Dancers and Emotional Eating

Many dancers who I work with consider themselves “emotional eaters.” And while I’m not into labels, I’ve been there and I know it can feel like you’re eating all your stress and emotions. Emotional eating was a big part of my story in dance, and food was one of my primary coping mechanisms.

Here’s the thing. Emotional eating on its own isn’t necessarily a bad thing. When you eat for fun or in celebration, that’s perfectly normal and doesn’t have to be a big worry. If that’s what you think of when it comes to emotional eating, just work on being OK with that recreational eating.

But emotional eating can create challenges if it’s your primary or only coping mechanism for big emotions or stressful situations. This is why it’s an important topic to discuss — particularly around how it might impact dancers.

The discipline of dance and its impact on emotional eating.

There are some fundamentals to dance training and the dance mindset that naturally lead to emotional eating. You’re taught to toughen up and develop a “thick skin.” One of my ballet teachers said that when we entered the studio, we should forget everything going on outside. I see some value in this for sure — ballet provided relief from the drama of teenage life.

However, if you leave the drama outside and never face the emotions you’re experiencing, you may end up avoiding your feelings altogether. Food can become a way to suppress and push away negative or heavy feelings.

When you dance, you don’t speak (in most cases); therefore, many dancers identify as nonverbal communicators. We use our bodies to express our emotions and to share ourselves with the world. Again, that can be really beautiful, but if you leave certain emotions unresolved, you may turn to food for solace. Some dancers have a greater tendency to turn to food when upset because they’re otherwise being restrictive with food or under eating.

The perfectionist mindset in dance and secret eating.

The perfectionist mindset can also lead to emotional eating or secret eating. From an eating standpoint, many think of impeccably healthy eating as “perfect.” Never eating processed carbs, cookies, or sweets and instead staying “virtuous” and sticking to vegetables, fruit, and salads.

If you’re still living at home with family or even living with roommates, this may manifest in you eating “perfectly” when people are around and then losing control and eating whatever “bad” foods you can get your hands on when no one is looking.

Secret eating often leads to feelings of shame and guilt. When we feel shameful, we’re directly attacking our sense of self-worth. Secret eating and emotional eating can become patterns that are extremely hard to break on your own.

Why dancers struggle to work through emotional eating.

This leads to the next piece of emotional eating for dancers — when it comes to all things technical and artistic, we believe we can work through it and find the solution. 

If we just dedicate ourselves enough, we will find the way out. Keep working, strengthen your willpower, find greater control — these are the tenets we try to adhere to because as dancers, this is what we’re taught.

It would be kind of crazy to think that these thoughts wouldn’t infiltrate other parts of our lives.

So if you find yourself using food as a coping mechanism, you might tell yourself that you should be able to overcome emotional eating on your own. You might think you just need to control your food intake better or be more disciplined. In fact, the opposite is true. You need to strengthen your alternative coping strategies and acknowledge that some emotionally driven eating is OK.

7 ways to move through emotions without using food as a buffer.

Practice talking. 

Find out who you feel most comfortable sharing heavy emotions with. Is your mom the best at listening and responding? Maybe a best friend, mentor, or coach? By practicing communication and doing it more consistently, you’ll get better at it. Just like pirouettes.

Find alternative coping mechanisms. 

Instead of food, is there an activity that might support you through what you’re feeling? Journaling, stretching, or walking in nature might do the trick. You just need to find ways to make those things as easy and readily available as the food in your pantry.

Eat “bad” foods in front of people. 

When you get into the habit of hiding your eating practices, those hidden foods start to seem forbidden and off-limits. That mindset is going to make you crave the “bad” foods more, and finding a healthy balance can feel impossible.

To move away from this, commit to eating “bad” foods in front of people. No secret cookie eating. Enjoy the cookies openly with friends, family, roommates…even in front of your artistic director.

Ask yourself, “What am I feeling right now?” 

When stress eating or emotional eating, you might go into autopilot. It’s possible you feel totally out of control. 

Try to get into the habit of pausing whenever you eat and asking yourself if it’s true hunger motivating you or something else. This is going to allow you to take a step back and determine what you truly need. It might be a hug, or to chat with a friend, or yes, it could also be the cake!!

Look at your “Primary Food.”

In integrative nutrition health coaching, “Primary Food” includes career, physical activity, spirituality, and relationships. Most likely for dancers, career translates to dance (even if you’re currently pre-professional), and physical activity would likely encompass calming and uplifting movement outside of dance (like walks in nature or restorative yoga).

