Well, my birthday came and went. Having four whole days "off" was so nice. I still kicked some butt but it is so much better than sitting at my desk all day! With the weather getting cooler it is the perfect time to get outside! Take advantage of it now because in a month or two you will not want to be outside. I am doing my best to get out doors as much as possible! I am enjoying working outside and I know that my personal training gals like it too. After all, who really wants to be in the gym. I am glad to show my ladies that if the gym is closed, your not in your home town or dont feel like being inside how you can still get a great workout. I love it when I see people realize that they never have to step foot in a gym if they dont want to! The second part of September is going to be awesome. I have added yet another person to the training part of my life and that means more work and more working out! I love being at my day job (did I really just say that?) and all but I love personal training and the blog most. When I get to help others it really makes me feel good. I have made friends for life with some of you and watched some of you totally transform yourselves (notice I said YOU transformed YOURSELF). I know I am a little hard to take in all at once at times but I gotta get you thinkin, movin and gruvin your way to the healthiest, fittest version of yourself.
This month is already flying by! I cant believe that we are in the middle of September. I know that many of you have high goals for the end of September and I want you to achieve them! I decided that I would for the next three weeks do a challenge. You like a challenges right? Well, I have to say right now, it is not going to be easy ones. You do know me right?!? Ok, so we have three weeks left before October. That's only TWO months away from THANKSGIVING people. Before you know it will be Christmas. Lets really have something to be thankful for this season. Lets conquer this forever. Our first weeks challenge is going to be a tough one. I know that we all struggle with this one and that is why I want to start out really tough. This weeks challenge is going to be STOP EMOTIONAL EATING.
GASP!
You know you do it. YOU eat when your mad, sad or just plain bored. STOP IT. I have some tips to help you put a end to emotional eating. If you are like me you pretty much run to food when anything happens (or lack there of) then fear no more, you can stop shoving food into your mouth when your not even hungry. I noticed I had a issue with this years ago when I caught myself night eating. When I say night eating I don't mean watching a t.v. show at 9:00 pm and having a snack. Nope, it got way worse than that. I would wake in the middle of the night to go to the restroom and stop by the fridge night after night. My thoughts? "I cant get back to sleep, I will eat a little something and it will help me get some rest." Sounds good in theory but I was shooting myself in the foot. I would be on point diet wise and then in the middle of the night I would eat anything from a protein bar to chips and dip. There was no excuses for it, I created a habit and I could not break it. Have you herd the saying "do anything for 30 days and it becomes a habit?" Well, it is true (and sometimes it is in half the time :) I would wake up the next morning and totally beat myself up over it. I didnt know if I should track that food for that same day or the day before. When your eating at 2:00 am there is no reason for it. I am sure you are not doing this (it is a common habit I have found) but you may find yourself eating when your not hungry to feed a craving, entertain yourself or stop a emotion. Whatever it is, there are ways to stop it.
I knew that I had to stop emotional eating. I was not only eating at night, I was eating because I was bored or nervous. I had to get to the root. Quick.
I knew that I had to stop emotional eating. I was not only eating at night, I was eating because I was bored or nervous. I had to get to the root. Quick.
Sometimes the strongest cravings for food happen when you're at your weakest point emotionally. You may turn to food for comfort — consciously or unconsciously — when you're facing a difficult problem, stress or just looking to keep yourself occupied.
But emotional eating can sabotage your weight-loss efforts. Emotional eating often leads to eating too much, especially too much of high-calorie, sweet, fatty foods. But the good news is that if you're prone to emotional eating, you can take steps to regain control of your eating habits and get back on track with your weight-loss goals.
The connection between mood, food and weight loss (HINT: my blog IS called food n feelings!)
Emotional eating is eating as a way to suppress or soothe negative emotions, such as stress, anger, fear, boredom, sadness and loneliness. Both major life events and the hassles of daily life can trigger negative emotions that lead to emotional eating and disrupt your weight-loss efforts. These triggers may include:
■Unemployment
■Financial pressure
■Health problems
■Relationship conflicts
■Work stress
■Bad weather
■Fatigue
Although some people actually eat less in the face of strong emotions, if you're in emotional distress you may turn to impulsive or binge eating — you may rapidly eat whatever's convenient, without even enjoying it. In fact, your emotions may become so tied to your eating habits that you automatically reach for a sweet treat whenever you're angry or stressed without stopping to think about what you're doing.
