Many women eventually start asking why dieting doesn’t work for women, especially in their 20s and 30s, after years of trying to eat “better” only to feel more frustrated, hungry, or disconnected from food.
Written by Claire Rifkin, MS, RDN, LDN
Most women in their 20s and 30s do not come to nutrition therapy because they have never tried to be “healthy.” They come because they have tried everything. They tracked. They cut carbs. They skipped meals. They followed plans that promised control, confidence, and results. And yet, food still feels loud, their weight feels unpredictable, and their relationship with eating feels fragile.
This is not a personal failure. It is a predictable outcome of how dieting interacts with women’s bodies, hormones, stress levels, and lived realities.
Here is why dieting so often backfires for women in this stage of life.
Why Dieting Doesn’t Work for Women Long Term
Even when a diet is framed as “clean eating,” “balanced,” or “lifestyle-focused,” most diets rely on some level of restriction. That restriction sends a signal to your body that food access is uncertain.
When your body perceives scarcity, it adapts. Hunger hormones increase. Thoughts about food intensify. Appetite becomes less predictable. This is not a lack of willpower. It is biology doing its job.
For many women, this shows up as:
- Constant hunger despite eating “enough”
- Intense cravings later in the day
- Feeling out of control around food after being “good” earlier
The body does not care if restriction is intentional or well-meaning. It responds the same way.
Dieting ignores the reality of stress in your 20s and 30s
This phase of life is not calm.
Careers are demanding. Relationships are evolving. Many women are managing financial pressure, caregiving roles, fertility questions, or burnout. Chronic stress affects appetite, digestion, sleep, and blood sugar regulation.
Diet plans rarely account for this.
When stress is high and food intake is restricted, the body prioritizes survival. That can mean:
- Increased appetite
- More frequent snacking
- Stronger cravings for quick energy
- Weight changes that feel confusing or unfair
Dieting often asks women to eat less during the exact season of life when their bodies need more support, not less.
Dieting disconnects you from your internal cues
Most diets teach external rules. Eat this amount. Avoid those foods. Stop eating at a certain time. Override hunger signals.
Over time, this erodes trust in your body.
Many women I work with can no longer tell:
- When they are truly hungry
- What fullness feels like
- Whether a craving is physical or emotional
Instead of building awareness, dieting creates anxiety. Food becomes something to manage, not something to respond to.
This disconnection is one of the biggest reasons dieting does not work long term.
Dieting often leads to binge eating or loss of control
Restriction and binge eating are not opposites. They are closely linked.
When the body is deprived, it eventually pushes back. This can look like nighttime snacking, emotional eating, or episodes that feel chaotic and shame-filled.
The common response is to diet harder afterward. Tighten the rules. “Get back on track.”
This creates a cycle:
Restriction → loss of control → guilt → more restriction
Breaking this cycle requires addressing the restriction itself, not doubling down on it.
Dieting frames the problem as you, not the system
Diet culture is very good at making women feel like the issue is discipline, motivation, or consistency.
In reality, the issue is that dieting asks bodies to ignore hunger, suppress stress responses, and function normally under constant pressure.
When a plan fails, the plan is rarely blamed. The person is.
This is especially harmful for women who already feel stretched thin.
What actually helps instead
If dieting does not work, that does not mean nothing works.
A therapy-informed, anti-diet approach focuses on:
- Rebuilding trust with hunger and fullness cues
- Eating enough consistently throughout the day
- Addressing stress and burnout as part of nutrition care
- Removing moral judgment from food choices
- Supporting the nervous system, not fighting it
This work is not about giving up on health. It is about redefining it in a way that is sustainable and humane.
For many women, this is the first time food starts to feel calmer instead of more complicated.
A note on weight and goals
Wanting to feel better in your body does not make you shallow. Wanting changes does not make you wrong.
What matters is how you pursue those goals.
Dieting promises control but often delivers obsession. Nutrition therapy focuses on nourishment, consistency, and support, which paradoxically makes change more possible, not less.
If this resonates
If you are tired of cycling through diets that leave you feeling worse, not better, you are not alone.
This is the kind of work I do with women every day. Nutrition therapy that is grounded in science, informed by psychology, and centered on your real life, not a set of rules.
You do not need another plan. You need support that actually accounts for your body and your reality.
