I can clearly see that one of my BIGGEST weight loss roadblocks is EMOTIONAL EATING. Hands down this is my biggest challenge.
If I knew how to bake - I'd eat cookies, lots & lots of cookies, I'd be eating cookies all day long! And this would be bad - very bad.
And I know this for a fact because I have learned that every time I get sad/mad/happy/scared/bored/excited/nervous/depressed/lonely, or ... well you get it - every time I feel any big emotion it seems to trigger the 'snack-attack' genie in me!
Many of you might already know the drill - not sure how to handle the random (or not so random) emotions. Unsure of what to do with it, where to put it or how to handle it - your immediate urge is to grab the nearest 'yummy' comfort food stuff and start feeding those feelings! And sometimes, if your like me, the snack is gone before you even realized you just ate it and to make matters worse - most of the time - you are not even hungry!
In fact, I'll bet that most 'people-pleasers' have weight management problems because their norm is to just eat their way through the 'unclaimed' emotions rather than simply swooning, bragging, singing, yelling, or screaming at the top of their lungs - and taking ownership of the feeling.
Let's face it, good girls are taught to sit quietly and not cause a commotion of any sort - to take one for the team. It's not lady-like to drop the *F* bomb when we are mad or frustrated, to brag when we are proud of our accomplishments or to go looking for *trouble* when we are bored ... so we eat!
But really - it's nothing more than a bad habit left-over from some other place & time and whatever its origins ... its time to say goodbye, ciao, adieu, cheerio and giddy.up & go - to this destructive habit.
Expressing your true emotions doesn't have to explosive, threatening or obnoxious - we can all learn to simply take appropriate ownership of what we are feeling and let it be.
Seems so simple doesn't it - just a little planning, thoughtful emoting, and a crash-course in learning how-to identify 'real' hunger. Sure, easy,peasy,lemon,squeezy - right!
Well, truth be told - if it was so easy most overweight people would be thin, we'd all have clean houses, walk 20 miles a day, never get ulcers and go to Disneyland every birthday! However, It's a fact that "Nothing in this life worth having - comes easy"! I acknowledge that it will take a real effort to change this habit, a lot of planning, commitment and thought - But ... it's worth it, don't you think.
The first thing to do is to teach yourself to 'see through' the emotional decoys and learn how to recognize the signs of 'Real' hunger. I have realized that along with never letting my car's fuel tank dip below 1/4 tank - I don't think I very often let my body's fuel tank dip below a 1/4 tank either.
So here are some tips I learned recently at Weight Watchers about identifying real hunger ...
- 'Real' hunger makes you lightheaded, dizzy, growling stomach & a lack of energy
- Think about the last time you ate and what you ate.
- Journal - write down everything you eat A- this will help you track & identify when you are truly hungry. Also use your journal to keep a record of your behavior & emotion responses to certain 'trigger' situations, times, days & people that make you most vulnerable to a 'snack attack'
- Wait - if you are unsure. Have a glass of water and wait at least 15 - 20 minutes before eating to see if your 'hunger' signs increase or dissipate.
Next, after you've mastered Hunger 101 and you can see more clearly the difference between when your body needs fuel *energy* and when it just needs a little emotional TLC - you need to focus on how to work your way around eating in response to emotional vibrations.
Here are some of the most common emotions that often 'trigger' an 'snack attack' and some non-eating ways to deal with them ...
- BOREDOM: You are not hungry - just looking for a distraction. You need to stand up, that's right, physically stand up and move into your Zen Zone. Ask yourself what is something start working on right now, this second. Look for something that will allow you to focus on it, become immersed in it, put you in your Zen Zone! Gardening, organizing, cleaning or doing puzzles are just a few of the fastest and easiest ways to get my head into the Zen Zone.
- SADNESS: You are not hungry - just lonely, isolated or stuck inside of a sad memory. You need to stand up, that's right, physically stand up and move into your Comfort Zone. You are just looking for something familiar - that brings you a sense of peace, makes you feel good. Scrapbooking, watching TV, reading, internet surfing or blogging are some activities that bring a sense of peace and put me into my Comfort Zone.
- ANGER: You are not hungry - you are just revved up with no place to go! So, get going! You need to stand up, that's right, physically stand up and move into your Superwoman Zone. You want to vent, shred, break and yell so why not get moving instead. Walk, lift weights, swim, hike - anything physical that will wear you out and give you an outlet for all that rage. Why not put it to good use. Walking, hiking, rearranging furniture. sweeping and cleaning the garage always seem to transport me into my Superwoman Zone.
- Stress: You are not hungry - just coiled too tight! You need to stand up, that's right, physically stand up and move into your Crunchy zone. You are anxious, fidgety, tense - crackling. You need to take a deep breath, maybe even two and then go and find something you can put all that nervous energy into. Something mindless, that requires little or no brain cells and provide almost instant gratification. Something fast, something that will distract you. Dancing, singing, sorting out a junk drawer, flipping through a magazine, clearing & tidying surface area (counters, desks etc) and alphabetizing DVD's are a few activities that always get me into a Crunchy Zone. (crunching on carrots is good)
Well, that is my challenge to everyone this week - try and eat only when you have determined that you are REALLY HUNGRY. Simple right! If you find yourself thinking about eating and you aren't or shouldn't be hungry then try and determine with emotion you are experiencing and try to get yourself into a 'Zone' which will help you work through the emotion without EATING your way through it.
Remember - keeping a Food & Mood Journal will probably help you to track your way around your life's ups & downs and enable you to avoid the pitfalls & traps of emotional eating.
It is my hope that with a lot of patience and diligence I will learn to 'read' my moods & unclaimed emotional baggage and head-off my self destructive behaviors because I know that only then will I be able to break the habit of 'feeding' my emotional needs rather than working my way through and owning them.