If you've landed on this page hoping to pursue weight loss, we want you to know we see you, hear you, and your desire is valid.
From our TV screens to our family and friends and even our doctor's office, we hear the same messages "Thin is best", "Thin is safe", and "Thin is worthy".
We know how hard it is to exist in a world fuelled by diet culture, regardless of your body shape or size. We're not here to tell you what to do, change your mind or talk you out of dieting.
However, we don't focus on or prescribe weight loss.
This doesn't mean we are anti weight loss. We are pro-body autonomy.
What does this mean?
Ultimately, it's your body; you deserve to decide what's best for you. You deserve access to unbiased evidence and understand the risks associated with intentional weight loss. You also deserve to know all the options available to you.
For example, if someone came to us with a desire to pursue weight loss surgery, we would not turn them away. Perhaps they need someone to help unpack their relationship with food or disordered eating or need a non-judgemental hand to hold as they navigate the process.
While we wouldn't actively recommend weight loss, we can offer valuable support and empower them to advocate for themselves within an often anti-fat healthcare system.
3 reasons we don't prescribe weight loss
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Pursuing intentional weight loss does not guarantee better health. In fact, it can lead to poorer health outcomes.
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Despite what we've been told, we simply do not have that much control over our weight. In other words, prescribing weight loss tends to set people up for failure as we simply can not change our genetic makeup.
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Recommending weight loss can perpetuate weight stigma, which can lead to high blood pressure, binge eating, negative body image, low self-esteem, and depression.
While we do not deny the associations between higher weight and ill health, we strongly challenge the causative narrative that everyone in a higher-weight body is unhealthy.
Weight is not a reliable or accurate indicator of health.
How we support clients at Eat Love Live
Our job as Dietitians is to help improve the health of our clients.
That includes their social, emotional, mental and physical health.
Rather than using a number on the scales to measure success, we adopt a weight-inclusive approach to care and focus on health-promoting behaviours our clients can actually control.
Working collaboratively over time, we might discuss any of the following non-diet topics:
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Increasing food variety and regularity
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Offering weight-neutral nutrition education, free of misinformation
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Navigating hunger & fullness signals
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Challenging all-or-nothing thinking
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Addressing emotional eating triggers
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Finding joyful ways to move
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Reducing stress
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Prioritising self-care
Whatever the goals or topics, they're always client-centred - focusing on where they are at and what they feel they can manage.
What we do What we don’t do
| Provide open-minded, non-judgmental care Empower & advocate for our clients Get curious and prioritise our client's lived-experiences Discuss the underlying beliefs driving desires to lose weight | Provide strict diets or meal plans for weight loss Use weight as a measure of success Tell our clients what to do Assume we know what’s best for our clients Quick fix solutions |
We're not here to eradicate your desire to lose weight or dream of living in a smaller body; we are, however, here to help you find more balance and acceptance.
To help you reduce your preoccupation with food and your body image so you can do other important things in life, like taking that holiday, landing your dream job, or even going out for a meal without feeling riddled with anxiety, fear or guilt.
Why this work is important to us
At, Eat Love Live, we're privileged to support clients living with eating disorders. While eating disorders are incredibly complex, multifaceted and caused by various factors, an intense fear of weight gain can ignite and fuel their intensity.
We hold our values close and believe we have an ethical responsibility not to recommend weight loss and provide consistent messaging to protect all our clients.
FAQ's
If you don't prescribe weight loss, does that mean you're anti-health?
That's a great question and completely understandable, considering our all-or-nothing society and persistent story that weight loss = better health.
We know that it might sound radicle, but you can be healthy regardless of weight, body shape and size. We're strong advocates for health and focus on reliable health measures like blood biomarkers (e.g. cholesterol, blood pressure etc.) and look at the role food, movement, stress, and social connectedness play in our overall health and well-being.
What If I still want to lose weight?
We get it and acknowledge the difficulty you may be experiencing right now. This may also be the first time you've learnt about an alternative approach to dieting. If you feel losing weight is best for you right now, we may not be the best dietitians for you at this stage.
That doesn't mean we won't be here for you and want to support you in the future, and it doesn't mean we can't refer you to someone who may be better suited for your current goals.
You may also like to read some of our other resources to explore this weight-inclusive approach to health further.
What if I'm feeling stuck or on the fence?
Often we welcome clients who've dieted for decades and are acutely aware diets don't work. They're keen to adopt a non-diet approach to health however find it incredibly scary.
We live in a world of all or nothing. However, when it comes to health and our bodies, there is a safe middle ground.
If you're interested in dipping your toe into this non-diet world, we invite you to book an appointment with one of our dietitians and ask any questions.
Where to from here?
Need an advocate or sounding board to help you navigate this anti-fat world? We can be that person.
- Phone Reception on 03 9087 8379 or book online
- Not sure which practitioner to see - Fill out a pre assessment questionnaire, tell us a little about yourself and what you are looking for you and she can help you connect with the practitioner most suited to your needs.
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Like to learn more about the weight-inclusive approach?
Check out some of our recent blog articles:
- Focusing on health rather than weight
- So what if you’re fat; you deserve healthcare!
- How do you fight diet culture?
We also invite you to explore our directory of online resources for free information and support.
Resources
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Tomiyama, Ahlstrom, and Mann (2013). Long term effects of dieting: Is weight loss related to health? Social and Personal Psychology Compass 7/12: 861-877.
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Sumithran, Prendergast, Delbridge, Purncell, Shulkes, Kriketos and Proietto (2011) Long Tem Persistance of Hormonal Adaptions to weight Loss. The New England Journal of Medecine. 365:1597-604
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Tylka TL, Annunziato RA, Burgard D, et al. The weight-inclusive versus weight-normative approach to health: evaluating the evidence for prioritizing well-being over weight loss. J Obes. 2014;2014:983495.