What if “good enough” is actually better than perfect?
For perfectionists, there’s often no room for “good enough.” Everything has to be done perfectly, and if it isn’t, it feels like a failure. When it comes to eating disorders, this perfectionism shows up in how you manage food, exercise, and even recovery. In an eating disorder workbook, the perfectionism trap might make you feel like if you don’t follow your meal plan exactly, or if you miss a workout, you’ve ruined everything. But here’s the truth: good enough is more than enough.
Perfectionism keeps you stuck in a cycle of all-or-nothing thinking. If you can’t do something perfectly, you might feel like there’s no point in doing it at all. But that mindset doesn’t lead to growth or recovery—it leads to frustration, guilt, and feeling like you’re never good enough. Challenging the perfectionism trap means learning to accept progress, even when it’s imperfect, and letting go of the unrealistic expectations you’ve set for yourself. An eating disorder workbook can be instrumental in breaking free from this perfectionism trap.
How All-or-Nothing Thinking Keeps You Stuck
All-or-nothing thinking is one of the biggest traps of perfectionism. You might feel like if you don’t follow your eating plan or recovery perfectly, you’ve failed completely. This creates a cycle where even small slip-ups can feel catastrophic, leading you to give up entirely or engage in harmful behaviours to regain control.
Here’s how all-or-nothing thinking shows up in eating disorders:
- Around food: You might feel like you have to eat a specific amount or type of food. If you deviate from this plan, even slightly, you feel like you’ve failed and might restrict further or binge as a result. An eating disorder workbook can help you manage this better.
- Around exercise: You might feel like you need to stick to a strict workout routine. If you miss a workout, you might feel like your whole day has been ruined, leading to guilt or over-exercising to compensate.
- In recovery: You might feel like your recovery progress needs to be fast, smooth, and perfect. Any setbacks feel like you’re starting from zero, making it harder to stay motivated.
But here’s the thing: recovery isn’t perfect, and neither is life. There will be ups and downs, mistakes, and setbacks, but that doesn’t mean you’ve failed. In fact, the ability to navigate those moments with compassion and flexibility is what leads to long-term progress. Breaking out of the eating disorder workbook perfectionism trap is crucial for long-term success.
Why “Good Enough” is Better than Perfect
When you start accepting “good enough,” you give yourself permission to be human. You allow space for mistakes, flexibility, and imperfection—without feeling like your worth is on the line. Good enough means acknowledging that progress doesn’t have to be perfect to count. It’s about doing what you can in the moment, and knowing that even small steps forward are valuable.
For example:
- Instead of feeling like you’ve failed if you don’t stick to your meal plan perfectly, you recognise that one meal or snack won’t define your entire day.
- Instead of feeling like missing one workout means you’re failing at recovery, you see that your body needs rest, and that taking a break is part of a balanced, healthy routine.
- Instead of feeling like a setback in recovery erases all of your progress, you accept that recovery is non-linear, and every step—big or small—matters.
Challenging the perfectionism trap means accepting that progress doesn’t have to be flawless. It’s about seeing the value in every effort, even if it doesn’t look exactly like you planned.
How the “Progress Over Perfection” Workbook Helps You Break Free
In the “Progress Over Perfection” workbook, I’ll guide you through exercises that help you break free from the all-or-nothing thinking that perfectionism creates. The goal is to help you learn to embrace flexibility, accept progress in all its forms, and stop letting perfectionism dictate your self-worth.
Here’s what you’ll explore:
- Identifying all-or-nothing thinking: You’ll start by recognising the moments when perfectionism pushes you into black-and-white thinking. This awareness is the first step in challenging it.
- Challenging perfectionistic expectations: Once you’ve identified these thoughts, you’ll work on challenging the unrealistic expectations you’ve set for yourself. You’ll ask, “What would happen if I wasn’t perfect? Can I still value my efforts?”
- Embracing progress over perfection: The workbook will help you shift your mindset from focusing on perfect outcomes to celebrating progress, no matter how imperfect. This means learning to value small steps, flexibility, and self-compassion.
By the end of this section, you’ll have the tools to help you let go of the need to be perfect and start embracing a more flexible, balanced approach to food, exercise, and recovery. This workbook truly helps in breaking the eating disorder workbook perfectionism trap.
Curious About Letting Go of All-or-Nothing Thinking?
What would change if you let go of the pressure to be perfect and allowed yourself to be “good enough”? How would your recovery feel if you accepted that progress comes in all shapes and sizes, not just in perfect outcomes? The “Progress Over Perfection” workbook is here to guide you through that process, helping you break free from the perfectionism trap and find balance.
Ready to Challenge the Perfectionism Trap?
You don’t need to be perfect to make progress. Order your copy of the “Progress Over Perfection” workbook today, and start building a recovery journey rooted in flexibility, self-compassion, and growth. This is your key to breaking the eating disorder workbook perfectionism trap.
