The UnDiet
I have started more diets than I can possibly write about. Because I’ve started so many times, I know I must have ended many too. The ending is never as exciting or memorable and usually I don’t even recognize when a diet is over. Sound familiar?
While paying attention to our health is important, we all know that dieting is dumb, the results don’t last, and we usually end up compromising our health.
We often spend more time preparing to go on a diet than we do the actual dieting. We buy the diet food, new exercise clothing and equipment, diet books and other “things” that we think will make us skinny. And don’t forget the exquisite binging that goes on the day before D-day.
This post might not be for everyone, but it could be. It isn’t about losing weight, cutting carbs or drinking shakes. This post is about finding a healthy way to eat and move that will support your lovely life.
The UnDiet and Exercise Lifestyle
If you want to be healthy, stop obsessing about what not to eat, and live your healthiest life possible, welcome to the UnDiet. You won’t lose 5lbs in 5 days, or accomplish any other ridiculous health claim. What will happen is that you will have an opportunity to feel a little better tomorrow than you did today, and even better, and perhaps lighter the day after that.
UnDieting does not require a list of foods you can’t eat. You don’t have to give up anything. UnDieting does not require calorie counting or points calculating. It doesn’t even ask that you ban bread forever or never have a cocktail with your friends.
To successfully UnDiet all you need is…
- the desire to feel good and be well
- one hour of movement per day (or less to start)
- short list of foods that make you feel good and contribute to your well being
Keep your food list simple and short. Change it each week. Eat the foods on your list most of the time, and don’t sweat the times when you occasionally eat off the list. I’m not going to tell you what percentage of time to eat what. That is up to you. Life and eating does not have to be about math.
Stress has been been scientifically proven to cause weight gain. (Here comes the light bulb moment) If stress causes weight gain, and dieting is stressful, the stress that comes from traditional dieting and “measuring up” will eventually cause weight gain. Oh, sweet irony.
UnGuidelines
Eating
- eat less than you think you need from a simple list of foods
- use smaller plates if that helps
- when you eat, just eat
- when you eat too much, move more
Your simple list of food should be food that you like and food that contributes to good health. You can change your list from week to week, and season to season depending on how much variety you need. I suspect that just as we wear 20% of our clothing 80% of the time, the same applies to food we purchase. By limiting your weekly list, you will have less waste in your refrigerator and spend less at the grocery store. Look to your favorite cookbooks for inspiration, or websites like Stonesoup. Aim for simple, clean food.
If you go out to eat, choose something from the menu, eat less than you think you need, and enjoy.
Sample List (my personal list)
- bagel thins
- lettuce/greens
- tomatoes
- garlic
- cucumber
- olive oil
- balsamic vinegar
- apples
- whole wheat pasta
- basmati rice
- lentils
- garbanzo beans
- red wine
- dark chocolate
(note: I am a vegetarian, so my list might look different than yours. That’s ok, our bodies and needs are different too)
Moving
- Do something you enjoy
- Move everyday
- Rest intentionally for 5-15 minutes
Move for one hour every day. Move within your ability. If you want to walk for 30 minutes in the morning and 30 minutes in the evening, do that. If you want to practice yoga for 60 minutes or play volleyball, do that. Some days you might try 30 minutes of cycling and 30 minutes of push-ups and sit-ups. While 60 minutes is a good time to aim for, start where you want to start, and commit to that time period each day for a week and then reassess.
With exercise plans past, I’d make lengthy plans and calendars, track heart rate and reps and then burn out after 90 days and do nothing for the next 90. The UnDiet invites you to move how you want each day.
Included in or in addition to each 60 minutes of moving I recommend Savasana (Corpse Pose). Traditionally done at the end of a yoga practice, you can do it after a walk, strength training or any exercise. Take 5-15 minutes to lay down and breathe. You don’t have to pray or meditate or do anything but lay there. Here is a step by step approach to Savasana.
You don’t need any equipment to start the UnDiet. You don’t need to get ready to start, no farewell to carbs weekend or cleaning everything out of your cabinets. Just start simply without expectation of immediate results or even long term goals.
Reduce the stress that comes with dieting and go live and be healthy and happy.
If Scott Stratten agrees to write an introduction about the magic of UnNess, and gives me permission to coin UnDiet after being inspired by his UnMarketing, I might write the UnDiet book. Publishers, call me if you’re interested. Isn’t that how it works? 
Recommended Reading
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor or health professional. This advice comes from a chronic dieter who is changing her life. Take it for what it’s worth.
If there is enough interest in UnDieting, I am considering a small forum that would run from September through December so we can share ideas and ditch dieting together. Leave a comment below if you would like to participate or send me an email.
