The air of our culture is filled with lingering feelings of guilt from people who feel bad about what they ate.  

How many times have you said or felt something like, I shouldn't have eaten that, it's so unhealthy.

Guilt implies you did something wrong.  Does it really make someone a bad person for having a piece of cheesecake?

We need to change the way you are viewing food.  Thinking of foods as "good/bad" or "healthy/unhealthy" is NOT helpful.  Now, I get that the intention behind labeling foods this way is to be healthier (which, let's face it, is a code word for thinner).  But thinking of food in these good/bad terms is a total set-up for guilt, shame, deprivation and often leads to overeating.  

Instead, we need to start viewing food non-judgmentally. 

Here are 2 tips:

1. You can start by thinking of food in in terms of its nutrient content.  Ask yourself What's in this food, and how does my body use it?  For example, all carbohydrates are broken down to glucose (aka "blood sugar") which is your body's primary and preferred source of energy.  This is my favorite example because carbs are constantly being scapegoated in our society as being evil and toxic.  (The carbs aren't toxic, that line of thinking is!).  And the cool thing is that your body doesn't really care if that carbohydrate molecule originated from a blueberry or a jellybean – it's still broken down into glucose.

2. You can also think of food in terms of satisfaction.  Does it taste good?  Is it what you were hungry for?  Is it going to stick with you until your next meal or snack?  It doesn't matter how much organic non-GMO kale you eat it if wasn't satisfying and led you to overeat later. 

Imagine how thinking of food in this way would change your relationship with eating and reduce your feelings of guilt after.  And remember that you are still a good person regardless of what you do or do not eat.