Many of you have probably heard about this new “no-diet” diet craze. Great–just what we need–another diet. This “new” diet really isn’t new. Anybody who has heard of Gwen Shamblin and her “Weigh Down Workshop” diet will remember that she had the same premise. You can eat anything you want, as long as you wait until you are truly hungry to do so. (Yes, this is the Gwen Shamblin of denying-the-Trinity and child-abuse fame.)

I tried that diet. I ate pop-tarts, boxed macaroni and cheese, Mrs. Winner’s cinnamon rolls, quarter pounders with cheese, pizza–you name it. But only when I was hungry. An amazing thing happened. I would pass by, say, Mrs. Winners, but I wouldn’t be hungry. So I would not stop in for a cinnamon roll. A few minutes would go by, and as I thought about and lusted over the cinnamon roll, I would begin to feel hunger! Hot dog! (or rather Cinnamon Roll!) I would go purchase and eat the food. Surprisingly I did not gain 50 pounds. But I didn’t lose 50, either. I think I lost about 5 pounds, over the course of 12 weeks. And I learned something about hunger pangs. Sometimes your stomach just has them in anticipation of a food you really, really want.

And since then I’ve learned another thing. There’s a lot of stuff labelled as “food” that really isn’t food. For the nutritional value, you might as well eat wood chips or the cardboard box the pop tarts are housed in as eat the pop tart or other junk food.

I like what Gwen Shamblin and these “new” gurus are saying, in that they are addressing the problem of gluttony. Eating just to fill some need besides hunger. Being selfish with food. Eating significantly above and beyond the needs of our bodies. But there’s a nutritional element as well that they are leaving out. In order to be good stewards of the bodies God gave us, we need to fill them with nutritional food. Food He designed to go in our bodies work best. They’re called whole foods. It’s the way I’m trying to eat now. I’m not a purist by any means–especially at Christmas! Believe me, when there’s a party with yummy appetizers, I’m right there munching on them! But those yummy-but-not-necessarily-food-foods do not make up the bulk of my diet. For the most part, I’m anally reading labels and munching on fruits, veggies, and whole grains.

It’s not a fad diet, but hopefully a lifestyle change toward eating real food that God created, knowing what would be best for my body–not chemicals mixed together to satisfy a sweet-tooth, a fad diet, or a busy mom who only has time to pour powder out of a box and mix it together. And it’s really yummy, once you get a preference for that chemical-taste out of your system! So instead of a “no-diet” diet, how about a “food” diet?!?