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I L-O-V-E everything you write. Please never stop. My trip toward simplifying my life is made easier by you. May I call you my “mentor”?!
Awww Meg B. Thanks for your kind feedback. Sometimes getting simple, gets complicated, but when we’ve connected with others on the same journey, it makes it more fun.
Hi Courtney-
I love the un-diet idea! I’d definitely join a forum. I’d also love to know what recipes you make with the foods on your list!
Kristin – I’ll write a post about a few of the recipes I make with that list. Thanks for the suggestion!
+1 on the recipes. Especially the simple recipes like sandwiches – even I can’t mess those up too bad.
Hi Courtney!
I also would love to participate in a forum and sharing recipes is an excellent idea. That’s half the battle for me – knowing what to cook. Having been thin all my life, this ‘dieting’ stuff does not work for me! LOL
One mantra that I’ve adopted recently, from Stacy Julian, is ‘start again’
It takes away the beating yourself up factor when getting off track.
Diana, It is the off and on again that can be so damaging. I’ll be sharing simple recipes and ideas in the forum and will let you know when it’s live.
This is so true. Too many of us are worried about which diet to “go on” next, rather than taking steps toward healthy eating and exercise habits everyday. And I so enjoy Stonesoup too!
Stonesoup has so many great simple recipe ideas. Usually I don’t cook from a recipe, but it is fun to try something new.
This is exactly what I’ve just started! I love that you addressed it. It just…feels right. And in the past week, I do feel lighter, happier, and healthier…even if it’s just from the burden/pressure of doing things “right”. I love the idea of a forum. Thank you for your wonderful posts!
I read Stratten’s book and took it really to be about “relationship marketing.” Your ideas sound so similar–only it has to do with attention to our bodies. In the end, this is our bodies are our ultimate “operative platform” in the world, and treating them as a creature to be loved is quite like a relationship.
When we turn our attention away from results/stress and stress, we seem to be patiently happy. I was considering a short post series on being “undriven” or “the third way.” This takes motivation to a different place. No drive, just simple guidelines and mindful daily navigation.
Result do improve, we are just not driven by them. It’s a kind of living trust in our mind/body, no?
I’d love to give it a go!
I’ve been struggling with this very thing and am on day 4 of intentionally mindfully living my life as a non dieter. Timely post!
Love it!!! It’s so simple and true! We all know what’s healthy and what’s not…it’s just reminding ourselves how food makes us feel and why we are eating what we do. I’m on the opposite end of the spectrum trying to gain weight, and it’s so easy not to eat healthfully. I always have to remind myself that although the healthier food has less calories, I feel better after I eat it. Despite it taking me longer to gain weight, the end result will be better because I will feel better and feel healthier inside & out.
I love your posts about food.
I am all about keeping it simple in the kitchen, but eating healthfully and enjoying delicious food too! It is absolutely possible to eat well and feel satisfied after every meal, while at the same time eating for optimal health. Some of my favourite top foods are:
bell peppers
cucumber
tomatoes
broccoli
avocado
carrots
garlic
feta cheese
apple cider vinegar
strawberries (in season)
blueberries (in season)
apples
quinoa
lentils
garbanzo beans
chia seeds (to put in baking and in smoothies)
I’ve also recently given up coffee (as I only really like it with cream and tons of sugar!) for green tea and am not feeling deprived at all. We’ve been eating very consciously for the past two weeks and are noticing a big difference not only in weight but in energy levels. We do eat meat, but are eating less and are not missing it at all. Great post!
I have found that making my own pasta is so fullfilling! I picked up an old pasta machine on craigslist for $50, and it is amazing! You can choose what is in your noodles. I literally use flour and eggs. And the noodles are so good you use less sauce which helps when you are counting calories.
Another GREAT post! I love your awesome ideas and to ask us along for the ride. I’m interested in the forum. I want to work on using your undiet idea as a way to eat healthier, and also to untether my mind from how i’m usually thinking about what worked in the past when my life was great (i have lots of weight to lose and am excited to finally want to start on that journey!). thanks again! and thanks for the wonderful things to start thinking about! good for me to do during electronicless nights!
I loved the post, I am definitely interested in the forum. I am a new vegan and would love to be included in sharing and learning other ideas and recipes. Count me in!
Great post…I love the UnDiet term! I actually started eating and exercising like you have described last year following a heart attack. I lost weight, simplified my life as the chef cook in my family and feel absolutely fabulous for the first time in years.
A forum would be great….I’m always searching for ideas from others on improving my health and simplifying my life.
This was exactly what I needed to read tonight. Thank you for putting your words out there. Serendipity is a wonderful thing!