Explore connections between sleep, emotions, and eating behaviors.

Your sleep routines, and quality and quantity of sleep have a big impact on your hormones, which have a big impact on your needs and desires for food. Take some steps to improve your sleep, and take notice of your ability to cope with emotions. 

Practice self-compassion.

Be kind to yourself. This will allow you to find motivation for helpful behavior change. When you’re kind and understanding towards yourself, you’ll be able to accept negative emotions. Then, feel the feelings. The next step is to let it go or find a way to cope in a way that’s aligned with your values. Finally, the emotion will start to pass naturally. 

These 7 suggestions can be a great starting point but you don’t have to tackle this alone. Ask for help if you find yourself emotionally eating. Try new strategies to overcome it. There is a way out, but if you haven’t found it yet, you might need support. You’re worth it.

This post was originally published in July 2018

It was edited for content and clarity in September 2021

The post Dancers and Emotional Eating appeared first on The Whole Dancer.

It’s easy to look to your metabolism for the reason your body is progressing slowly. Well, what if your metabolism isn’t the problem? First, let’s look at the things that likely aren’t keeping you from reaching your body goals.

Your Metabolism:

It’s a common scapegoat—do you ever have that feeling that you just have a slower metabolism? Your metabolism (resting metabolic rate) is the amount of energy your body requires to simply function.

Things to keep in mind: if you lose weight, restrict calories, or lose muscle mass, your metabolism will be negatively impacted.

 If you’re holding onto weight even though you feel like you’re doing “everything right,” there is the slim possibility that you have a thyroid issue. Hypothyroidism affects 4.6% of the US population over age 12 and makes it difficult to adjust your weight. If you think your thyroid isn’t functioning optimally, get it checked by a professional.

Aside from a thyroid issue, your metabolism is not likely the problem when it comes to reaching your personal best dancer’s body. When you find the food plan that is best for your body (just yours, no one else’s), your metabolic rate will work for you and help you get to where you want to be.

Yes, there are certainly dancers who are fast metabolizers. These tend to be the people who are always eating and always bouncing off the walls with energy, and they easily stay super thin. If you’re not that person, it’s ok. (I’m certainly not!) You can still reach your body goals.

You might think the problem is your genes.

An artistic director told a client of mine that to attain a “ballerina body,” she’d have to stick to lettuce and water. The artistic director pointed to genes as her problem. Not only was the information and advice inaccurate, but it was extremely damaging to the dancer as well.

More and more nutritional research points to the fact that our genes are malleable. Certain ones can be turned on or off depending on your food choices.

When I was dancing, I remember feeling that if I wanted to reach my body goals, I needed to eat as little as possible. I don’t even remember blaming anything like my metabolism or genes. It just seemed that to be as thin as some of my fellow dancers, it would take extremes.

This led to under eating throughout high school and college. I kept it up throughout my early years of dancing professionally. Then, when I was working through long days of rehearsals on little food, it started catching up with me.

I’d return home ravenous and uncontrollably eat everything in sight. My weight fluctuated between 5 and 10 pounds most of the time. A tutu would fit one week and not the next. The ballet mistress once said to me, “did you actually gain weight since last week?” If you’ve experienced this on any level, you know it’s pretty devastating.

Stress and stress fractures consumed my training and professional career. My erratic food choices were the cause of all the injuries and anguish I experienced on my dance journey.

You’ve been bombarded with mixed messages by teachers, friends, family, and the media about how you should look and what you should do to attain that goal. You might feel like you’ll only be able to reach your body goals if you go to extremes.,

So if the problem isn’t genetics or metabolism, what is it?

Dancers, the #1 thing you need to work on to reach your personal best body is your relationship with food.

Your metabolism and genes are probably not slowing down your progress. This means you hold the power! Put the time into cultivating a mindset that supports you in reaching your goals. View your body with positivity.

Treat your body with respect, and fuel it lovingly with food you enjoy.

To help you start moving in a positive direction, claim your FREE Best Body Guide and join The Whole Dancer Community. With this guide and the weekly emails from The Whole Dancer, you can start to identify action steps to take you forward!

Did you find this post helpful? Please comment below and share your thoughts!

Resources :

https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/endocrine-diseases/hypothyroidism (1)

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Stress eating happens. As you navigate this new world amidst a global pandemic, it’s perfectly understandable that you might be feeling stressed. Anytime we feel uncertain, it’s stressful. Well, this is uncertainty on a global scale and that is scary.

