Emotional Eating vs. Rational Eating

Do We Eat to Live or Live to Eat?

Food. Love it or hate it, eating RUNS our life. Thoughts around food consume us at least three times a day and hopefully not more. Yet, let’s be honest, it's usually much more!

Of course, when an we are solely consumed with what we are eating, counting calories, losing weight, the ever-turning cycle of food obsession, the joy of food goes right out the window. And oh how much JOY there is!

The reality is - we should only eat when we are hungry. Period. Most of us eat when we are looking for entertainment to satiate our boredom, sadness, or any other deeper emotional issue which hasn't been dealt with appropriately.

Why Do You Eat?

Take a minute and look internally. Do you recognize the connection behind the way you eat and emotions? It’s only natural for humans to have an emotional connection to food, yet a very deep emotional connection can be problematic.

It is not only for people with the more dangerous aspects of eating disorders - which most of us now know has nothing really to do with the food and everything to do with the burden of unresolved emotional issues - yet even in people who don’t have a disorder, it can be difficult to detach emotions from just plain eating.

Notice how you eat differently if you are well rested, calm, and content, as opposed to tired and upset. What kind of choices are you making?

Sugar Explained!

For example, if you think about it, why do we have such attachment to sugar? Well, when we are little and have a birthday, and it is our day, the pinnacle of the event comes around the birthday song and CAKE! So, just in that little example, we begin to associate cake (and loads of sugar) with happiness in our mind.

How to break out!

The best way to make healthier choices is to recognize the habits we have and find the strength to break our patterns.

In my practice, I would say the majority of my clients come for an emotional eating issue related to weight loss. When we understand and resolve why the emotions revolve around anxiety or depression, we can begin to eat better, thanks to less emotional attachment, and a simple hungrier one.

Take Action Mind Tip!

The decisions we make around food start in the mind.

The purpose of this tip is to get you visualizing yourself on a better track to getting in better shape and eating better. It doesn’t resolve emotional issues though, so be aware of that.

Step 1:

What’s your goal weight?

Step 2:

Visualize yourself in a month from now looking the way you want to look, and feeling the way you want to feel. See yourself that way. What you can see you can create.

Step 3:

Now, see yourself in 6 months from now. When you see yourself in better shape, also envision what it is you are doing differently to get that way. Your mind will pick up on cues on to how to behave differently.

Step 4:

Do the same steps for a year , and then 2 years, and then 3. Etc.

Step 5:

Meditate on this and really visualize yourself the way you would look AND feel.

Here’s to your happy, healthy eating and living!