EP 245: Stop the Restrict-Binge Cycle ~ Debunking Diet Culture's Biggest Lie (You Don't Need to Earn Your Food)

Her Best Self | Eating Disorder Recovery Podcast, Disordered Eating, Anorexia, Bulimia, Orthorexia, Body Image, Food Freedom, Calorie Counting, Obsessive Exercise, Food Restriction

In this insightful conversation originally recorded with dietitian Brittany Braswell on Faith-Filled Food Freedom podcast, I open up about the restrict-binge cycle that keeps so many women trapped—saving calories all day only to overeat at night. This episode dismantles the myth that it's about willpower and reveals the biological and spiritual truths behind this destructive pattern.

What You'll Learn

• Why saving calories backfires: Understanding the biological response to restriction and how scarcity thinking drives the restrict-binge cycle
• The worthiness wound: How diet culture has taught women they need to earn, ration, and delay food instead of deserving consistent nourishment
• Lindsey's personal story: Her years-long struggle with anorexia and calculating every meal, and how she found freedom
• Practical action steps: Four concrete strategies to start eating earlier in the day and breaking the restrict-binge pattern
• Identity in Christ: How knowing you're fearfully and wonderfully made changes how you treat your body as a temple

Key Takeaways

✨ The restrict-binge cycle is biological, not about willpower - When you don't eat enough during the day, your body forces a response

✨ Scarcity thinking is rooted in worthiness issues - Diet culture has taught us food must be earned, rationed, and controlled rather than something we deserve consistently

✨ Comfort isn't the goal, freedom is - Breaking the cycle requires doing uncomfortable opposite actions

✨ Ask yourself: Is this decision from fear or love? - If you're making food choices out of fear, that's a signal to do the opposite

✨ You are fearfully and wonderfully made - Your identity is larger than the vessel you came here with

Practical Strategies Discussed 1. Combat the Lie of Unworthiness

• Recognize you are deserving of good things NOW, not later
• Your worth is tied to being made in God's image—period
• Feelings aren't facts when you feel undeserving

2. Set New Non-Negotiables

• Create mechanical eating boundaries (2-3 meals + snacks) regardless of hunger cues
• Commit to eating 1-2 hours earlier than your current pattern
• Make a specific plan: What time? What food? Write it down.

3. Do the Opposite Action

• When the voice says "wait until later," immediately do the opposite
• Rewire your brain by not taking orders from "Regina George" anymore
• Break the rules that keep you trapped—the world won't fall apart

4. Start with Half Portions Earlier

• If eating a full meal earlier feels overwhelming, start with half
• Build consistency with small steps, not overnight overhauls
• Change happens with consistent small actions

5. Get Logical About Time

• Challenge arbitrary eating times—it's already mealtime somewhere else in the world
• Do the hard thing first to get it out of the way
• Make concrete plans, not optional intentions

Powerful Quotes

"You were created by God, made in His image, and you are so worthy of love and nourishment—period. There's no arguing, no bargaining about that."

"Comfort isn't the goal. Freedom is the goal."

"Your body deserves consistent fuel. What would I tell my daughter, my best friend, you over coffee? I would never tell you that you can't have that coffee because there's cream in it."

"Is this decision coming from a place of fear or a place of love? If it's fear, pluck that thought."

"God's grace is built from abundance. Your identity is something larger than the vessel that you came here with."

Key Questions for Reflection

• What am I believing that is false?
• What do I know is true when I'm feeling I don't deserve nourishment?
• What rules am I following that I need to break?
• Am I making this decision out of fear or out of love?
• What does my body deserve right now?

About This Episode

This conversation was originally recorded as a guest appearance on Brittany Braswell's podcast, Faith-Filled Food Freedom. Adapted and shared with the Her Best Self Podcast community because the message was too powerful not to share with you.

Resources & Links Join The Recovery Collective

Ready to break free from the restrict-binge cycle for good? The Recovery Collective is Lindsey Nichol's signature group support program where you'll get the support, strategies, and community you need to finally find freedom.

Inside The Recovery Collective, you'll receive:

• Every other week group coaching calls with Lindsey
• A proven framework to break disordered eating patterns
• A supportive community of women on the same journey
• Practical tools and resources for lasting recovery
• Biblical foundation for healing your relationship with food and body

Learn more and join The Recovery Collective at www.herbestself.co/recoverycollective

Connect with Lindsey Nichol

• Website: www.herbestself.co
• One-on-One Coaching: Limited spots available - apply at herbestself.co
• Facebook: www.herbestselfsociety.com

Connect with Brittany Braswell

Check out Faith-Filled Food Freedom podcast for more faith-based nutrition and food freedom content at www.brittanybraswellrd.com

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If this episode helped you feel hopeful again and remember your worth isn't found in your body or on your plate, please share it with someone who needs to hear this message. Your support helps more women break the chains of limiting beliefs.

*While I am a certified health coach, anorexia survivor & eating disorder recovery coach, I do not intend the use of this message to serve as medical advice. Please refer to the disclaimer here in the show & be sure to contact a licensed clinical provider if you are struggling with an eating disorder.