7 Steps To Breaking The Habit of Comfort Eating

Are you an emotional eater? Do the pounds pile on when stresses pile up?

Do you crave certain foods when you get the blues? If so you are not alone, and there is hope! Here are some things to remember….

1. It takes time to change: Just because you want to take control of your eating today and lose some weight, does not mean it is a quick fix. In fact research shows that losing weight slowly has better long term outcomes than the quick fix crash diet.

2. Change takes you out of your comfort zone: We often rely on our feelings to tell us what to do, but when you make a change, you step out of your comfort zone. So you will feel uncomfortable and that is a good thing.

3. Be aware of your triggers: Notice what foods you habitually crave. Are they sweet, salty or breads? And what emotions trigger you to overeat? What are you really searching for? Awareness is the first step to doing something different.

4. Making a decision is a key step to stop a behavior. Until you decide, you are in the land of wishful thinking, but once you decide, you enter into a different mind space that gives you power.

5. Make a plan: You need to make a plan before you get hungry or are tempted, to stay on track. If you wait until you are tempted to figure out what to do, you will probably fail, so planning is key.

6. Take action: When you decide to stop eating for emotional reasons, you have to do it! This means you need to find other ways to get your emotional needs met and to handle upsets, g. journaling, counseling or finding other safe ways to release emotions. It also means taking a look at what causes you stress, and improving your self-care, being more mindful, managing your stress differently and getting support.

7. Forgive yourself for lapses: No matter what your current eating habits, they probably helped you cope and survive childhood stresses, so be gentle with yourself when you cave in. The important thing is to just to start again – no shame, no blame. We are all human here and that includes me!

If you would like to chat with Grace about where you are at and what you need, take advantage of her 15 minutes complimentary consult on the phone. Call 1-250-370-2254 to set one up today.