What is Diet Culture?  

Before we dive into how to reject diet culture and be a diet culture dropout, I recommend that you read my previous post about diet culture, Toxic Diet Culture – 8 Reasons Why It’s Harmful. In that post, I define diet culture and discuss several reasons why it’s harmful.

Here’s a quick recap of what diet culture is:

Diet culture praises the “ideal body” which is seen as small and thin. According to our society today, if you possess this specific type of body that means you have additional health and value. In order to achieve this “ideal body,” diet culture promotes weight loss via restrictive behaviors that encourage disordered eating.

If someone does not fall within this “ideal body” category and/or is not taking action to lose weight in order to achieve this “ideal body,” then diet culture makes that person feel ashamed and worthless.

I don’t know about you but I am sick and tired of the pain diet culture has forced into my life. Keep reading to find out how you can be a diet culture dropout.

10 Ways to Be a Diet Culture Dropout

1. Unfollow social media accounts

Social media can be a toxic, damaging place. From Instagram to Facebook to Twitter to Pinterest to TikTok to Reddit, the comparison trap can feel endless. If you find yourself scrolling through social media and comparing your life, especially your physical attributes, to someone else then it’s time to make a change.

For me, personally, this was a crucial step in learning to reject diet culture. I unfollowed so many accounts, even friends and family. At first, it felt ridiculous and unnecessary to unfollow that many people. However, I noticed that once those accounts stopped popping up on my home page, I gave less time and energy to how my life compares to those around me.

Unfollowing accounts helped me realize how pointless it is to follow people that make me feel insignificant. What benefit was I gaining from that and why was I following those people in the first place?

2. Learn to love your “now” self

I’ve found four helpful ways to nurture self-love, some are appearance-based while others dive a little deeper.

Appearance

Look at yourself in the mirror then find at least 10 things you love about yourself and list why you appreciate them.

Examples:

  • Your hair, because you’re thankful to have it
  • Your smile marks, because they show how happy your life is
  • Your eye wrinkles, because you inherited them from your dad
  • Your stretch marks, because they show that your body is strong enough to create and carry a human being for 9 months

Abilities

Another great way to learn to love yourself is to focus on how you feel instead of how you look. Learn to be thankful for the things your body is capable of.

Examples:

  • The ability to participate in activities that I love
  • The ability to walk my dog at the park
  • The ability to climb steep mountains and see the beautiful things God created
  • The ability to perform physically hard tasks without assistance
  • The ability to eat all kinds of foods

Attributes

Additionally, a great way to show yourself love is to make a list of attributes you enjoy about yourself.

Examples:

  • Perseverance
  • Kindness
  • Loyalty
  • Light-heartedness
  • Hard-working
  • Trustworthy
  • Patient
  • Dependable
  • Forgiving

Affirmations

The power of affirmations is often overlooked or even mocked. Affirmations can help change negative thinking patterns to positive ones. It can help with self-confidence by decreasing self-sabotaging and introducing positive opinions about yourself.

Examples:

  • I am capable of the things I want to achieve
  • I am beautiful and deserve to be loved as I am
  • I am more than the number on the scale, I am more than a body
  • I was created to look the way I am and that is beautiful
  • My body deserves to be treated with love and respect
  • My body knows best and I will treat it accordingly
  • The size and shape of my body do not dictate my worth

Always remember that confidence and self-love don’t happen overnight. It takes time. Be patient and don’t give up.

3. Spend money mindfully

If we really want to be diet culture dropouts, then we can’t support it with our wallets. This means no more buying or supporting:

  • Detox teas or juices
  • Weight loss shakes
  • Detox or weight loss pills
  • Books about dieting (i.e. Atkins Diet, Ketogenic diet, Paleo diet, etc)
  • Cookbooks based on diets (i.e. Keto recipes, paleo recipes, sugar-free recipes, etc)
  • Weight loss programs geared toward restrictive or potentially harmful behaviors (i.e. Weight Watchers, Noom, etc.)
  • Doctors, physicians, nurses, and even dietitians that promote restrictive behaviors or encourage purchasing any of the above
  • TV shows and movies that promote unhealthy behaviors and support fatphobia (i.e. the Biggest Loser)

4. No more body shaming

Just because someone else’s body doesn’t look like ours, doesn’t mean we have to right to negatively comment on it. This applies to bodies of all sizes. No one deserves to be shamed for the way their body looks, whether it is small, big, or somewhere in between.

