Monday, April 16, 2012

I Am An Emotional Eater!

Whenever I am bored or anything, I go straight to food. It hits when I am worried, anxious, or sad.I indulge in mindless eating, I'm not obese but have started putting on weight in the past couple of years, and it sure ain't making me feel good right now! :(


Here is some information on Emotional  [that everyone should know about]
                       Eating/Binge 


 Emotional Eating - using food to escape or to make yourself feel better.


Emotional eating means that you eat for some other reason than health or nutrition.


This sounds pretty innocent, but Emotional Eating is actually what makes you break your diets. It's what makes you feel intense cravings for particular foods. It's what makes you overeat.


It causes food addiction. It's even responsible for binges and yoyo diets.
Chances are, if you've ever struggled to lose weight and failed, or regained weight
back after some success, you've struggled with Emotional Eating.


You already know how to lose weight. You know that if you eat less and exercise more eventually you’ll see the pounds come off. What’s getting in your way? Why do you usually regain the weight you lost?


The answer to all these questions is the same “Emotional Eating.” Simply defined, emotional eating means you eat to satisfy emotional hunger; it means you use food for comfort or as a way to cope with life; and it means you eat for reasons other than what your body needs.


Whenever you reach for a boredom-breaking snack despite your commitment, or whenever you eat to quell anxiety, that’s emotional eating. Whenever you binge after a fight, or double up on portions because your day turned sour, that’s emotional eating. Whenever you feel that sharp craving for your favorite food, that’s emotional eating.


When we eat during these times while on a diet, we believe the diet doesn’t work or that we lack self control and then look for the quickest way to lose weight (fasting/diet pills, ect) after eating all we can since we already messed the diet day up.


Remember that emotional eating plays a big part in why we don’t continue dieting and why we regain lost weight and why we binge today and start a new diet tomorrow.


                        


Tips to curb the emotional eating habbit/ bindge


Why Are You Eating?
The first step to taking control of your eating is to figure out what triggers emotional eating for you. Do you eat more at work because of stress or boredom? Do you eat more at parties or other social situations because you're nervous or anxious? Do you eat when you're bored or lonely?
For many of us, emotional eating is such an ingrained habit, we're not even aware we're doing it. The following tools can help you keep track of your eating to give you a clearer perspective on your eating habits:


 Once you start getting a deeper understanding of your eating habits, you can work on ways to cope with your feelings other than reaching for food. Just a few ideas include:




  • Excercise. It helps relieve stress and anxiety, generates energy and it makes you feel good about yourself.
  • Get in Touch. Talking to a friend or an online support group may give you the support you need to avoid reaching for.
  • Drink Water. We often mistake thirst for hunger and filling up with water may help you avoid extra calories.
  • Take a walk. Walking is good for your body, but it's always a great way to practice moving meditation and work through problems.
  • Listen to your favorite song. Music can be a great way to sooth yourself when you're stressed, bored or tired.
  • Drink some tea. One of my favorite ways to curb unexpected cravings is to drink herbal tea. It fills me up and adding a little honey often satisfies my sweet tooth. .
  • Try  yoga. Relaxing your body and mind is a great way to take a step back from big emotions before you do something you might regret
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  •  Make your own list of ideas and work on trying at least one new one each week as you start dealing with your emotional eating habits. Changing bad habits, especially bad eating habits, takes time, patience and diligence but it's worth it to get control of your eating and learn how to handle your emotions without food.
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