How to Recognize and Stop Emotional Eating
One minute, you’re innocently going about your day—the next, you’re in the clutches of desire. Your object of lust: a chocolate cupcake with butter cream icing. Next thing you know, you’re licking frosting off your fingers.
What just happened? You were crushed by a food craving. In a study from Tufts University, 91% of women said they experienced strong food cravings. Willpower isn’t the answer. These urges are fueled by feel-good brain chemicals such as dopamine, released when you eat these types of foods, which creates a rush of endorphins that your brain seeks over and over. What you need is a plan that stops this natural cycle—and helps prevent unwanted weight gain.
Understanding emotional eating
We don’t always eat simply to satisfy hunger. We also turn to food for comfort, stress relief, or as a reward. Unfortunately, emotional eating doesn’t fix emotional problems. It usually makes you feel worse. Afterward, not only does the original emotional issue remain, but you also feel guilty for overeating. Learning to recognize your emotional eating patterns and why we need the food to start with is the first step to breaking free from food cravings and compulsive overeating, and changing the habits that have sabotaged your weight control in the past.
Emotional hunger can’t be filled with food. Eating may feel good in the moment, but the feelings that triggered the eating are still there. You beat yourself for messing up and not having more willpower. To try and eat the problem away, you stop learning healthier ways to deal with your emotions, you have a harder and harder time controlling your weight, and you feel increasingly powerless over both food and your feelings.
Understanding emotional eating
We don’t always eat simply to satisfy hunger. We also turn to food for comfort, stress relief, or as a reward. Unfortunately, emotional eating doesn’t fix emotional problems. It usually makes you feel worse. Afterward, not only does the original emotional issue remain, but you also feel guilty for overeating. Learning to recognize your emotional eating patterns and why we need the food to start with is the first step to breaking free from food cravings and compulsive overeating, and changing the habits that have sabotaged your weight control in the past.
Emotional hunger can’t be filled with food. Eating may feel good in the moment, but the feelings that triggered the eating are still there. You beat yourself for messing up and not having more willpower. To try and eat the problem away, you stop learning healthier ways to deal with your emotions, you have a harder and harder time controlling your weight, and you feel increasingly powerless over both food and your feelings.
Ultimately we want to eat when we have the sensation of physical hunger and use tools to recognise and cope with feelings.
Distinguish between physical an emotional hunger
Make the connection for yourself, how does it feel in your body to be physically hungry? Here are some examples; I want you to complete this for yourself.
Ok let’s first look at if we have established that it’s an emotional hunger. We will talk more on what exactly to do in weeks to follow if it’s a physical hunger. It’s an emotional hunger because you are not physically hungry and you still want to eat. It might be in the middle of the day and you have no need for fuel, but you have a strong desire to eat something. Do not panic when this happens. In fact, this in not always a bad thing. If you are willing to pay attention to what is going on with your eating, you will have a window into your emotional life. Any time you want to eat for a non-fuel reason, you may have an opportunity to learn something about your actual needs.
The next time you’re hit with an insatiable urge for a slab of Lindt Chocolate, ask yourself these questions to see what you truly crave!
For more information visit us:-http://www.life-coach.co.za/
