Let’s talk about control.
If you’ve ever been deep in the world of strict food rules, rigid training schedules, and “perfect” health routines, you’ll know the feeling: I’m doing everything right. I’m on top of it. I’m in control.
But here’s the uncomfortable truth: when your routine becomes that rigid, you’re not really the one in control anymore.
That sense of control? It’s often an illusion.
As a dietitian and coach, I see this all the time — clients who are meticulously weighing their oats, timing their meals to the minute, never missing a workout, and panicking when plans change or something unexpected comes up.
What starts out as a desire to feel empowered around food and movement slowly morphs into something much more fragile.
The issue with this hyper-controlled approach is that it only works when life goes exactly to plan. Which, let’s be honest, it rarely does. A last-minute dinner invite. A surprise work trip. A cold that knocks you out for a week. Suddenly the structure you built your life around starts to wobble… and so do you.
Because when your sense of stability is built on doing everything “perfectly,” any disruption feels like failure.
That’s not control. That’s being held hostage by your routine.
And here’s the twist — the more rules you add, the tighter you grip, the more your world shrinks. You stop trusting yourself to make decisions outside the plan. You stop listening to your body. You confuse discipline with health. And ironically, the thing you created to give you a sense of control becomes the very thing that makes you feel out of control when life throws a curveball.
This isn’t about being lazy or unmotivated. Often, it comes from a place of genuine care — wanting to do the right thing, feel your best, improve your health. But somewhere along the way, it crosses a line. You’re no longer in the driver’s seat — your disordered eating or exercise brain is.
True control isn’t about perfection. It’s about flexibility. It’s about being able to adapt, pivot, and keep going even when your plan gets thrown off.
A nourishing approach to food and movement should add to your life — not make it smaller. It should support you through the messiness of real life, not fall apart the moment something unexpected happens.
So if you’ve been gripping tightly to structure in the hope that it’ll make everything feel more manageable, maybe it’s worth asking: Is this really control — or just the illusion of it?
Letting go can feel scary. But often, it’s the first step toward finding real freedom.
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