Add in social isolation and it’s a perfect storm of emotions. 

If you went into this time with an unhealthy relationship with food and your body, it’s likely the stress is making it worse. It’s possible to minimize the stress eating with some positive practices.

Feel the feelings:

Earlier this week I had a group call with some dancers and something I found myself repeating was, “feel the feelings.” This is important all the time but especially now.

It’s ok to be…

sad.

scared.

lonely.

uncertain.

stressed.

The most important thing is to allow yourself to feel it all. Don’t push it down with food or ignore what’s coming up for you. Instead of pretending to be Miss Positivity all the time, feel what’s coming up then search for some good to focus on.

Stress eating happens most often when we’re looking for a distraction. Feeling can be uncomfortable. We eat to numb ourselves and to try and ignore the emotions bubbling up.

To let the feelings out you might cry, talk to a friend, journal, meditate, connect to your body, sing, dance…the possibilities are really endless. Find the release that works for you.

Find the good:

Focus on what’s going well. Create a plan for now and for the future so that you feel this time was well spent.

Remember that this is also a very tough situation and if getting through it is the best you can do, that is enough.

What are some positive things you can focus on?

By looking to the light you’ll be less likely to turn to food for comfort. Feeling gratitude for the good in your life will allow you to move past the stress.

What’s going well right now? Ask yourself that question at least once a day.

Stress Eat:

Seriously. Don’t beat yourself up if you eat a big bowl of pasta because you find it comforting. It might in fact make you feel better. If  you consciously choose to use food for some comfort it’s OK.

The emotional/stress eating we want to avoid is the kind that’s reactive. When you’re absolutely blinded by the pain and fear that you’re feeling and you start eating without intentionality, it’s damaging.

If you choose to eat for some comfort you should be able to savor and enjoy the food. The piece of cake might in fact serve you.

When I was in my worst place with food and my body, I was living alone. I had walls up – not willing to share my emotions or to let other people in emotionally. That’s when my worst binge/stress eating happened. I’d order a whole (vegan) pizza and eat it by myself and feel completely awful afterwards.

That’s the sort of thing we want to avoid.

Acknowledge the Uncertainty and Fear:

This time is extra scary if you were hoping to get a job in the coming weeks. It’s all uncertain and it’s OK to be fearful. We don’t know what’s going to happen next. Dance companies will each have to approach this time in their own ways. Some may still be hiring. Some may not.

Summer intensives will have to shift their approach if dancers haven’t been in the studio for months. Things will be different.

A warrior accepts that we can never know what will happen to us next. We can try to control the uncontrollable by looking for security and predictability, always hoping to be comfortable and safe. But the truth is that we can never avoid uncertainty. The not-knowing is part of the adventure. It’s also what makes us afraid.

Pema Chodron, Comfortable with Uncertainty

Keep a list of alternative activities by fridge:

If you find you’re stressed AND bored and the boredom is leading you to the fridge, keep a list of other calming activities near the fridge. That way when you walk into the kitchen you’ll be confronted by the list and can create a little pause in the action.

That pause could be enough to get you onto something else. Something that’s more supportive and calming that might actually allow you to process the stress more healthfully.

Some ideas include: knitting, sewing, dancing, drawing, coloring, doing a puzzle, putting together legos, playing a game (alone or with a friend), singing, engaging with social media (not mindlessly scrolling but finding ways to actually connect).

Keep a list of healthy snacks by the fridge:

If you are in fact hungry and want to avoid going crazy with the indulgent food every time you want a snack, keep a list of healthy options by the fridge. You might even end up doing some stress eating with healthier options you enjoy and remember, that’s OK.

Some snack ideas include: hummus + veggies + crackers, trail mix, dark chocolate (maybe put it in your trail mix), yogurt (greek or dairy free) + fruit + a sprinkle of granola, half a smoothie or frozen fruit based ice cream.

It might help to have a list of sweet + savory options so you can satisfy cravings more easily and healthfully.

Conclusion:

This is a challenging time. Processing your emotions is the most surefire way to avoid stress eating. Remember that you are not alone and please reach out if you need support.

Photo by Eaters Collective on Unsplash

The post Stress Eating Strategies appeared first on The Whole Dancer.

