Hey Reader,

I keep noticing something in non-diet spaces. A coach will use all the right phrases. Food freedom. Ditch the diets. Listen to your body. And then, further down, the actual offer: lose weight, but slowly and "sustainably" this time.

And look, I'm not trying to drag anyone. But you've probably worked hard to get skeptical of diet culture, and this is exactly the kind of messaging that could still get past you. It's using the non-diet language you trust to sell the thing you're trying to walk away from.

So can you actually be anti-diet if you're also offering weight loss coaching?

I get why someone would want to offer something kinder than diet culture while still promising the one outcome diet culture has trained everyone to want. Weight loss sells.

But "anti-diet" and "sustainable weight loss" are working from opposite premises. Anti-diet rejects the idea that a smaller body is a goal that is possible or worth pursuing. You can't really organize a program around being anti-diet and promise it will shrink someone's body.

Is sustainable weight loss possible?

​Ragen Chastain, who has spent years reviewing the weight science research, has said she couldn't find a single study where more than a small fraction of people who attempted weight loss actually kept the weight off. Most people's weight returns to around where it started within a year or two, sometimes higher, which set point theory would predict.

What is set point theory?

Set point theory suggests that bodies work to hold onto a certain natural weight range, shaped by genetics, hormones, life stage, and more.

There's no objective way to predict your set point range, but it's generally the size you are when you're eating enough and taking relatively good care of yourself. And I know this could be hard to hear, but repeatedly trying to lose weight can actually push your set point range up over time.

Wanting to lose weight is common and understandable in our fat-phobic culture, and it doesn't mean you can't start to work on intuitive eating even if you're still navigating that desire. I wrote a post on what happens when you want to eat intuitively and still wish you could lose weight, because most of my clients fall into that category. In sessions, we work on untangling those thoughts and beliefs together.

Many coaches offering "non-diet weight loss" aren't intentionally trying to trick anyone. Some are just in the middle of their own unlearning. But if someone is telling you that you can "ditch diets and still lose weight," you're allowed to raise an eyebrow and keep moving.

A few signs I watch for:

• “Sustainable weight loss” or “weight loss without dieting” on sales pages.
• “I look good, you can look like me too” energy.
• ​Intuitive eating offered as a method for weight loss, rather than something worth doing on its own terms.
• Weight loss framed as a sensible goal once you "heal your body image" in a 12-week program (as if food and body struggles resolve right on schedule).
• Food freedom framed as something that starts once you reach a certain size.

If you want a deeper dive on how I approach food and nutrition through a non-diet lens, my free Food Peace email series walks through a lot of what I’ve touched on here.

And if any of this resonated, I'd love to hear from you. Hit reply and share your thoughts.

Warmly,

Stephanie

Hi, I'm Stephanie

I'm a registered dietitian and certified intuitive eating counselor. I help people stop fighting food and build a way of eating that feels steady and satisfying, with plant-forward recipes and one-on-one support.

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Find me on Instagram for recipes and real talk about food freedom, and on Pinterest for more plant-forward inspiration.