Food also serves as a distraction. If you're worried about an upcoming event or stewing over a conflict, for instance, you may focus 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 emotions return, and you may also now bear the additional burden of guilt about setting back your weight-loss goal. This can also lead to an unhealthy cycle — your emotions trigger you to overeat, you beat yourself up for getting off your weight-loss track, you feel badly, and you overeat again.
But emotional eating can sabotage your weight-loss efforts. Emotional eating often leads to eating too much, especially too much of high-calorie, sweet, fatty foods. But the good news is that if you're prone to emotional eating, you can take steps to regain control of your eating habits and get back on track with your weight-loss goals.
The connection between mood, food and weight loss (HINT: my blog IS called food n feelings!)
Emotional eating is eating as a way to suppress or soothe negative emotions, such as stress, anger, fear, boredom, sadness and loneliness. Both major life events and the hassles of daily life can trigger negative emotions that lead to emotional eating and disrupt your weight-loss efforts. These triggers may include:
■Unemployment
■Financial pressure
■Health problems
■Relationship conflicts
■Work stress
■Bad weather
■Fatigue
Although some people actually eat less in the face of strong emotions, if you're in emotional distress you may turn to impulsive or binge eating — you may rapidly eat whatever's convenient, without even enjoying it. In fact, your emotions may become so tied to your eating habits that you automatically reach for a sweet treat whenever you're angry or stressed without stopping to think about what you're doing.
Food also serves as a distraction. If you're worried about an upcoming event or stewing over a conflict, for instance, you may focus 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 emotions return, and you may also now bear the additional burden of guilt about setting back your weight-loss goal. This can also lead to an unhealthy cycle — your emotions trigger you to overeat, you beat yourself up for getting off your weight-loss track, you feel badly, and you overeat again.
Tips to get your weight-loss efforts back on track
Although negative emotions can trigger emotional eating, you can take steps to control cravings and renew your effort at weight loss. To help stop emotional eating, try these tips:
■ Tame your stress. If stress contributes to your emotional eating, try a stress management technique, such as yoga, meditation or relaxation.
■ Have a hunger reality check. Is your hunger physical or emotional? If you ate just a few hours ago and don't have a rumbling stomach, you're probably not really hungry. Give the craving a little time to pass.
■ Keep a food diary. Write 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 may see patterns emerge that reveal the connection between mood and food.
■ Get support. You're more likely to give in to emotional eating if you lack a good support network. Lean on family and friends or consider joining a support group.
■ Fight boredom. Instead of snacking when you're not truly hungry, distract yourself. Take a walk, watch a movie, play with your cat, listen to music, read, surf the Internet or call a friend.
■ Take away temptation. Don't keep supplies of comfort foods in your home if they're hard for you to resist. And if you feel angry or blue, postpone your trip to the grocery store until you're sure that you have your emotions in check.
■ Don't deprive yourself. When you're trying to achieve a weight-loss goal, you may limit your calories too much, eat the same foods frequently and banish the treats you enjoy. This may just serve to increase your food cravings, especially in response to emotions. Let yourself enjoy an occasional treat and get plenty of variety to help curb cravings.
■ Snack healthy. If you feel the urge to eat between meals, choose a low-fat, low-calorie snack, such as fresh fruit, vegetables with fat-free dip, or unbuttered popcorn. Or try low-fat, lower calorie versions of your favorite foods to see if they satisfy your craving.
■ Get enough sleep. If you're constantly tired, you might snack to try to give yourself an energy boost. Take a nap or go to bed earlier instead.
■ Seek therapy. If you've tried self-help options but you still can't get control of your emotional eating, consider therapy with a professional mental health provider. Therapy can help you understand the motivations behind your emotional eating and help you learn new coping skills. Therapy can also help you discover whether you may have an eating disorder, which is sometimes connected to emotional eating.
If you have an episode of emotional eating, forgive yourself and start fresh the next day. Try to learn from the experience and make a plan for how you can prevent it in the future. Focus on the positive changes you're making in your eating habits and give yourself credit for making changes that'll lead to better health.
