Life After Diets

193. But Now I Can't Diet Even if I Want To!

Life After Diets

Show Notes

Sarah and Stef delve into the complex emotions around dieting and the struggles of non-diet living.

To kick things off, Sarah brings up the topic of feeling stuck between wanting to diet and feeling like you can't, even if you wanted to. This sets the stage for a thoughtful discussion about how dieting, and the decision to step away from it, evokes a range of emotions—from failure to empowerment.

Stef offers personal anecdotes and client stories, revealing how the dieting mindset is often ingrained in us from a young age, making it a tough cycle to break. She highlights the difference between making an active decision to stop dieting and feeling like you simply can't keep up with it anymore.

Throughout the episode, both Sarah and Stef share their own journeys and how they moved from a place of restrictive eating to embracing a non-diet lifestyle. Along the way, they touch on common pitfalls, like fantasizing about the benefits of dieting, only to be reminded of its psychological toll.

The duo also explores how important it is to find a middle ground. This is not about completely giving up or indulging without thought but about finding a balanced, mindful approach to eating that nurtures both body and soul.

One standout moment is when they discuss the concept of agency—and the sticky truth that empowerment can indeed come from weight control -- but it can also come from self-alliance.

Looking for a course about how to fold in health considerations after recovery without a diet culture lens? "Refining Intuitive" (formerly the Gentle Nutrition Mindset) course starts on April 28.) Join our support community. This community is for you if you want a safe space to work through your daily struggles with food and body image. Community membership includes livestream episode recordings (online), monthly Zoom support meetings, a private Facebook group and member-only Q&A episodes. For more information go to: https://www.patreon.com/lifeafterdiets Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/lifeafterdietspodcast Email – [email protected] Connect with Stefanie Michele, Recovery Coach, Somatic Therapist IT Stef's Binge Recovery Course -- www.iamstefaniemichele.com/iamstefaniemichelecourse Website – www.iamstefaniemichele.com Instagram – www.instagram.com/iamstefaniemichele Connect with Sarah Dosanjh, Author & Psychotherapist Website – www.thebingeeatingtherapist.com Instagram – www.instagram.com/the_binge_eating_therapist YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/c/TheBingeEatingTherapist Sarah's book I Can't Stop Eating is available on Amazon If you find this episode helpful, you can subscribe to the Life After Diets podcast, leave us a review, and share your thoughts with us on Instagram and YouTube (@lifeafterdietspodcast). Your feedback helps us create content that matters to you.

More from Life After Diets

Oct 17, 2026

"I think I am an addict, a food junkie." That's how one listener described their experience of eating a breakfast and lunch, then finding themselves eating biscuits, ice cream, and whatever else was available by 8 PM. They weren't even hungry -- they just couldn't stop. We had some thoughts. For starters, there's the question of what we're calling "enough" food these days, especially when we're surrounded by people who seem to get by on a coffee and a handful of almonds. And there's the rather inconvenient fact that our bodies don't necessarily respond to restriction by politely requesting the exact amount of food they've been missing. But this conversation takes a few turns, because what if you really ARE eating enough? What if you've stopped dieting, you've done the recovery work, and you're still finding yourself pulled toward food in ways you don't understand? Somehow we ended up discussing the price of spaghetti bolognese in New York, the peculiar comfort of knowing what's for dinner, and how sometimes the urge to eat has surprisingly little to do with food itself. There's more to investigate here than willpower, and plenty of room for a few a-has along the way. Connect with Stefanie Michele, Binge Eating Coach & Somatic Therapist Website Instagram YouTube Connect with Sarah Dosanjh, Author & Psychotherapist Website Instagram YouTube Sarah's book I Can't Stop Eating is available on Amazon

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Why is it sometimes so hard to eat without watching something? In this episode, Stef and Sarah look at the relationship between food and screens from two very different personal experiences. For Stef, screens used to make it possible to eat without having to listen to the running commentary in her head about what or how much she was eating. Over time, even after restriction eased, the pairing itself had become familiar enough that taking one part away could still feel like a loss. Sarah's experience was different. Food and television became a way to fill empty evenings and make being alone feel easier, until the combination started to feel less like enjoyment and more like something she had to keep doing. That leads into a bigger question about what we're actually looking for when we pair food with stimulation. Sometimes it really is just pleasurable. Sometimes it helps us stay regulated. And sometimes it gives us distance from thoughts or feelings we don't want to be alone with. They also talk about distracted eating, why removing the screen can actually make eating harder for some people, and the difference between being distracted and being disconnected from yourself. Plus: Mike gets recruited as the control subject with a suspiciously uncomplicated relationship with food, Sarah figures out something about loneliness in real time, and Stef makes an unexpectedly convincing case for red onion. Connect with Stefanie Michele, Binge Eating Coach & Somatic Therapist Website Instagram YouTube Connect with Sarah Dosanjh, Author & Psychotherapist Website Instagram YouTube Sarah's book I Can't Stop Eating is available on Amazon

Sep 26, 2026

An announcement from Stef & Sarah about the return of Life After Diets. You can resubscribe! Support the Show! https://ko-fi.com/lifeafterdietspodcast

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In this (for real for real) final episode of Life After Diets, host Stefanie Michele explains how recovery taught her how to understand the call for change. She shares why letting go of the familiar—even when it's scary—is essential for growth, and how that insight is leading her to close this chapter and launch her new show, Full But Not Finished. The Life After Diets archive will remain here as a resource and you can now find Stefanie Michele on her new show: Full But Not Finished. Subscribe now to listen to the pilot episode! Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@iamstefaniemichele

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