03/31/2026
“A few years ago, I recognized that something needed to change. I had a friend that was an MM patient, and I loved the mental approach of MM. I realized that I needed to focus on the mental work, instead of just focusing on weight loss.
I was afraid of being so strict that I would just bounce back. I’d had so many years of yo-yo dieting, why would this be anything different?
Everything has been so different, and so hard, but in a good way: this has made me think and work through so many of my mental and emotional challenges related to food. I’d never worked closely with a nutritionist, and definitely not one that gave more than just a meal plan.
I wanted to be perfect right at the beginning and not “fail”, but that is what I am still working on. Accepting that there are going to peaks and divots, and that I can work through them.
I have learned to take it one meal at a time, and everything is an opportunity for reflection and learning.
I am still surprised that I can go without a sugary coffee every day and be ok. It sounds silly, but in all seriousness, sugary coffee was a daily habit and ritual that was super hard to let go of. Doing away with that habit has been huge for me, physically and mentally.
I am still learning to eat veggies at every meal, and still working to prioritize protein. It’s tough, but I’m really working to unlearn habits (coffee, wine, food to relax) that I relied on for so long. They never made me feel good in the long run. I am unlearning habits that I relied on (or thought so), daily sugary coffee, diet soda, wine to relax.
Change is hard, and there’s a bit of a grieving process. It’s ok to recognize, and it’s important to accept the ups and downs throughout the process to truly be successful.
Until I was able to accept that it was going to be hard, I wasn’t going to be able to make any real meaningful progress.
Getting out of a mental and physical rut was going to take time and it was going to take work. What I was doing was not working.
I am still working on it every day, and while I’d like to reach a place of ease, I don’t think I’ll ever stop learning about how my mind, body, and nutrition work together.”