Tag Archive for ‘binge eating’ at themojocoach.com

So you’re eating better, you’re more active and making a conscious effort to live a healthier lifestyle. Then something happens which sends you right to the refrigerator and right back into those old, unhealthy habits. How can you prevent a lapse from turning into a relapse…then a collapse? Here are a few tips:

1. Stop. Contain the binge to the time period when you originally overate and make a rule that once the lapse is over, it’s over. Forget “may as well” type of thinking which goes like this: “I ate all of that so I may as well keep going and start again tomorrow” or “I can’t believe I did that, may as well forget the whole thing because it’s just too hard.” That’s like saying “I gained a half of a pound so I may as well gain back the 20 pounds I lost.” Does this make any sense? Contain it to the meal, the activity, the room you were in, etc. and just stop.

2. Learn-Learn why the lapse happened. Did you wait too long between meals? Did something or someone set you off? Do you need a more effective coping strategy for your emotions? Do you need to have healthier foods within easy reach? The more you understand why the binge happened, the better you can come up with a plan to prevent it from happening again.

3. Revise-Even the most skillfully created plans need a tweak to two if they’re not effective. Do you have big bags of snacks around that encourage overeating and would you be better off with single serving, pre-set portions? Are you leaving foods you find tempting within easy reach and would you be better off not having them around at all? These are the kinds of questions to ask yourself so you can revise what you’ve been doing to see if something else would work better for you.

4. Create a plan-Once you’ve stopped the lapse from turning into a string of lapses, you’ve learned from it and you’ve revised what you’ve been doing, it’s time for a plan. If stress derails your best intentions, what else may help calm you down? Can you find a healthy substitution for now that’s less damaging (like eating baby carrots instead of chips) until you find a different strategy? Can you call a friend, write in a journal, go out for a walk or play some music? Can you create a different association with the place you typically overeat? For example, if you associate snacking with the couch, can that couch be the place you now brush the dog’s fur or polish your nails? By creating a plan and having it in place, you’re less likely to be thrown off by the unexpected.

5. Do something positive- Ok, so you fell off track and you’re feeling a little disappointed with your choices or how you handled a situation. Instead of wallowing in it, do something positive to regain a sense of confidence and control. How about pushing yourself a little further during your next workout, less snacking and getting in those extra glasses of water today? Making an extra effort to get back on track shows yourself you’re back in control and will help regain your motivation to get back on track.

6. Move on-There isn’t one positive thing that comes from berating yourself so do your best to learn from the lapse and move on. Dwelling on it will only encourage further lapses while chipping away at your confidence and self-esteem so find a way to compartmentalize the lapse, put it behind you and start fresh. We all make mistakes but as long as we learn from them, they can be our greatest teachers.

7. Perspective- Was your lapse really as catastrophic as you think it is? Do you really need to question your ability to become healthy and fit? Do you really need to be that hard on yourself and is it is worth feeling that upset? Remember, chronic stress wreaks havoc on our immune system and increases our risk for symptoms, illness, conditions and disease. Keeping things in perspective helps keep us on track and while preventing the wear and tear unnecessary stress can cause.

Mistakes don’t define you; they teach you…if you let them. By finding a positive spin to the lapse and by improving your game plan to ensure a better outcome for next time you can easily overcome any lapse: preventing it from derailing your best efforts and intentions.

Comment and share!

Debi Silber, “The Mojo Coach”
www.TheMojoCoach.com

One of the most common reasons why many of us struggle with weight loss and weight maintenance is because we fail to look at the: who, what, when, where, how and why we actually gained the weight in the first place. Once we’re able to ask ourselves these questions and come up with some insightful answers, we can understand how to finally create a weight loss plan that actually works. The first place to start is with the who of weight loss.

Who triggers you to overeat? It can be a boss who triggers us to grab foods to calm or relax us after a stressful day at the office. It can be a friend or partner who encourages us to overeat because they want a “food buddy.” It can be someone who shows their love for you through the food they’ve prepared and we eat to avoid hurting their feelings.
What types of foods you are eating? Are you having a problem with your food choices, eating too much junk food, takeout, prepared or fast food? Are the foods you’re choosing high in fat and sugar? Are your portions too big and you’re finding yourself “economy sizing”, “super sizing” or “value sizing?” Are you choosing foods that don’t satisfy or fill you adequately? Are you taking in too many liquid calories?
When are you overeating? For many people, weight issues stem from over eating the same foods at the same time. For example, many moms find they over eat their children’s snack foods, between 3-4pm. Others find that late night snacking while watching TV is the place where they’re taking in too much.
Where are you doing most of your overeating? Many moms find that they overeat at the kitchen counter while preparing food and snacks for their children. Others find that the living room couch after a long day is where the damage is done and still others can blame weight gain on the Saturday night breadbasket at their favorite restaurant.
How you’re over eating? You can be eating socially, mindlessly, binge eating or eating emotionally. With social eating you’re not hungry, but you’re simply eating to be a part of the group or the experience. You may be concerned about being judged, criticized or questioned if you don’t eat what everyone else is eating so you use the opportunity to eat foods you’d normally limit or avoid. With mindless eating, you take in extra food as you’re passing it to others, when you grab something as you see it on the counter or someone’s desk, eating while preparing food or eating while reading, watching TV or doing anything else that takes your attention away from concentrating on what you’re eating. Poor food choices or eating to improve our feelings or mood are the most common reasons for binge eating. For example, a diet high in sugar often encourages binge eating behavior because the sugar provides a quick energy surge followed by an energy crash. That crash encourages a high sugar binge in order to regain that energy so quickly gained and lost. With an emotional eating binge, we overeat to calm, numb or relax. It’s used as a means to self soothe and self medicate. It’s a technique we’ve employed to deal with our stress, fears, anger, frustration or hurt and we eat to encourage a boost of serotonin, one of the body’s “feel good” chemicals.
Why are you overeating? Questioning yourself after a binge is one of the best times to ask that question. With compassion and without judgment, simply ask yourself “what do I really need?” or “what was I really looking for?” Rarely is it food and more likely it’s compassion, security, sleep, friendship, a fulfilling project, satisfying relationship, enriching and meaningful job, more confidence or simply a call for a better way to handle your stress.

The more we understand the: who, what, when, where, how and why of weight loss, the better we can create a plan that works for us…not against us. While it may take some effort to come up with the answers, every answer you find brings you one step closer to gradual yet lasting weight loss.