I have a question—or, rather, something that requires clarification. I took your advice to clean out my kitchen, and I know that doing so helps me eat less junk food. Obviously, if something is there, it will eventually get eaten. But, I don’t understand how to dovetail this with the concept of being free to eat what one wants and learning to not tell yourself that something is bad. If I am cleaning out my pantry of things that I view as “bad” but also learning to tell myself that I can have what I want, how do those reconcile? Is it a matter of removing things about which you currently know you don’t have an ability to moderate at all? I am not sure I’m explaining my confusion very well, but maybe you can get what I’m saying.Jillian
Clean the pantry out of processed crap. Not because it’s “off limits” but because you choose to not surround yourself with it.
Jillian – I totally get it. In this case the action might be the same, it’s the mental state which is driving the action that differs. To make an analogy: you can apologize to someone out of true remorse, or you can apologize because your mom twisted your arm to. The words might be the same, but the feel of doing it to you is so different!
Are you throwing away the foods because you aren’t allowed to have them?
Or
Are you throwing away the foods because you’re choosing not to tempt yourself inside your home with items that don’t align with your values? Phrasing it each way will likely have an effect on how you feel about the process. Try it out.
Another way to consider it:
I’m tossing these not because I am not allowed to eat them, but because I’m choosing to enjoy treats outside of the house in single servings only, where it feels more special and I can be more certain I’m choosing them out of a real conscious decision. If I really want a cookie, I can go to the store and buy one. They aren’t gone from the face of the earth, they just aren’t in my pantry. (With an unfair advantage due to proximity!)
With Love,
Coach Georgie
