In this week’s group meeting, Dr. Tro and Health Coaches Amy Eiges and Brian Wiley discussed all-or-nothing thinking in relation to diet and exercise and how this extreme view has negatively impacted their goals.

Discussion:

• Dr. Tro started the discussion with a member who was struggling to lose weight after having surgery. Tro talked about experiencing something similar when he had surgery last year — the post-surgery inflammation creates insulin resistance in the body and drives you to eat. The body is trying to repair itself, this is not a bad thing, it’s part of the body’s natural healing process.
• During times of stress and healing its difficult to restrict certain low-carb foods, our bodies crave them and we should focus on doing the best we can in those moments. Once you are doing better and healing you can go back to basics and focus on cutting back on the convenience foods you were leaning on to get through.
• The team discussed the many clients they work with that sometimes overeat or have a “cheat” meal and then decide to really go off their low carb plan because they have already “blown it.” Tro compared this line of thinking to being like getting a flat tire, pulling over on the side of the road and stabbing a hole in the other 3 tires. While this makes no sense, many of us fall in to this all-or-nothing thinking when it comes to diet.
• Health Coaches Amy and Brian discussed their issues with overeating nuts, they cause a lot of low carb-ers problems. Both talked about how difficult it can be to moderate them. Amy quickly puts them into single-serving bags and in the back of the freezer, away from eyeshot. Brian recently used Amy for accountability in breaking a nut habit that was getting out of control. Support can help, but sometimes not having them around is the best strategy.
• Many people struggle with all-or-nothing thinking around exercise and think if they can’t do the entire workout they won’t do any. This can often happen if they have a long break from the exercise and they have a hard time starting back up because they get discouraged at not being where they left off. The entire team suggested to be kind to yourself and meet yourself where you are. Accept it, start slow and set attainable goals like just committing to 5 minutes of exercise. By doing this, you will develop the habit, a key part of the process. Once the habit has formed, intensity and time will follow.
• Exercise is great for all aspects of health, especially for mental health. Just a few minutes can help relieve stress and give you some time to yourself before or after the stress of the day. Even taking a 5 minute walk during a break from work can dramatically shift your mood and focus.