Breaking the cycle - One woman's journey through diet culture

This is Your Story Too

This week on Chatting with Cara, I'm telling you a story. A story about someone called Cara.

This story isn't about anyone in particular. It's about everyone.

If you grew up in the 80s and 90s, if you lived through the diet culture of the noughties, if you've ever felt like you've failed every diet you've tried, this episode is for you.

In this episode, I cover -

• How growing up around constant dieting shapes your relationship with food and your body.

• The impact of 90s and 2000s diet culture, from size 0 to circles of shame, What Not to Wear to Super Size vs Super Skinny.

• The endless cycle of clean eating, Slimming World, gym obsession and calorie counting that never actually works long term.

• Why pregnancy and motherhood can intensify body image struggles and disordered eating patterns.

• How hiring a coach with a restrictive plan can make things worse, not better.

• Why you haven't failed. Your upbringing and environment failed you.

• What I actually do as a coach to break this cycle once and for all by tackling the root cause, not just the symptoms.

The work I would do with you -

• Educate you on how your childhood and environment have shaped your relationship with food and body image today.

• Change your language around food so you stop using words like treats, earn and burn.

• Unlink exercise from food so movement becomes enjoyable.

• Unpick every food rule you've picked up from decades of dieting.

• Turn rigid rules into flexible, healthy guidelines.

• Most importantly, tackle your emotional eating by getting to the root of the problem, not just the behaviour.

This cycle is so easy to stay in. It's tempting to join another gym, hire another coach with before and after photos or try the latest trend.

But none of that gets to the deep root cause.

Coaching with me does. And when you learn it, you can't unlearn it. It's sustainable. It's ethical.

It's forever.

If you're ready to stop writing another chapter of this story and break the cycle for good in 2026, send me a message on Instagram or Facebook at @coachingwithcara and I'll get you booked in for a free consultation call. We'll chat about what's going on for you, where you want to go and I'll give you the roadmap to get there.

If this episode resonates, share it with someone who needs to hear it. You're not the only one. Trust me.

Until next time, thanks team.

#coachingwithcara