Guest post by Lydia Clinton

Jess posted a video about the Whole30 back in October which coincidentally was when I was right in the middle of trying it! I’d heard of Whole30 when my sister did it twice (once while doing mission work in a foreign country!).

Then, I heard from other friends about their challenges and experiences. So, I decided to try it not necessarily for the health benefits but just for the challenge. At that point, my eating was not the best, and I needed to have some parameters to get back on track.

I lazily prepared by reading what I couldn’t consume and thought I could learn as I went along. All I had to do was just take out the foods they said to not eat, right? Well, I did that for the first week and STARVED.

I eliminated the foods but didn’t replace them with more vegetables, meat, fruit, etc. One day, I was fed up with being hungry all of the time and ate so much Whole30 food until I was stuffed. That’s when I learned that I needed to eat more (I would not recommend binge eating on any kind of diet. But, I’ll explain that later).

The second and third week improved a little bit, but I still was figuring out how much I needed to eat and when I should eat. However, the fourth week was probably the most amazing my body felt in my life.

There was one particular day when I did a full work out, took a dance class, and worked for several hours without feeling drained or cranky. I haven’t felt the same way since that last week.

When I have tried to implement new habits, the new habits do not last longer than a few weeks, and I am back to where I started not seeing or feeling any changes. But, I learned that when I stuck with the diet for a month, I experienced all of these changes internally and externally.

That was significant lesson I learned: I needed to follow through long enough to see results.

Improved energy was one of the many positive outcomes of eating so cleanly for a month. I could (and still can) easily feel how food contributed to my thinking and mood. When I ate well, I did not feel groggy or sleepy, felt lighter in my body, and could think more clearly. Some of the other physical benefits were clearer skin, no bloating, and a slightly leaner body even before I started exercising about halfway through the month.

Not only did I experience physical changes, but my lifestyle changed as well. When I did The Dancer’s Best Body Program, I finally started cooked more instead of depending on what my family made. Sometimes, they cooked what I could eat, but that was not always enough.

As a result, I experimented with vegetables, fish, herbs, spices, and Whole30-approved oils to create some pretty flavorful meals. Even other dancers were curious about what I would bring to eat for rehearsal and consequentially wondered about Whole30 in general.

When I did not eat at home, I had to plan how I would react to unpredictable or emotional situations. The rigidness of the program was a good foundation for me to feel strong enough to refuse foods I was not eating during Whole30.

Before Whole30, I felt as if I had no control to thoughtfully say no to food that was just there regardless of how I felt. But, if I messed up during the thirty days, I would have to start over which was good incentive to stick with it. Food was (and still is) a way that I handled many emotions; yet, I could not consume ice cream, chips, and bread. On one hand, I abstained from eating “unhealthy” foods when I wanted to emotionally eat. Instead, I did binge on the less healthy foods such as Larabars, RX Bars, meat, and almond butter.

Because I was gaining momentum in making significant changes in my eating, I felt like I had power to make other lasting changes in my life. I took a break from the gym to have enough energy to perform in my last couple of shows for the year. 

My sleeping improved to the point that I did not have to take melatonin which contained ingredients that were against Whole30. I got good quality sleep which caused me to stick with a bedtime routine and go to bed on time. In addition to sleep, my water intake improved significantly. My options of snacks were limited, so that caused me to drink more water and tea. Tea is an excellent alternative instead of snacking when I am already full.

The last and unexpected benefit was how others became involved in my journey. As I mentioned before, my family cooked food that I could eat but even made an effort to prepare Whole30-approved dishes long after I completed the program. Plus, I could share with them my victories and struggles and in turn received their encouragement.

After seeing my sister and me complete Whole30, my mom has expressed that my brother and she will do it after the holidays (we are trying to get my dad on board). Not only was my family intrigued, but other dancers were as well. In fact, as I am writing this article, one of them has successfully completed her first Whole30 and another is strongly considering it.

I was super proud that I finished the diet as a lot of people feel successful when they finish Whole30. We love to share about those 30 days of fight and triumph. What most DON’T talk about is coming off of it.

As I was wrapping up, I was curious about how to move forward. The Whole30 has a 10-day (or longer) reintroduction plan that brings back a food group into one’s diet to see how they will react to each one. I was going to finish around the beginning of the holiday season which I thought would be ok. I felt so good during the Whole30- why would I be in a hurry to incorporate those poisonous foods into my daily diet?

As soon as I hit day 31, I slowly started to eat more and more foods that I had not consumed for over a month regardless of what food group they belonged to. Also, I performed my last show for the year, so that day was extra celebratory.

