fitness nutrition and lifestyle coaching programs but at the same time it sounds like they're still this pressure to [SPEAKER_01]: you know, provide clients with weight loss.

[SPEAKER_01]: So finding other people on your space who are doing what you're doing.

[SPEAKER_01]: I think is really helpful.

[SPEAKER_01]: I also believe in as letting ourselves like build our muscles of discomfort.

[SPEAKER_01]: So I'm sure this letter writer as a personal trainer is very familiar with building muscles.

[SPEAKER_01]: You can't just start out [SPEAKER_01]: We kind of have our own emotional muscles too.

[SPEAKER_01]: So whenever we make a big change in our life, that emotionally is a lot for us.

[SPEAKER_01]: So giving yourself permission to kind of sit in that discomfort and like feel those emotions as you tolerate them, you know, of course, maybe we're seeing it therapist could be helpful if it gets really uncomfortable, but we're sitting with those emotions letting yourself just like say hey it's okay for me to feel uncomfortable.

[SPEAKER_01]: It's okay for me to like keep pushing through and doing new things that's completely okay.

[SPEAKER_01]: Um, and then the last thing I'm thinking of is, you know, I'm not sure where your letter writer may be promotes our markets, our services anywhere, but making even some little changes there, I think could be one really cool step if you're thinking of action steps.

[SPEAKER_01]: If you're on social media, creating graphics, it talk about the way you're supporting clients and the importance of focusing on [SPEAKER_01]: Non-weight behavior activities, so how can we move our bodies in a ways that actually strengthens us, you know, if we do certain exercises, how does that help us as we get older?

[SPEAKER_01]: So what are some of those things that we can focus on that have nothing to do with?

[SPEAKER_00]: There's so many.

[SPEAKER_00]: There's so many.

[SPEAKER_00]: And I think as dietitians, we have had this experience probably before a lot of other health care providers.

[SPEAKER_00]: And I don't I think it's just because we're in the room longer with clients and sifting through so much more detail that we kind of came to this before a lot of other people in the health care field.

[SPEAKER_00]: And so yeah, working with a dietitian just as even someone to like help coach you through this is going to be great.

[SPEAKER_00]: But one thing that I will say is going [SPEAKER_00]: you're going to feel a lot of shame and I hope you don't let yourself stay there too long because that will just keep you stuck.

[SPEAKER_00]: It's not serving anyone especially your clients and yourself.

[SPEAKER_00]: It's pretty typical for us to feel pretty ashamed of some of the past things we did and yeah just don't let yourself stay there too long.

[SPEAKER_00]: It's not helping and the last thing before we wrap up I want to mention too is especially if you want to know how as dietitians we did this [SPEAKER_00]: I think it was within the last five to 10 years there was a really in-depth article in today's dietitian and it came from a listserv conversation where someone brought up something like this on like a dietitian like when we had just like one listserv right so it probably was closer to 2015 and it basically was this conversation where a bunch of us were like [SPEAKER_00]: I guess arguing's the best way to put it, but talking about like, no, we think it's wrong to put people on diets because our hurts people and then other people were countering with what this person's saying.

[SPEAKER_00]: Like, but if a client comes and they want to lose weight, am I going to say no?

[SPEAKER_00]: And we're like, yes.

[SPEAKER_00]: And so then then uping this really big article in this magazine and I can put it like to it in the show notes, I feel lucky I got to be interviewed for it, but it was it was messy and I think that's what it just has to be just has to be messy for a while and I appreciate your transparency of the years it's been really amazing.

[SPEAKER_00]: for you to just share it.

[SPEAKER_00]: So I hope this letterwriter can see that too and be like, you know, what growth is amazing.

[SPEAKER_00]: And when you get to the other side, it can be great not only for you, but yeah, for all the clients you serve.

[SPEAKER_00]: So if someone's listening and they want to know more about you and your work, where would you direct them?

[SPEAKER_00]: What kind of things are you offering right now to help people?

[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, thanks so much, Julie.

[SPEAKER_01]: So you can find me mostly on Instagram at diet.culture.rebel.

[SPEAKER_01]: You, I also have a podcast, Diet culture rebel.

[SPEAKER_01]: Those two resources will direct you to anything else that you might find as interest of mine.

[SPEAKER_00]: Awesome.

[SPEAKER_00]: Well, thank you so much, Bonnie.

[SPEAKER_00]: I appreciate your time and taking time and a lot of compassion with this letter.

[SPEAKER_00]: It means so much.

[SPEAKER_00]: So thank you.

[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, thank you so much for having me.

[SPEAKER_00]: So there you have it.

[SPEAKER_00]: I hope you enjoyed my conversation with Bonnie.

[SPEAKER_00]: I certainly did and I didn't mention this earlier, but I actually got a chance to meet Bonnie in person at the Fancy, you know, the Super Bowl for dietitians conference.

[SPEAKER_00]: And she's such a delight.

[SPEAKER_00]: I was so glad to actually meet her in person.

[SPEAKER_00]: But with that all being said, I'm so glad that she had a chance to answer.

[SPEAKER_00]: this particular letter and I have foods letter back that I want to share with you in just a moment.

[SPEAKER_00]: Before I go, remember the Find Your Food Voice book is available for purchase.

[SPEAKER_00]: It is available at julyduffydillin.com and you can also find me on sub-stack.

[SPEAKER_00]: Find your food voice.sub-stack.com and we are going to continue to dive into more of these topics and I hope you'll join me there.

[SPEAKER_00]: I'm having a lot of fun and I would love to stay connected there.

[SPEAKER_00]: I'll be back in two weeks with our next episode of The Find Your Food Boys podcast with Heidi Schuster, who's going to help me also answer a listener letter and until then take care.

[SPEAKER_00]: Dear Confused.

[SPEAKER_00]: We hope you know that doing your own introspective healing work will cause a positive ripple effect for others to do the same.

[SPEAKER_00]: Please know that you can't long-term control weight and health like you've been led to believe for you or your clients.

[SPEAKER_00]: keep questioning the ties with weight and health.

[SPEAKER_00]: Keep promoting health, focusing on behaviors and self-compassion.

[SPEAKER_00]: Just because a client wants to lose weight does not mean you have to focus on that too.

[SPEAKER_00]: We encourage you to continue this process in community and we know you will find your way that fits for you.

[SPEAKER_00]: Love, food, body image and diets.

[SPEAKER_00]: Thank you for listening to the Find Your Food Voice podcast.

[SPEAKER_00]: It is written, produced, and edited by me to Lee Duffy Dylan.

[SPEAKER_00]: I also get amazing help from Rachel Poppick, who is editing all of the show notes and uploading everything so you can actually get access to all the files.

[SPEAKER_00]: And we also have Colleen Bremner, who is a part of our Find Your Food Voice team, who you also care on some episodes.

[SPEAKER_00]: We do appreciate the support of the podcast by leaving a rating or review.

[SPEAKER_00]: and following along on sub-sac as a free or paid subscriber does help us, but whenever you do sign up to be a paid subscriber, that really low rate to be a paid subscriber gives you access to these deep dies and also supports me, my team, my family because this is my full-time job.

[SPEAKER_00]: So any way that you can support us is super appreciated.

[SPEAKER_00]: All right, thank you for so much for listening and we'll be back in two weeks with another episode.

[SPEAKER_00]: Until then, take care.

[SPEAKER_01]: Home is with you wherever that may be.