The Problem with Cassey Ho’s Blogilates "Banana Test"
Most health and wellness influencers are not dieticians.
One of the worst things to come out of diet culture is our confusion about hunger cues. The first time I talked to my dietician about hunger, I told her how I was always second-guessing myself when I felt hungry, possibly because every diet has told me I don’t know the difference between genuine hunger and mere food cravings. She knew exactly what I was talking about because she sees this all of the time in her new clients.
At 38 years old, I am now relearning what hunger feels like. I’m learning how to listen to — and trust! — my body instead of making myself jump through hoops or get over arbitrary hurdles just to prove that my hunger is real.
Over the years, I’ve read hundreds of diet or “nutrition” books and I’ve tried countless diets guaranteed to help me lose weight and keep it off for good. Yet each one offered loaded messages about when it’s “okay” to eat.
Some diets say you can only eat your meals at set times. Others use an eating window. Many diets give you an eating curfew to help conquer evening snacking.
But what happens when you experience hunger outside of those prescribed times? Well, typical diet culture says you must not actually be hungry…