When the cast and I went out to a bar, I planned to just drink sparkling water. But, then two people at different times offered to buy drinks for everyone, and I would not pass up free alcohol. I ended up drinking two shots of scotch which got me drunk enough to throw out any resolution to stick with any diet and to eat a cheeseburger and fries.

The next morning, I had THE worst hangover in my life. Then, after several days of aimless eating and feeling sick, I had to go back to eating Whole30 for several days to reset my stomach and actually follow the reintroduction plan into Thanksgiving.

My body could handle the grains, dairy, and sugar a little better by going slowly. Now, I can eat all of those foods again, but I function at my best when I eat mostly or only vegetables, protein from animal sources, fruit and nuts. I highly recommend that you follow the reintroduction plan because you will get sick like I did trying to eat everything at once.

While I experienced many benefits of doing Whole30, there were some negative consequences of following such a strict diet that I still experience now. First, I was obsessively thinking about eating and body composition. I thought too often about what I could and could not eat, my weight, and my body image.

It took me some serious intention and awareness to carefully choose what I could and could not eat; yet, this led to thinking about food whenever I was not engaged in something else. I also periodically dreamed about eating the off-limit foods.

I also thought a lot about my weight and body which I still do. It was great to see physical changes so quickly, but this made me want even more quick improvements. One rule of Whole30 is to not weigh or measure yourself at all while you are following the diet.

Unfortunately, my scale was in a very visible spot which made me want to weigh myself. Initially, I saw that I dropped 5 pounds which was awesome! But, then I continued to measure my weight multiple times and eventually hit a plateau. I also would touch where I could newly feel bones and muscles especially around my midsection. Sometimes, I will habitually touch that area.

The other problem was that I still fell into binge eating. I will not go too much into detail, but I have struggled with (and still do) with controlling how much and when I eat. Plus, I emotionally eat when I feel almost any strong emotion.

When I was on Whole30, I still found ways to still keep this habit. While I could not eat whatever I wanted, I ate what I still found pleasurable but probably not the healthiest especially if consumed in excessive amounts. Interestingly, whenever I had binging episodes, I would feel stuffed, but the feeling would pass more quickly did not leave me feeling sick (yet, I was still abusing food).

Shortly after the Whole30 and reintroduction, I had to take a break from exercise and reading so many articles that had to do with food and fitness to heal my mind and heart. I still focused on eating healthily but was not overly concerned when I ate grains, dairy, or foods high in sugar.

Now, I am concentrating on not only what I eat, but how I relate to food. I am working on letting my body tell me when to eat and when to stop which Jess has mentioned. I am also keeping a closer eye on my emotions and how I handle them. I find I am more sensitive to when I eat poorly, and the consequences seem more severe. This has been encouragement for me to make better choices because I am eager for my body to feel its best.

I watched Jess’s video after I was done to compare my experience and then emailed her with my thoughts which hopefully provide some advice to you who are considering Whole30. We both agreed that if you are vegetarian or vegan, Whole30 will be pretty difficult because your major source of protein is now meat, fish, and eggs. However, I would not completely rule it out.

You could try doing a less intense version by still eliminating alcohol, added sugar, and additives like sulfites. Or, take out one food group like grains or dairy to see how your body feels. In the book, the author, Melissa Hartwig, addresses this concern and suggests some ideas such as doing a different version even if you will not experience the same benefits. I recommend reading the book or going onto the website for further information.

It’s definitely better to focus on lifestyle change vs. a short term diet. Prior to Whole30, I had never followed any strict diets but rather tried to stick with guidelines. But for me, the Whole30 was a great launching pad to figure out what foods were good for me long term and to have more self-control over what I choose to eat.

It is challenging to figure out how to come out of eating a such limited regimen. What I found to work is the “good enough” approach where I am eating mostly like Whole30 foods but also incorporate a little bit of grains and dairy. I also don’t feel guilty when I indulge. If you look on the Whole30 website, there is is an Off Road Map that helps you make decisions on indulging.

So, should you try doing Whole30? I say why not! As Jess talks about in The Dancer’s Best Body Program and I have experienced over the past several months, finding what will you reach your potential physically is a process and a journey.

I encourage you to try any new ways of nourishing your body as long as you are smart about it and listen to your body. It can be tempting to fret over food like sorting groups into either being good or bad. But, as Jess also said and as I am learning, certain foods are neither good nor bad.

