It may not seem obvious at first, but learning self defense can have a profound effect on how people eat.
Many clients—especially women—experience eating patterns shaped by anxiety, disconnection from their bodies, or chronic attempts at control. They may alternate between restriction and guilt, or struggle with trusting their hunger cues.
Self defense interrupts that loop.
Why? Because it invites people to reconnect with their bodies from a place of capability, not shame. Instead of trying to shrink or fix themselves, clients begin to ask: What does my body need in order to move well, react quickly, or recover fully?
In Pretty Deadly programs, we often hear post-course feedback like, “I started eating breakfast again,” or “I stopped punishing myself after meals.” These changes aren’t part of our curriculum—they’re a byproduct of what happens when the body becomes an ally rather than a battleground.
And it’s not just anecdotal. Research in somatic psychology supports this link: safety and regulation through the body leads to more intuitive eating patterns and a reduction in disordered behaviors .
You don’t have to be a nutritionist to support this shift. Just by offering your clients a way to feel safe in their bodies, you might help them nourish those bodies better, too.
