It was a Friday afternoon and the end of a very long work-life week in February.
I had finished up a series of errands and was delighted to be heading home to settle in for the weekend.
I drove out of the parking lot onto a road I’ve travelled one zillion times.
Movin’ and groovin’ with the flow of traffic.
Moments later, there were those big flashing scary lights in the rear view mirror. My heart pounded out of my chest. Like WTH and where did this police car come from… and why is he behind MY CAR??
Within a handful of minutes, I was handed my traffic infraction document for speeding and I was back on the road homebound with what felt like a big slap in the face.
“I was only going with the flow of traffic, officer.” (I didn’t really say that out loud, but it was an actual thought in my head… along with “I couldn’t have been going THAT fast” and “He surely must’ve had his radar gizmo pointed at someone else!”)
That’s often where we tend to go, with the “victim” sort of attitude and “it ain’t me nor my fault, no way no how.” We also tend to get pulled into what others around us are doing, without really taking a moment to BE in the moment and acknowledge what is happening, asking “Is this right?”.
What does this have to do with food and nutrition, you may be wondering?
I see it as a bit of a metaphor for how we can easily get sucked into the diet culture muck around us. Be it the interwebs, the social media platforms, popular media publications, our peer groups, training partners, etc…
We look at what others are doing and want to be just like them. It looks appealing and easy… and it must be good if they are doing it. Right?
We often times forget to pause and think how all of that diet stuff we are hearing and seeing applies to us as the individual. In our circumstances. In our lives. In our bodies. In our existence.
Going with the flow ain’t always the thing to do. And I’d argue it’s rarely the thing to do, especially in our nutty diet culture that is e.v.e.r.y.w.h.e.r.e.
Next time you find yourself getting sucked into the diet hubbub around you, slow down and step outside of the buzz. You can pull off to the side and let all the yahoos go by.
Staying true to yourself and your path is a-okay, friends.
Thanks for reading,
Dina