I am still discovering what habits I need to create and delve into the deeper issues of the mind and heart. I do not think I will ever arrive to the perfect body or maintain the perfect regimen, but I can get closer to loving myself more and making my body more resilient and healthier.

Guest Post by Dancer Lydia Clinton:

The post One Dancer’s Experience with The Whole 30 appeared first on The Whole Dancer.

“I know you’ve lost weight, but I need you to lose more.”

Took me a minute to process this statement.

Wait a minute, what?

As these words sank in, I thought, “I’ve been working so hard and trying to fit into what you need, and obviously it isn’t good enough.”

I thought, “Okay, time to do more.  There’s obviously something wrong with me still.”

I can imagine that moment vividly to this day.

It was 1988-1989, I was between junior and senior years in an all-girls Catholic high school. I was training to dance in a variety show at this resort called Pacific Islands Club, on a tiny little island that most people don’t know, a U.S. Territory called Guam.

Dance opportunities were scarce so I wanted to take advantage of what I could. The choreographer, who I’ll call Lisa, pulled me aside and expressed her concerns about my weight.

As you can see, those words had stuck with me for a long time. Isn’t it incredible the power of a few letters, a few statements?

Dance is interesting in that it gives you this awesome freedom and platform for expression, but dance can trap you into thinking you’re not enough based on other’s standards…if you let it.

That’s where I found myself for many years.

Experiencing this throughout college when I continued studying dance, the words other people said, and more importantly, the words I said to myself, surrounding my physical appearance and food dictating how I would show up.

Food.

Today I call it a blessing. I also refer to food as nourishment, sustenance, energy, and healing power. Back then, I labeled food as good, bad, healthy, unhealthy, a temptation, a reward, etc.

My relationship with food was two-fold. Food was my foe, but at the same time, it was also my “faithful” friend. The epitome of  Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and I couldn’t predict who would rear their head out when food and I were standing face to face.

I had lots of anxiety surrounding food. Food appeared as the enemy waiting to attack me at my weakest moments, which I felt weak most of the time, and I didn’t want to fight so, I succumbed. Because it was easier to give into something that was a temporary comfort than face what was going internally head on.

On the flip side, food was also my friend. Food was there for me when harsh words were spoken over me. Food was my companion when I was lonely. Food was my partner when I needed a mindless tv show watching buddy.

When I quit dance for over 20+ years after getting my dance degree, this was part of it. My tumultuous relationship with food and how I viewed myself as a dancer. I allowed the deeper issues that I had, which I wasn’t aware of at the time, determine my descent from the thing I loved.

As my health and inner resolve declined, I found myself going back and forth, overwhelmed and confused with all that goes on in our culture surrounding food, health, and exercise.

The trends touting certain diets, food, exercise, was all too much and when things didn’t work, I found myself reverting back to the harsh words and moments that I experienced all too often regarding my weight and other aspects of my physical appearance.

Year 2014.

The internal turmoil was about to burst. I had enough of allowing other’s opinions affect the way I viewed myself. I hated how I felt physically, and I missed dancing.

So, I returned to dance after a 20+ year hiatus, and started my quest to regain a healthier disposition, mentally and physically.

My first step was to start moving by getting back into class. In the process, I started experimenting with modified versions of different eating styles…low-carb, no-carb, etc.

I knew this would be a process because I had to overcome years of self-sabotage and I am so thankful I allowed myself space, time and compassion to go through this process. Slowly but surely I started seeing results.

Then it struck me, I still had to deal with the internal issues surrounding how food affected my self-image. When I started looking at food as I had mentioned previously, nourishment, sustenance, energy, and healing power, that’s when things started changing dramatically.

I stopped having “cheat” days because I didn’t want to refer to food as cheating.

An apple after dance class was a delightful energy replacement, not a sugar-laden item that was going to make me fatter. I wasn’t a “bad person” because I wanted rice or potatoes because carbs are “bad.”

In retrospect, there were two mindset shifts that I had to reassess in my approach to getting holistically healthy for dance (and everything else):                                               

1.     The scarcity mindset.

Before, I would eat food in front of me like there was no tomorrow. Like I would never have a chance to have that decadent delight of chocolate goodness.

Little did I realize at the time that I was ignoring my internal hunger for something deeper, which resulted in multiple combo meals at the local taco shop and almost nightly trips to the specialty chocolate store.