I’d definitely be interested in joining a forum about this.
Thanks for this post. I love the “undiet” idea. I would be interested in the forum, too.
I love this. It’s the way to go! I *mostly* do this now, but think the idea of a forum or something is wonderful!
Hi Courtney–
I am much interested in your forum. I’m not familiar with the Un-philosophy, but all of this sounds a bit like something I did this spring around sleep and exercise (results here: http://intertidalyears.wordpress.com/2011/06/12/living-for-dummies/). Food is the next thing I want to turn my attention to, especially as school starts this fall, along with my kids’ fall sports. Case in point: I’ve eaten pizza three times this week because of not planning ahead to deal with the collision of hunger and my son’s football practice. Bad for my body and my wallet, and not in line with the simpler life I’m striving to live.
Thanks (as always) for sharing your journey.
I cannot express HOW MUCH i needed this right now!! Although I live what I would consider a pretty active and healthy life style I have been struggeling with the summer months eating out and bad!! I was just about on the verge of spending a bunch of money on some fad diet that you have to take injections and only eat 500 calories a day! well your article was a wake up stupid moment for me!!
I am back to the basics! journal and exercise! its not rocket sience
thanks for the much needed reminder!
I think this is an awesome idea. My hubby and I are trying to lose weight, and were going the paleo route. That is fine, but I got burned out very easy trying to come up with new and different ways to eat vegetables and meat. I need a simpler system. An Undiet sounds perfect!
Bernice
This sounds like something right up my alley. I’ve been a dieting yo-yo for years and I am now looking at lifestyle changes and simpler ways to live in general. I’m so done with traditional diets! I’m in for the forum!
My husband and I have been following an undiet since the end of April. I didn’t want to diet but rather to eat healthy so we can bot live longer active lives. We had both put on weight due to a very stressful pregnancy, our son being premature and all the stress and problems that resulted from that. We often relied on fast food or convience foods. I began a quest in Jan to change how we ate. The two biggest changes we have made have been (1) to eliminate processed foods if we don’t make it we don’t eat it. And (2) to eat less meats.
Eliminating processed foods was really hard. We were both addicted and it took a couple of months of trying to be able to easily avoid them. Now neither of us grave them. The amazing thing I have found is the fact that when I eat whole foods then I naturally eat less and feel full longer.
We don’t do anything fancy but made small and slow changes and experimented with recipies and now living and eating this way is very simple and I love the way I feel.
The added bonus is that I am losing about a 1-1 1/2 lb a weeks.
Thanks for your post they are always an inspiration.
Annmarie
I think a forum on this would be a great idea. My husband and I have very different ideas about how to eat and I can always use more ideas on how to feed both of us more healthfully and simply, especially as I don’t have much time in the evenings due to long work hours and a long-ish commute.
Emily, “what’s for dinner” can be a challenging questions, but with a simple list of food and recipes, it might eliminate some of that stress too.
I love the Un-diet idea… although I am not heaving, my metabolism is changing so much as I get older and the foods I used to be able to eat (ice cream and potato chips) and not see on my scale are now sticking there. I have just been trying to take care of myself by eating whole foods and moving everyday. I would love a forum…
thank you for your writing. My simpler, more minimalistic life is slowly appearing before me and I am so grateful for your writing… keep it coming.
Love, laughter and light!
I am game! This sounds like just the thing I need to jumpstart a healthier lifestyle (again…!). For some reason, for me, fall is the time to get busy…not January!
This post struck home with me. It’s simplicity is refreshing and realistic for both loss and long-term living. There will never be a “magic bullet”-it is so easy to get caught up in the hype of “new” plans that are not really new at all. Thank you for stating the obvious to help use that are living more simply eat that way too.
Sounds great, sounds healthy, and all minimal and funky and stuff, but… Well, just to throw a little bit of healthy skepticism into the mix:
Is this anything more than just a nice-sounding, but ultimately ineffective idea? Or is there good evidence that it works? What I want to know of any diet is how many people who use it lose a safe amount of weight, over a safe period, in a safe manner, and — most important — keep it off permanently (let’s say that means in practical terms a minimum of three years)?
Does your UnDiet pass the test? Or did it just occur to you after a couple of mornings of particularly good-feeling zazen?
Take you yourself, Courtney, for example: how much weight have you lost on it, over what period, and for how long have you kept it off?
Finally, even if it is OK in theory, I have a problem in practice. The foods that make me feel good (chocolate, cheesecake, pasta with chicken and alfredo sauce spiked with some gorgonzola, slow-cooked baby back ribs thickly basted with sweet BBQ sauce, etc) have very little in common with those that contribute to my well-being (pretty much the opposite of the ones I just mentioned). So how am I supposed to construct this all-important list!?