I hope that this info helped. I will be touching more on this later this week. I have a ton of thoughts and ideas on this subject. Join me this week in "beating emotional eating". Eat when your body says it's hungry, dont wait until you are starving. This is key for not eating to fast and eating too much. I know that you can do this with me! I know that you have control over your food, not the other way around. We are going to give it our best shot this week. Literally THINK about you are doing. THINK about what you are tasting, chewing, grabbing. Dont mindlessly eat. Take the time to realize that this is your meal time. Turn the t.v. off, step away from you computer and put your phone down. When you get something to eat before you even bite into it say to yourself "Am I truly hungry? If not, put it away. IT WILL BE THERE. If you DONT eat the food when your emotional (whatever that emotion is) it will be there when your not or when your truly hungry. Just say "it wil be there, I dont have to eat it now, I can wait a while." By the time you go for it again it will be the right time to do it. One last tip. When you grab something to eat (unless you are truly hungry of course) wait 10 minutes. This works really well. Just look at the time and say "in 10 minutes if I am still "hungry" then I can have it. You will be amazed. It works. Also when you give yourself the 10 minute rule, drink a glass of water instead. So many times I think that I am hungry when really I am thirsty. Your brain gives off the same signals to eat as it does to drink. SO next time your bored, mad, sad or even tired, wait 10 minutes, drink some water and do something else. Find what works for you!
See you tomorrow.
-Heather
Although negative emotions can trigger emotional eating, you can take steps to control cravings and renew your effort at weight loss. To help stop emotional eating, try these tips:
■ Tame your stress. If stress contributes to your emotional eating, try a stress management technique, such as yoga, meditation or relaxation.
■ Have a hunger reality check. Is your hunger physical or emotional? If you ate just a few hours ago and don't have a rumbling stomach, you're probably not really hungry. Give the craving a little time to pass.
■ Keep a food diary. Write 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 may see patterns emerge that reveal the connection between mood and food.
■ Get support. You're more likely to give in to emotional eating if you lack a good support network. Lean on family and friends or consider joining a support group.
■ Fight boredom. Instead of snacking when you're not truly hungry, distract yourself. Take a walk, watch a movie, play with your cat, listen to music, read, surf the Internet or call a friend.
■ Take away temptation. Don't keep supplies of comfort foods in your home if they're hard for you to resist. And if you feel angry or blue, postpone your trip to the grocery store until you're sure that you have your emotions in check.
■ Don't deprive yourself. When you're trying to achieve a weight-loss goal, you may limit your calories too much, eat the same foods frequently and banish the treats you enjoy. This may just serve to increase your food cravings, especially in response to emotions. Let yourself enjoy an occasional treat and get plenty of variety to help curb cravings.
■ Snack healthy. If you feel the urge to eat between meals, choose a low-fat, low-calorie snack, such as fresh fruit, vegetables with fat-free dip, or unbuttered popcorn. Or try low-fat, lower calorie versions of your favorite foods to see if they satisfy your craving.
■ Get enough sleep. If you're constantly tired, you might snack to try to give yourself an energy boost. Take a nap or go to bed earlier instead.
■ Seek therapy. If you've tried self-help options but you still can't get control of your emotional eating, consider therapy with a professional mental health provider. Therapy can help you understand the motivations behind your emotional eating and help you learn new coping skills. Therapy can also help you discover whether you may have an eating disorder, which is sometimes connected to emotional eating.
If you have an episode of emotional eating, forgive yourself and start fresh the next day. Try to learn from the experience and make a plan for how you can prevent it in the future. Focus on the positive changes you're making in your eating habits and give yourself credit for making changes that'll lead to better health.
I hope that this info helped. I will be touching more on this later this week. I have a ton of thoughts and ideas on this subject. Join me this week in "beating emotional eating". Eat when your body says it's hungry, dont wait until you are starving. This is key for not eating to fast and eating too much. I know that you can do this with me! I know that you have control over your food, not the other way around. We are going to give it our best shot this week. Literally THINK about you are doing. THINK about what you are tasting, chewing, grabbing. Dont mindlessly eat. Take the time to realize that this is your meal time. Turn the t.v. off, step away from you computer and put your phone down. When you get something to eat before you even bite into it say to yourself "Am I truly hungry? If not, put it away. IT WILL BE THERE. If you DONT eat the food when your emotional (whatever that emotion is) it will be there when your not or when your truly hungry. Just say "it wil be there, I dont have to eat it now, I can wait a while." By the time you go for it again it will be the right time to do it. One last tip. When you grab something to eat (unless you are truly hungry of course) wait 10 minutes. This works really well. Just look at the time and say "in 10 minutes if I am still "hungry" then I can have it. You will be amazed. It works. Also when you give yourself the 10 minute rule, drink a glass of water instead. So many times I think that I am hungry when really I am thirsty. Your brain gives off the same signals to eat as it does to drink. SO next time your bored, mad, sad or even tired, wait 10 minutes, drink some water and do something else. Find what works for you!
See you tomorrow.
-Heather