Diet culture dropouts don’t body shame others (or themselves). Periodt.

5. Choose self-care

Taking care of yourself is not selfish. If you are drawn to taking care of others before yourself, remember that you can’t pour from an empty cup.

What are some ways you can care for yourself?

Here are some ideas:

  • Time outside
  • Time in the sunshine
  • Hikes
  • Walks at the park
  • Time with significant other
  • Pet snuggles
  • Adequate sleep
  • Adequate food intake
  • Enjoyable physical activity
  • Rest days
  • Watch a favorite TV show or a funny movie
  • Eat tasty foods
  • Drink your favorite beverages  

6. Choose to nourish, not deprive

Choose foods that nourish both body and mind. Reject diet culture and enjoy your favorite foods.

A great way to focus on nourishing your body is by incorporating Intuitive Eating (IE) into your life. If you aren’t familiar with Intuitive Eating, go check out my post, 10 Principles of Intuitive Eating – A Non-Diet Approach to Health.

7. Develop coping strategies for bad days

Be prepared for bad body image days full of negative thoughts. Develop coping strategies to get you through those extra-tough days.

8. Learn how to identify fad diets

When you read or hear about a new diet or way of eating, ask yourself these questions:

  • Does it promote a quick fix?
  • Does it restrict or exclude certain food groups or nutrients?
  • Does it promote that one food can fix your problem(s)?
  • Does it promote restrictive habits or have rigid rules?
  • Does it promote intentional weight loss?
  • Does it sound too good to be true?
  • Does it sound just straight-up crazy?
  • Is it sold by a celebrity, influencer, or friend on social media?
  • Does it label foods as good or bad?
  • Does it specify when or when not to eat food?
  • Does it demonize certain nutrients or molecular components of food?

Still struggling to identify diets? Here are some common fad diets:

  • Keto diet, also known as the ketogenic diet, the Atkins Diet, low-carb diet, or South Beach Diet
  • Noom
  • Whole 30
  • Paleo diet
  • Alkaline diet
  • Cleanses or detoxes
  • Weight Watchers, now known as WW
  • Raw food diet
  • Intermittent fasting
  • Gluten-free diet

For more info, check out my post, How to Identify Fad Diets.

9. Leave perfectionism at the door

Holding yourself to what you perceive as perfect standards is not going to help you become a diet culture dropout. Each meal doesn’t have to be perfect. Every workout doesn’t have to be perfect. Each day doesn’t have to go the way you planned. Every mood doesn’t have to be happy and satisfied. Each day doesn’t have to be a perfect body image day. We are imperfect beings and that is okay!

10. Stop focusing on weight

Stop focusing on weight as a determinant of health and happiness. Research shows that individual health cannot be determined by external appearance. Health can be achieved at every size.

If you haven’t heard of Health at Every Size (HAES), I encourage you to read my post, A Weight Inclusive Approach to Health – What is Health at Every Size® (HAES)?

Quick Summary

There are many ways to become a diet culture dropout but I highlighted 10 actionable, repeatable ways to help you along your way.

  1. Unfollow social media accounts
  2. Learn to love your “now” self
  3. Don’t support diet culture with money
  4. Refuse to body shame
  5. Practice self-care
  6. Nourish, not deprive
  7. Develop strategies to cope with bad days
  8. Stay away from fad diets
  9. Leave perfectionism behind
  10. Stop focusing on weight

Looking for a great way to reject diet culture? Check out my anti-diet themed store full of fun products!

Thanks for reading!

Rachel Beiler, MHS, RD, LDN