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If you're part of the majority who have been on a yo-yo ride through various diets, workout plans, trainers and gyms, the problem isn't likely those things, it's likely that you are struggling with emotional eating. As we discussed in last week's blog,
more than 60% of adults eat for emotional reasons and do it on a regular basis. When your emotions are running the show, no plan or diet will work long term. Once you identify what's happening, you can begin to deal with it and then your success will be more long term. Here are some ways to determine whether it's your stomach or your emotions, running the show.
- You're eating when you're not really hungry. - Our bodies are pretty sophisticated machines, but identifying hunger pangs is not very complicated. Think Winnie-the-Pooh, your tummy gets all rumbly. If you're not feeling these signs, you're eating to fill another need, an emotional need. The solution: Distraction. Change your scenery, chew gum, turn on your favorite song. Do something to occupy your brain and distract it from believing food is the solution.
- Food consumes your thoughts. - What is the next meal? What will they serve at this event? Your friend is eating something while in your presence and you are so focused on the food that you're hardly paying attention to the conversation. Obsessing over food is a sign that it has taken over a much bigger role in your life than is necessary. Convincing yourself that you will have what you need and that you're not missing out on anything is the first step to creating a healthier relationship with food.
- You're not a fan of pictures or mirrors. - Emotional eating is often linked with over-consumption and consumption of the least nutritious foods. Over eating and negative feelings fuel the dislike of our physical bodies. Breaking the cycle is a way to begin to appreciate your physical body. When we feel sad/depressed/angry/lonely, and eat to fill the emotional need left by those feelings, we experience guilt/shame/sadness, and the cycle repeats. Emotional eating is not unlike other abuse cycles, the only difference is we are our own abusers.
- You are secretive about your eating. - Listen to your own mind. If your mind doesn't think you should be doing something, it's a great time to pause and consider your actions. Allow yourself to stop and think before moving forward. If you have shared your goals with someone, and are now hiding behavior from them, you're not allowing them to be your partner. Listen to the voice in the back of your mind, it's probably right.
- You categorize foods into negative groups. - Do you find yourself saying any of the following, or similar, phrases: "Naughty food", "Being bad by eating...", "I really shouldn't eat this", "Guilty pleasure"? We do this because we give too much meaning to the food itself. Food is just food. Fuel for your body. If you choose to eat something, take ownership of your own actions. The food did not jump into your mouth like a dog escaping through an open door. It is not naughty and neither are you. Why eat it and then immediately beat yourself up about it? Detaching the meaning of the food item from the actual item will help you to see it as exactly what it is, food. Make choices surrounding food that will serve you and your goals and let the food be the inanimate object that it is.
If any or all of these apply to you, your battle is now more clear. Once you identify the unhealthy thoughts you have regarding food, you can begin to address them and eventually move past them. The most important thing to do, is to listen to yourself. Listen to your thoughts, listen to the words you say. Tune into yourself and identify what is really going on. Shifting your mindset surrounding food will allow you to move forward. Once you've done that work, then you can begin exploring fitness and nutrition plans that will work for you. Without the shift, you'll be riding that roller coaster up and down, forever.
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