2.     The comparison mindset.

I had to stop comparing my body and my journey to other dancers and start being grateful that I had all faculties and senses to move and experience this wonderful art we call dance.

In summary, I invite you to consider the following to change your words and approaches to health as a dancer. They can be life changing as they were for me.

1. Proper mindset.  Health as a dancer is more than how many classes you take and if you nail multiple pirouettes.
2. Gratitude for what you can do.
3. Stopping destructive thoughts and words of what your body cannot do.  Just because your arabesque doesn’t look like Sylvie Guillem’s doesn’t make you less of a dancer or more importantly, a human being.
4. Being mindful that health is so individual and no one way works the same for everyone.
5. Having patience and being adjustable to change as your dance journey continues.
6. Be open to cross training in other movement styles and exercises. This was a huge game changer for me as well.
7. Remembering that you’re valuable as you are, right at this very moment, regardless of your body type, what food you eat or don’t eat, what dance style you do, or what latest production you’ve been cast for.

About Annett:

Annett Bone is the creator and host of The DancePreneuring Studio podcast where she guides her listeners on a journey of transformation inspired by dance, life, and business. The podcast is a reflection of her personal adventure overcoming her fears and returning to her passion for dance after a 20 year hiatus, the lessons that she has learned along the way, and proving that it’s never too late to be great.  You can connect with her at AnnettBone.com and follow her @annettbone on Instagram.

The post Change your approach to dancer health. appeared first on The Whole Dancer.

My fluctuations with food started in my early teens. I got into the habit of undereating for the first half of the day then arriving home from school SO hungry. I’d start eating cereal, in tiny cups, but many many tiny cups of cereal. The point of the tiny cup was to keep the portion down but obviously the tactic was ineffective.

This cycle with food started after being told I had gained some weight in my thighs, in a not so sensitive manner, by a ballet teacher. I committed to consuming foods with just 3g of fat or less because in my 13 year old mind that seemed like a good tactic.

After years of the yo – yo cycle the periods of restriction became less severe while the binges became more extreme. This happened as I started using food to soothe my emotions.

When you’re in a professional or pre – professional dancing environment and you feel like you’re not measuring up that’s not usually something you want to talk about.

When you don’t talk about the things you’re feeling or express those emotions through some healthy medium it’s very common to eat as a way to self – soothe. If you do this or you’ve ever done it in the past you’re not alone.

According to the American Psychological Association 38 percent of adults and 26 percent of teens report overeating or eating unhealthy foods in the past month to cope with stress.

As a dancer you experience a great deal of stress and sometimes the fact that the stress is around your body makes it that much more likely that you’ll turn to food.

My clients tell me that in those moments they think to themselves, “I’ll never look how they want me to anyway so forget it” and overeat. It’s a sort of “so there” to the Artistic Staff who’re telling you that you’re somehow not “right” for ballet.

When you get into emotional eating it can easily become a pattern. The food distracts you from what you’re feeling or what’s stressing you out. In the moment you might even get some joy from eating and don’t think about how you’ll feel after.

It’s not easy to move past emotional eating and using food in this way but it is possible. I’ve done it and I’ve had the joy of seeing other dancers do it too.

It helps to first identify the situations, people or triggers that cause you stress.  From there, look at why those things are so stressful. Are you unfulfilled? Do you feel lost? Lonely? Not good enough?

Is there some situation when you were younger that you’re reminded of when you’re feeling stressed? For me I’d always go back to my 13 year old self being told I needed to lose weight in my thighs. When I wasn’t performing well in rehearsals I’d tell myself it was because I was too fat, my thighs were too big.

It’s not until you start to release the “meaning” you’ve attached to the things that happened to you that you’ll be able to move forward.

Cultivating a positive self image is going to be a key factor in moving past emotional eating. It’s knowing that no matter what happens you’ll be OK.

What are your gifts? What can you contribute to the world not just as a dancer but as a person?

How can you remember to take care of yourself each and every day? Implement daily practices and rituals that make you feel good. By taking the time to care for yourself – body, mind and spirit you’re taking the steps to find balance with food.

If you’re looking for a well rounded approach to food and your body that’s tailored specifically to dancer body goals and lifestyle check out The Dancer’s Best Body Program. This program was created to help you eat with ease and attain your personal best dancer’s body.

Enrollment is open thru Sunday, February 4, 2018 (this program only enrolls 2x/year). Any questions, feel free to email me : jess@thewholedancer.com

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