Emotional Eating and Overeating

1. Avoid Trigger Foods

Sugary treats, baked goods, chocolates, candy, white rice, white pasta, chips, and fried foods – are all common trigger foods. Trigger foods are typically foods that increase the likelihood to overeat. They are often associated with emotional and binge eating which leads to weight gain. These foods send blood sugar levels on a rollercoaster ride which can end up putting you in a bad mood or send you into a food coma that makes you feel like crap the next day. Try cutting out trigger foods for two weeks and see how great you can feel.

2. Tame Stress Levels
When feeling anxious or stressed or even if you have experienced either during the day, take a few moments for deep breathing. It is a great way to calm the mind and nervous system and as a bonus, it is also a great energy booster if you’re feeling tired.
Place your hand on your belly to ensure that you are taking deep breaths- inhale long breaths through the nose and exhale through the nose.

3. Have a Hunger Reality Check
Ask yourself…” Am I physically hungry or emotionally hungry..?”, allow some time for the craving to pass. This allows you to really be present in the moment and helps to create awareness around feelings of hunger and appetite to better assess whether you want to eat out of boredom, to release negative feelings, or because you are actually hungry.

4. Keep a Food Diary
Write down everything you eat, when you eat, and how you feel before and after. This helps to bring awareness to any connections between mood and food.

5. Take Away Temptation
Keep unhealthy trigger foods out of the house.

6. Don’t Deprive Yourself
Give yourself permission to have an occasional treat- in fact, deprivation can actually increase food cravings and appetite hormones which can make things worse. Eat food that is real and tastes good all the time- healthy food is delicious. For example, if you desire french fries, try making roasted sweet potato wedges tossed with olive oil and herbs with sea salt.

7. Get Enough Sleep
There is more and more research proving that sleep-deprived people eat more carbs and sugars and unhealthy foods. When you get less than 6 hours of sleep, the appetite-stimulating hormone known as ghrelin increases, and the satiation signaling hormone, leptin, is decreased. This causes sleep deprived people to eat more, perhaps a contributing factor in weight gain. Aim to get 7-9.5 hours of uninterrupted sleep each night in total darkness.

8. Eat regularly
Eating at regular intervals can help blood sugar in check which in turn helps you to make healthy choices and eat appropriate portions. Research shows that normalized eating is the way to go to avoid overeating. This follows the rule of 3 – 3 meals, 2 to 3 snacks, about 3 hours a part.