During this time of fear and uncertainty, it’s perfectly normal for some people to seek solace in food. However, this can become problematic when it starts to compromise your overall health. This is part of the culture of instant gratification and it doesn’t actually help to alleviate the negative feelings you may be having; it also leaves you feeling guilty for overeating. However, throughout this article i’m going to be giving you tips on how to deal with this effectively.
What is emotional eating?
We don’t always eat when we are hungry, many of us also turn to food for comfort, sometimes if we’re feeling lonely, stressed or to reward ourselves. Usually when we do this, we tend to choose junk food like ice cream, sweets, ‘a cheeky burger’ and other comforting unhealthy foods. Emotional eating is using food to make yourself feel better—to fill emotional needs, rather than your physical needs. The hassles of daily life can trigger negative emotions that lead to emotional eating and disrupt your weight-loss efforts.
This can make you think but ‘why do I find comfort in food?’, it has been found that negative emotions may lead to a feeling of emptiness or an emotional void. Food is then believed to be a way to fill that void and create a false feeling of ‘fullness’ or temporary wholeness.
Are you an emotional eater?
This is a safe space to offer help and support to those who often find comfort in food. Here is a list of common traits to look out for:
You eat more when you’re feeling stressed?
You eat when you’re not hungry or when you’re full?
You eat to feel better (to calm and soothe yourself when you’re upset, mad, bored, anxious, etc.)?
You tend to reward yourself with food?
You regularly eat until you’ve stuffed yourself?
Food makes you feel safe. You feel like food is a friend?
You feel powerless or out of control around food? (You can’t resist saying no to that extra biscuit)
TIPS TO DEAL WITH EMOTIONAL EATING
Now that I’ve highlighted common traits, i’ve put together a list of tips to deal with emotional eating and healthy alternatives you can take on:
1. Identify your emotional eating triggers and recognise addictive behaviour.
Emotional eating is using food as a way to suppress or soothe negative emotions, such as stress, anger, fear, boredom, sadness and loneliness the emotions can be triggered by anything, from work stress to financial worries, health worries to relationship struggles, and not being able to see family and friends, may be the root cause of your emotional eating during this time.
Although some people eat less in the face of strong emotions, if you're in emotional distress you might turn to impulsive or binge eating. This habit can then become instinctive where you turn to food whenever you’re upset or angry without even thinking. Food can also serve as a distraction, if you're worried about cancelled plans or fretting over a conflict, for instance, you may end up focusing on eating comfort food instead of dealing with the painful situation.
Whatever emotions drive you to overeat, the end result is often the same. The effect is temporary, the emotions return and you likely then bear the additional burden of guilt about setting back your weight-loss goal. This can then lead to an unhealthy cycle — your emotions trigger you to overeat, you beat yourself up for getting off your weight-loss track, you feel bad and you overeat again. However, when negative emotions threaten to trigger emotional eating, it is important to remember there are steps to control cravings.
2. Get rid of junk food and Create an eating schedule
It can be difficult to distinguish between physical hunger and emotional hunger. If you eat well throughout the day, it may be easier to spot when you’re eating out of boredom, sadness or stress.
If you’re having trouble, try reaching for healthy snacks instead, such as:
Fruit or vegetables
Plain popcorn
Mixed nuts
Red bell peppers
Greek yogurt & mixed berries
Apple slices with peanut butter
Celery sticks with cream cheese or tablespoon of peanut butter
Kale chips
Cucumber slices with humus
You can also try out some new healthy recipes that will be fun to do by visiting my website www.bodybycathy.com and get yourself a copy of MealsByCathy cookbook to kick start your journey. The recipes inside my cookbook are easy, delicious and healthy, which will also help take your mind off negative thoughts.
Consider getting rid of or donating food in your cupboards that you often reach for when you’re feeling bad. Things, like chips, chocolate, and ice cream need to go or avoid buying them. Keeping the food you crave out of reach when you’re feeling emotional may help break the cycle by giving you time to think before eating the wrong foods.
Keeping a food diary can also be beneficial, writing down what you eat, how much you eat, when you eat, how you're feeling when you eat and how hungry you are. Over time, you might see patterns that reveal the connection between mood and food.
3. Make daily exercise a priority and stay active
Just because we’re stuck indoors, it doesn’t mean you can’t exercise. With the internet at our disposal, why not browse the web for a fun dance routine, body-weight strength workout or relaxing yoga session? I have some suggestions if you’re in need of some home exercise inspiration. Also visit our Instagram page @BodyByCathy for more at home workout ideas and fitness inspiration.
It’s been found that exercising – however you want to do it – can help improve your mental health. Your self-esteem will be raised, you’ll experience setting goals and achieving them, and to top it all off: exercise causes chemical changes in your brain which can help to lift your mood.
Top tip: It’s more important to find an activity you enjoy doing and are more likely to keep up than going for the ‘hardest’. So you can try out dance routine exercises or if you like cycling you can also try that.
4. Connect with others/ seek support
It’s important to resist isolation in moments of sadness or anxiety. Even a quick phone call to a friend or family member can do wonders to improve your mood.
There are also formal support groups that can help. Overeaters Anonymous is an organisation that tackles overeating from emotional eating, compulsive overeating, and other eating disorders. Also I’d like to add, I have been where you are, and I understand how emotional eating can make you feel helpless. Why not step in my world and see how I can help you with my nutrition, medical background and personal experiences, head over to www.bodybycathy.com and select the ‘weight-loss’ heading for more information.
You can also visit your doctor who may give you a referral to a counsellor or coach who can help you identify the emotions that trigger overeating. You can find other groups in your area by searching on social sites such as Meetup or facebook.
5. Turn the news off and banish distractions
Finally turn off the news, right now the news is filled with a lot of information that can cause a lot fear, anxiety and stress, so right now unless you’re looking at the news to stay informed, it’s important to keep this to a minimum in order to reduce any negative responses that may lead to emotional eating.
Also try to banish any distractions that may cause you to overeat without even realising it - You may find yourself eating in front of the television, computer, or some other distraction. Try switching off your tv or putting down your phone and eating at the dinner table, this will help when trying to establish a healthy eating pattern. By focusing on your food, the bites you take, and your level of hunger, it will make you more aware of whether you’re eating because of hunger or emotionally. Some even find it helpful to focus on chewing 10 to 30 times before swallowing a bite of food. Doing these things gives your mind time to catch up to your stomach.
Summary
Whilst food may help ease emotions initially, it’s important to address the feelings behind the hunger as this will help in the long term. Work to find alternative ways to deal with stress, like exercise and peer support, and try practicing mindful and healthy eating habits. I hope you’ve found these tips helpful and please feel free to contact me on getfit@bodybycathy.com if you need any help and support.
