Please take a moment and watch this video. It’s important. It’s especially important to me. This is Olympian, Silken Laumann, as she takes the Never Say Dieting Oath for her daughter, and joins Multi-Grain Cheerios in the movement to end the word dieting for our next generation.

 

I was in grade 4, the first time I was called “fat”.

I wasn’t “fat”, I was in grade 4.

I. Was. In. Grade. 4.

But, it drastically changed my life.

I started dieting.

I had my Mom take me to a dietician.

I begged my Dad to put me on a fad “cookie” diet.

I counted calories.

I bought Suzanne Powters book.

I joined TOPS.

I watched Oprah.

I started doing Tae Bo.

I did the diabetes diet.

I ate grape fruit for supper.

I guzzled water.

I did Sweat’n to the Oldies, 1, 2 and 3.

I went on doctors supervised diets.

Mostly, I cried.  I cried to doctors. I cried to social workers. I cried to my Mother. I cried to my Father. I cried to my Sister. I cried to my friends. I cried and I cried and I cried.

I wasted too many years with words that weren’t important. I still struggle with my weight. But, my emotional struggle with my weight and dieting ended for me in my early twenties. It took a while for me to dump the tears and start digging myself.

I don’t want this to happen to my daughter.  I want her to follow my foot steps in so many ways, but not those footsteps. I don’t want to ever hear her say, “I want to go on a diet.”  Or, “Mommy, do you think I’m fat?”  I want her to be the best she can be. I want her to be strong. I want her to be brave. I want her to not be ashamed of her body.  I want her to be proud.  I don’t want her to waste her time and energy on words that don’t matter.

So that’s why I took the oath.  And you can take it too.

I want my daughter to live in a World Without Dieting.

DISCLOSURE:  This post has been sponsored by Multi Grain Cheerios, but concerns my own opinion.