The diet industry is worth roughly 70 billion dollars. Yes, I said BILLION.
Odds are, you don't know someone with a billion dollars let alone 70 billion dollars. To give you some perspective, you would have to spend $2220 per second in order to spend 70 billion dollars in a year.
Take a moment to let that sink in.
Companies have made a fortune over the years convincing you that in order to be “beautiful” you need to look different. But here’s the catch. Every couple of years, that “ideal beauty” changes. That’s no accident.
Just like the fashion industry, the diet industry has to constantly evolve to keep from essentially going out of business. If a style of clothing stayed the same for 50 years, you would have no need to continuously purchase new clothes. Similarly, if the diet industry never changed their standard of beauty, people would have nothing to chase and would stop buying the bogus junk they are selling. Simple as that.
It is no accident that they are called fad diets. Year after year a new fad diet is introduced (or reintroduced) that is said to be the miracle solution to losing weight. And yes, that’s part of the problem. We are convinced that regardless of our size, we need to lose weight.
One day keto is all the rage, the next day the world is pushing an 8 day juice cleanse on you. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that you will probably lose weight if all you consume for 8 days is juice. You will also not be a happy camper or a pleasant person to be around. Beware.
Not to mention, have you ever noticed how everyone on a diet likes to bring it up as if it's some badge of honor that they have gone 10 days without eating carbs? To be frank, no one wants to hear about your diet. Cutting out an entire food group is not something that should be celebrated.
In fact, as someone that spent years restricting their food intake, nothing fueled my eating disorder more than when people would praise the so-called control I had. Little did they know, I was slowly killing myself. Literally.
And…
We all know a Karen that can't wait to sell you on her magic detox tea. Promising you life changing results in a matter of days. Don’t be fooled, the only thing you will get in a matter of days is some quality time with your toilet, and stomach cramps that will have you thinking you're going into labor.
But diets aren't the only problem here. Each year, a new popular fitness craze is unleashed, slated to take over the world. We have seen yoga rise in popularity, only to be pushed out by crossfit, pilates or [insert name of fancy cycle studio here]. And remember P90X! In all honesty, I have all of the DVDs somewhere.
Yet somehow we are made to feel that if we aren't doing the current “cool exercise”, we are somehow exercising wrong. Logically, that makes no sense. Movement is movement. There is no right or wrong way to do it, so don’t feel bad if, like me, you can’t afford a mirror that talks to you or the latest gatchet or gizmo to magically make you “fit” this year.
So the next time you feel less than enough because you're not on the latest fitness kick or someone tries to convince you that you will be so much happier if you don’t eat carbs, smile and walk away. Quickly! You do not need a $3000 bike to feel good about yourself (not that there's anything wrong with Peloton), nor do you need to deprive yourself of an entire food group.
Just like the fashion industry, the diet (and fitness) industry is ever changing on purpose. If you feel the burning desire to keep up with the latest trends, buy a new pair of jeans. Don’t sacrifice your health or wellbeing. Please.
Share your thoughts below! I love to hear from you guys.
Ta Ta for now!
Disclaimer: Please note, all information on The Cheeky Life is not intended as medical advice or as a substitute for professional care. The intention of this blog is to connect with the community and share my personal experiences with mental health, eating disorders, and life in general. All opinions are my own.
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