Food is one of the great pleasures in life and as a result we often eat for reasons other than simply feeling hungry. For example, we often incorporate food into many of our social interactions. We may also eat due to emotional factors. These can be triggered by a wide variety of emotions such as stress, boredom or loneliness.
It is possible to overcome emotional eating; the first step is to identify what triggers the emotions that lead to overeating.
You can do this by keeping a food and mood diary. Download the Food & Activity diary here. To fill in your diary, simply record everything you eat and drink over a period of time (4-7 days is ideal) then also record how you are feeling. You should soon be able to notice a relationship between your eating pattern and different emotional states. The key point then is to change how you usually react to these emotions.
For example, if you find you frequently come home from work upset about events that have happened during the day, instead of reaching for a quick chocolate fix you can turn the stereo up loud and dance around the room to release the pent up emotion. If feeling lonely, perhaps join a club or work as a volunteer to replace some of these feelings.
Try and look at other ways you can release your emotions or gain comfort other than food. Other things you can try include, reading, calling a friend, writing poetry, doing your nails, having a bubble bath, walking, enjoying a herbal tea etc.
Once you know your triggers, it is important to be able to recognise when you are hungry, as opposed to having an emotional craving. If you’re hungry your stomach will feel a bit rumbly. If you’re not sure, find a distraction or drink a cup of water, and give it 10 minutes. Cravings will often pass if you do not focus on them.
Other tips to avoid emotional eating are:
- Ensure you don’t keep unhealthy snack foods in your house. If only healthy snacks are available you may not be so tempted to eat outside of meal times, and if you do at least it will be a healthier option. Check out some healthy snack ideas here.
- Eat a balanced diet. If you ensure you are getting all the nutrients you need at meal times, you are more likely to feel fuller for longer and then will be less likely to snack.
- Exercise regularly. Exercise helps balance our moods and releases endorphins that make us feel good.
Most importantly of all don’t give up. We all have days when we don’t achieve what we want and do things we shouldn’t but always remember tomorrows another day and we can start afresh.