Hi Tommy,
I appreciate your healthy skepticism, but I don’t know what good-feeling zazen is. As I mentioned, I’m not a medical professional, but in my opinion, the simple fact that obesity continues to be a major health problem, and there are no shortage of diets available mean that dieting is ineffective.
In terms of the UnDiet passing a test, check in with me at the end of the year. It sounds like there will be enough of us UnDieting that we might have some feedback. While it’s too soon to tell, I know my weight is much more stable when I eat this way. I’ll be happy to report if I lose weight each month.
I have enjoyed lots of food that wasn’t good for me, so I know what you mean by “foods that make me feel good”. Once I recognized that they only made me feel good for a split second, they became less appealing. I can’t imagine that any of the foods you mentioned make you feel good an hour after your meal or even the next day.
When you create your list, think simple and healthy to start. It might help to consult a doctor or nutritionist as well.
The most important element here is eliminating the stress that comes with dieting, mentally and physically. There’s nothing woo-woo or funky about it. Just simple, common-sense.
Hey Courtney, you said to check in. Well that was quite a while ago. How’s UnDieting after 18 months or so? Any weight loss?
Hi Tommy!
I am about 8 or 10 pounds lighter than when I wrote this post and love not having the stress of diets in my life.
Thanks for checking in.
Hi, I’m new to your website and I am truly enjoying it. I would love to participate in a forum and am currently trying to do most of things you mentioned in this post. I’ve been on a diet since I was 11 (20 years) I’m still not thin so my guess is they haven’t worked. My intention going forward isn’t to be thin, but to be healthy and well and calm. On a side note – does anyone know how to make quinoa so it doesn’t come out a big sticky mush mess?
I do! I love quinoa! I could seriously live on the stuff. You inspired me to post it on my blog. I hope I’m not violating bloggy etiquette by referring you to my own blog…if so I sincerely apologize and Courtney, please delete this reply with no hard feelings on my part! It’s just that it seemed the most efficient way to respond.
I cook it in my rice cooker – 1 part quinoa, 2 parts water, and it comes out perfect every time! I’ve never tried cooking it any other way though, so I’m not much help otherwise.
This post reminded me of sparkpeople.com
Sometimes support to change thinking and habits is needed from external sources as well.
Hi,
if you want to loose fat it’s important to reduce watching TV. A “good” film is exciting and so produces stress. Stress will release cortisol, cortisol will make you fat. It’s not so much eating in front of the TV, but the stress.
For me, cutting out sugar (white/ brown/ honey/ hidden sugar etc.) and alcohol works very well,too. Alcohol contains many calories and reduces muscle mass = bad because you burn fewer calories. Sugar is just empty calories. Sport won’t burn significant amounts of calories, but it helps to reduce stress and builds up muscle mass.
You are absolutely right to “undiet”, because every diet will inevitably make you fat. If you eat unprocessed, “real” food (if possible just cook for yourself without conveniance products and eat it slowly without distraction), your body just knows what it needs.
A little bit of fat on your body mustn’t be too bad, it’s just a normal reaction of your body to protect you and save for “bad times”. It’s also normal to gain weight when you are getting older. If you get ill in your older days, it is sometimes very important to have a reserve…
Best regards
The first non diet advice I’ve read that made sense. You are right about ‘dieting’ causing stress.
My way of “un-diet” is eat by listening to my stomach rather than my thoughts:)
At the start, it was difficult to distinguish each from the other. I often eat because *I think I need to eat* not because I actually need it.
Now I gradually learned how it feels like to be exactly *fuled out* and I charge myself back then, with whatever food I love.
It was just liberating
Count me in for an un-dieting forum. Definitely need support.
My friend just sent me a link to your blog, so please add one to your list of fans. Oh, and I’d like to join the undiet.
This comment is a couple of months late, but I only just discovered your blog via the delightfully sensible Robert Wall. The undiet sounds terrific. I have been a lacto vegetarian for 13 years but have fallen into the unhealthy habit of oven chips, cheese and tomato pizza and handfuls of cookies. As well as chocolate in quantity and diet coke. I love the idea of a simple list of healthy favourites. I shall give it a go. Including the exercise. I’ve done a huge amount of decluttering lately and I think I’m ready for this. Thanks for the idea and I look forward to exploring your archives and getting updated on your new posts.
I am interested in the undiet.
My partner and I stumbled over here from a different web page and thought I may as well check things out.
I like what I see so i am just following you.
Look forward to checking out your web page again.