Why I Finally Walked Away From Dieting

For most of my adult life, I was a yo-yo dieter.

Not in a way that anyone would necessarily notice. I never became extremely overweight, which I used to count as proof that I had things “under control.” But the truth was more complicated than that.

During the week, especially when I was single, I would eat very little. I told myself I was being disciplined. Focused. In control.

By Friday evening, that control would start to fade. Weekends became a kind of release. I would eat the foods I had denied myself all week — especially sweets and chocolate. It was not enjoyment as much as it was relief.

And then came the guilt.

By Sunday night I would feel disappointed in myself. I would promise to “be better” again. And Monday would arrive with restriction. Five days of very little. Two days of too much. And the pattern would begin again.

I lived inside that rhythm for years.

Learning to choose balance over extremes

At some point, I realised something uncomfortable: the only reason I never became extremely overweight was because I was constantly compensating. I was not balanced. I was swinging between extremes.

Looking back, I sometimes wonder what that pattern meant for my body. Whether years of under-eating during the week meant I was not always giving myself what I truly needed. Whether my osteoporosis may have been influenced, even slightly, by those years of inconsistent nourishment.

There is a particular kind of frustration that comes from realising you were fighting yourself for so long. Because you believed discipline had to feel strict in order to work.

Even now, if I am honest, I can still see traces of that old pattern. I still prefer structure during the week. I still have to be mindful around sweets. Chocolate has always been my weakness.

But things are different now. I don’t binge anymore. I eat more consistently. I choose proper meals. I include fruit when I want something sweet. I focus on nourishment instead of control.

And I exercise.

Not to compensate — but because I love how it feels. The strength in the gym. The steadiness of walking along the beach. The sense that my body is capable, not something to battle.

The biggest shift was not in what I ate. It was in what I stopped doing. I stopped punishing myself. I stopped swinging between extremes. I stopped believing that being “good” during the week earned me chaos on the weekend.

Walking away from dieting was gradual. It was simply the decision that I do not want to spend the next 20 years fighting my own body.

I want consistency. I want strength. I want nourishment. I want peace around food.

And that feels far more sustainable than any diet I ever followed.

🌿 Continue Your Journey

If this blog resonated with you, here are three more stories you might enjoy:

 Small Changes, Big Results — Why I stopped chasing drastic changes and started focusing on small habits that actually stick.

The Last 3 kg — What happened when I finally realised those last few kilos were never really the problem.

How I Lost 10kg Before 50 (And Kept It Off After 60) — The small, consistent changes that helped me lose 10kg — and keep it off for more than a decade.

Are you ready to stop fighting your body? Let’s start today. Drop a comment below and tell me: What is one small way you can nourish yourself today?

— Frannie B. ☕