Should you restart that diet? Ask yourself these 7 questions.

In my practice, I’ve heard the phrase, “I think what I really need to do is restart…” countless times. That phrase ends in countless ways, but the intent is always the same— the desire to return to something (in this case, usually a diet or fitness routine) that felt like it worked.

But, did it “work”?

Many would argue that if it did then it wouldn’t need to be restarted.

True, but...

It’s also natural to slip in and out of things. Sometimes new habits stick and sometimes they don’t. The idea that we will find one thing and stick to it forever is flawed in and of itself.

If somebody started a meditation practice that they veered away from, nobody would blink an eye at a desire to return to that, so what’s wrong with returning to a way of eating?

Nothing if we are truly honest about the real desired outcome.

How to do that?

Start by answering these questions:

1. How did I look last time I ate that way? How did I feel? Did the external and internal feelings align?

2. Something felt really good the last time I used this approach. Was it really the food or fitness routine? What actually felt good?

3. What made me veer away? Was it too restrictive? Not balanced? Not pleasurable?

4. Did it leave room for life to happen? Was I free to live in an engaged way with others?

5. Was there a measurable external outcome waiting to be achieved? How could this shift to encompass more of a general sense of well-being?

6. How can I “restart” with new eyes? What shift will make this time more sustainable

7. Does this approach fit with what my life is today versus what my life looked like then?

Sometimes habits and lifestyle shifts need several evolutions before they stick. Finding both internal and external alignment is key for that to happen.

What we come to learn is that it isn’t the diet or the fitness routine that is the problem. The issue is attaching to something that doesn’t allow integration of the whole self. Anytime a part of you is denied, it will find a way to make itself known and spoil the illusion that the “answer” was found.

The dance is part of the spiral of life, but each revolution has the possibility to bring you closer to home... the place of sustainability that feels good, honest, and peaceful. Each time you feel called to return to a path already traveled, invite it to evolve in a way that alchemizes the learning from before and invites all of who you are now to have a place