If you struggle with body image, feeling guilty when you eat, or other food/eating related disorders, take a moment to read below:
Art design: “Tulips” lovingly created by my daughter, Nina Gatti
Hi, I’m Nina. I feel so lucky to have grown up with my mother’s guidance, especially with regards to nutrition. As a child, I remember my mom loved being in the kitchen; and prepared a wide variety of foods sometimes directly from our own garden of fruit and vegetables. She was a role model for my sister and I as we navigated the elementary school cafeteria, a complex food environment consisting of a plethora of M&M yogurts and nutella sandwiches. As I grew older and gained more freedom to buy food during school lunch in middle school, I found myself choosing foods that didn’t feel as well in my body. I was no longer eating in alignment with my hunger cues and overeating processed white foods became my new normal. So I decided to take heed of my mother’s advice, and began asking her questions of my own about how to cultivate a better relationship with food and maintain a healthy lifestyle.
This worked well until I gained access to social platforms as a young teenage girl. I began to really struggle with my body image, something I am still actively working on today. I decided to use my knowledge of healthy food, healthy eating, and a healthy lifestyle to FIX my body. I thought I could use “intermittent fasting” as an excuse to have one protein smoothie a day. And that it was healthy for me to be participating in a sport and going home and working out excessively afterwards fueled by the energy of just this one smoothie. I don’t blame myself for my struggle with body image. I blame a diet culture that glorifies “skinny” and weight loss; and social media platforms that depict girls in airbrushed bodies as normal.
Over time, I learned not to FIX my body, but to LOVE my body. And loving my body means treating it the way that you would treat anything you love- nourish it, care for it, and respect what it needs for sustenance and for energy. I tell this story not because I think it is particularly abnormal or special, or something that would stand out to someone reading this- but for the opposite reason. I think that my story- give or take some details- is the same struggle that so many others share in common with me. The pressure to succumb to a type of image is growing exceedingly prevalent with a growth of fake news on social media platforms and constant ads catering to girls who want to lose weight fast- I know because I have spent hours scrolling through these ads, posts, videos, etc.
I used a “healthy lifestyle” to mask what was really going on behind the surface for me- something that was not healthy at all. What I’ve learned is that in today’s culture of dieting, carb counting, and food guilt, it is vitally important to learn the tools to navigate this environment successfully and cultivate a healthy relationship with food and your body – and I think that my mom can help you do that.
How do you cultivate a healthy relationship with food? Start by reminding yourself that food is GOOD, it is meant to be consumed, it is meant to be loved by your body that is how you were made. You were made to perform, to work, to do what you love to do- and the only way for you to have the energy to do that is by EATING. If you keep this in mind, as you enter any program with my mom, or begin any workout plan of your own- you will protect yourself from the negative thoughts that slip in too easily.
If you want to learn how to love your body by treating it right, nourishing it, and feeding it the right food in the right way- you’re in the right place.
Signed,
Nina Gatti
Coming soon! More about our unique, weight inclusive approach to nutrition care. For nutrition tips and our personal recipe collection visit the Blog or go to our Recipe finder.
We have partnered with Project Heal, a non-profit whose mission is to make access to eating disorder treatment more equitable. As a member of their healing circle I provide pro-bono nutrition services to clients with anorexia, bulimia, binge eating disorder, ARFID, and orthorexia. Find more information about Project Heal and their important work by clicking the link below:
Do you struggle with making dietary changes that last? Join my Stick-With-It! Challenge and discover why changing your eating habits is so hard (& what you can do about it). Five days, 5 simple-doable steps to better your health. Are you in?!
