Controlled by food? 5 Strategies to curb emotional eating

Nov. 15, 2012 - PRLog -- We eat when we’re busy, we eat when we’re bored, we eat when we’re angry, we eat when we’re sad, we eat when we’re happy, we eat when we’re relaxed, and we eat to help us relax… we eat all the time, and most of the time anything but proper food.

   A lot of us have oficially become emotional eaters. It means that what ,when and how we eat is ruled by our emotions, as opposed to hunger. But what do we do that for?

   According to The Weight Loss Attitude Coach Anna Aparicio every behaviour, be it useful or harmful, has a positive intention.

   So, what do we get to gain – apart from tons of weight and disease – by doing that?

   We get to feel temporarily better, we get a certain comfort. but it rarely lasts and it's often followed by feelings of guilt, inadequacy, frustration and failure.

     Why do we find it so hard to control ourselves around food?      

   "Just like with every behaviour we practice regularly and consistently, we get to develop habits around food; and we get to anchor those habits into our unconscious mind by creating visual, spacial and kinesthetic triggers that help set off that behaviour quickly and effectively" says Anna "this is why we find it so hard to control ourselves around food".

  Work canteen means…. tea and biscuits. Couch and TV means… chocolate. Cinema means… popcorn. Friday night means… wine, etc.

   There are so many reasons, physiological, psychological and social, that have lead us to behave this way, there’s no point over analysing. But there are just as many reasons why we should stop it, and so the right question to ask ourselves is HOW?

So these are some of Anna's tried and tested strategies to help us curb emotional eating:


1# KEEP TRACK FOR 7

   Many people get home after a long day at work and become a couch potato for the rest of the evening. The munchies soon follow… Becoming aware of what behaviours have become habits is the first step in kicking them to the curb. Keep an honest food journal for 7 days. It’ll help you identify certain patterns. So if couch at 7pm means cookies, plan a totally different activity in a totally different place for that time of the day. For at least 20minutes make yourself do something that boosts your mood and energy levels, such as an energizing interval workout, a power walk in the fresh air, a vigorous dance to your favourite tunes… notice how afterwards the feeling of “gotta have that” has subsided.


2# LEARN TO RECOGNIZE HUNGER

    Fake hunger is impulsive, real hunger builds up slowly. If you find yourself having an overwhelming desire to eat when you’re not truly hungry, it could be that you’re stressed out or bored, or that smelling or seeing, or just thinking of a particular food has created a feeling inside you that’s made you crave it… The next time you get that urge, remind yourself that fake hunger is impulsive, and real hunger builds up slowly. So, when did you last eat, did you eat enough, and enough of the right foods? Now rate your hunger – your hunger, not your desire – from 1 to 10 (10 being extremely hungry) and only eat if it’s 6 or higher.


3# DISTRACT THE DRAGON

   We often use food to reward or even distract ourselves. We just can’t be doing nothing at all anymore. Maybe not, but we can curb emotional eating with a non-food related reward, or distraction. A relaxing bath, a chat with friend, a good book… or knitting a winter warmer. A 2009 study in the Journal of Eating and Weight Disorders found knitting helped participants lower their anxiety when it came to food! Grandma always knows best…


4# GET YOUR SLEEP ON

    Scientific studies show that lack of sleep increases cortisol levels, a steroid hormone that’s overproduced when we’re under too much stress. And stressed spelled backwards reads “desserts”! Recent studies published in the International Journal of Obesity show that people who sleep between 6 to 8 hours a night have lower stress levels and are more likely to achieve their weight loss goals. So go do what you have to do to get your sleep on!


5# WORK IT AT WORK

    A 2012 study in the journal Appetite found that folks who exercise during their working day; go to the gym at lunch time, or take a brisk walk during a break…  eat less chocolate than those who don’t exercise at all. Regular exercise has been found to help decrease stress, clear your mind, and help you make better decisions when it comes to food.


Anna Aparicio is CEO and Head Coach at The Weight Loss Attitude http://annaaparicio.com