Over the past couple of weeks, I have covered topics surrounding the idea of food freedom. We have looked at how to feel freedom from obsessing over what you eat and how much you are consuming using the idea of "meaningful matters" as well as using lists. Today, I want to touch on the ultimate way to be released from the control food has over you.

If you truly want to be free from food…

Wait a minute. What does that even mean? Free from food. I don’t know for sure what you picture when you think of “food freedom,” but what I picture when I hear “food freedom,” is a pair of unlocked handcuffs or unlocked ankle shackles laying on a bare floor.

So many people describe feeling like they are a “prisoner” to food. It seems they actually feel as though they are a slave to what they consume. They describe food “calling” to them. They describe feeling “powerless” to resist certain foods. They describe thinking about food all day long, from the time their eyes open in the morning until they close at night. These are people who definitely do not know food freedom. These people live to eat.

The Ultimate Food Freedom

In order to have the ultimate food freedom, you must learn to eat to live, rather than live to eat. You are probably thinking, that is SO much easier said than done. Right? True. But it is do-able, nonetheless.

Here are some examples of what people who eat to live think:

• The purpose of food is to nourish my body so I can live my healthiest life.
• Food is important to eat at regular times throughout the day so I can have consistent energy throughout the day.
• Nutritious food keeps me satiated so I don’t feel the need to snack throughout the day.
• Healthy food keeps my immune system at it’s peak, helps prevent headaches and intestinal problems, and provides optimal nutrition to all of my organs, which keeps me functioning my best.

Here are some examples of how people who eat to live behave in relation to food:

• They eat healthy portions of nutritious foods.
• They eat at regular intervals throughout the day.
• They eat nutrient-dense foods to reap the benefits of natural foods vitamins and minerals.
• If they opt for an unhealthy food choice, they cut back on caloric intake elsewhere in the day.

Eliminating Foods Completely

For SOME people (those who have an addiction to certain foods), food freedom can only be found when the person is willing to abstain completely from those foods. The most common food substances to which people are addicted include processed foods, flour and sugar.

Ultimately, in most case, when they ban certain foods they react with some/all of these symptoms:

• Cravings for more of the same types of foods
• Constant thoughts of certain foods
• Strong desires to forego these foods
• Attempts to abstain from these foods but never fully succeeding
• Physical withdrawals from these foods if/when they abstain for any length of time.

“BUT IT’S HARD.” I can just hear you now. Yep. It is. It is very hard to change thoughts and feelings and behaviors. But hundreds of people manage to learn to find food freedom and you can, too. Those who succeed in doing so are willing to put forth the continued effort to do what it takes to get what they say they want. And what they want is to eat to live rather than living to eat.

How about you? Are you ready to take the next step to achieving food freedom?