“Oh, wow. I didn’t think you would eat pizza!”

“You’re not going to sub out the french fries for a salad?”

“Of course you go for the salad first….”

“Wow. I didn’t think you would eat that!”

“You won’t like this – it’s definitely not healthy.”

“I bet you’ll work that off later today!”

….

Get my point? Can anyone else relate? I just want to put this out there: just because my side hustle is all about health and fitness doesn’t mean that it’s all there is to my life. I do not eat a strict salad with grilled chicken diet (although I do love a good salad with grilled chicken on it). I do not avoid fats, carbs, sugars, dairy, alcohol, etc. in their entirety. I do not let food define me, and I certainly do not “earn” my foods/drinks by doing extra in the gym.

At this point in my life (and it wasn’t always this way), I feel as though I have a pretty healthy relationship with food. I eat when I’m hungry and stop when I’m full (most of the time 😉 ). I try to eat a lot of fruits, veggies, lean proteins, healthy fats and carbs. I try to eat in a way that fuels me properly for my long days, workouts and teaching schedule. I try to eat in a way that makes me feel GOOD, rather than drag me down.

But does that mean that I do not choose french fries over a side salad, that I’ll pass on a night of pizza or wings or that I won’t suggest going out for ice cream? HELL NO.

Why? Because those things make me happy and those things have a time and a place in my life, too. And I see no need to cut them out entirely, but that doesn’t mean that I should be judged when I eat them or that it should be the topic of conversation. Similarly, if I choose to eat the “healthier” food option on any given day, I also do not want to be judged for that.

Food is just food, but when we put labels on it in terms of “good” and “bad” it gives it more power than necessary.

So, while I tend to eat a lot of yogurt, fruit, veggies, nuts, salads, chicken, etc., it doesn’t mean that that’s all I eat or that I feel badly if I go out for pizza or wings. If it’s something I truly enjoy eating, then it is worth it to me and there’s no need for any sort of food guilt after I eat it.

At the end of the day, how I eat is my business and how you eat is your business. We don’t need to spend our time judging how other people are choosing to eat on any particular day, in any particular setting.

Rant, over. Thanks for listening 😉 But seriously, I’d love to know how you feel about this – do you feel as though you get judged for how you eat? Do you find yourself apologizing for what you choose to eat or feel as though you have to explain yourself? Do you sometimes choose your food options based on who is around?