Become a Healthier You: Busting Unhealthy Eating Patterns That Leads to Weight Gain

Are you an emotional eater? It is somewhat like an addiction. You get stressed out, bored or angry at someone and the way you help yourself deal with it all is a trip to refrigerator for something "tasty." I know because I been there many times. Will you grab the leftover bread pudding, or last night's leftover pizza? Maybe a trip to the refrigerator is not the route and you quickly get into the cookie jar instead. Before you know it you have downed a half dozen peanut butter or chocolate cookies you keep on hand especially for emergencies like this one.

The dynamics of emotional eating are:

trigger
craving
action

The above song and dance is a potent trio because it replays the brain's powerful ability to form deeply ingrained habits based upon repeated experiences. You been there before and when the time is right, you will return again so says your own tape recorded sessions inside your very own brain. It is a vicious cycle that leads to unhealthy eating patterns and weight gain.

There is good news about the human brain. It is very good at learning new strategies. Breaking a dysfunctional habit simply means posting a new habit over top of the bad one.

Spend some time figuring out what makes you slip into the emotional eating pattern. What starts the process. This is the trigger point. Your trigger point might not be stress or anger. It might be loneliness, fear or even procrastination. For example: You don't want to clean the house. Instead you grab a nice juicy donut.

Trigger points can even be excitement or desire. Identifying your trigger points will help you get out of the automatic mode of doing what you did before when the same thing happened. Instead of grabbing something unhealthy during those times, substitute with more healthy foods or any other activity that helps you avoid the unhealthy eating pattern such as listening to some favorite music.

The key is to accept the new process as a solution instead of becoming judgmental about the problem. Self criticism leads to discomfort that can trigger more emotional eating. If you find out your substitute behaviors do not work, it does not mean you are hopeless and it is never going to work. Try another substitute behavior until you find something that does work for you and sets you free of unhealthy eating patterns that leads to unhealthy weight gain.

Tips:

keep portions of handfuls of baby carrots or apple slices in plastic baggies and keep them in the front of the fridge where you can grab them easily
keep a bowl of fresh fruit on the kitchen counter or dining room table for easy grab and go
keep some flavored sugarless chewing gum handy as chewing is an essential part of the eating experience that relieves your emotions
some people find hot showers or a soak in the tub is helpful
create a playlist of your favorite music
meditation-based mindfulness training helps you become more aware of your eating triggers and behaviors
go out for a walk or job
enjoy yoga or tai chi
go to a local health club
mentally distract yourself from cravings by playing computer games such as solitaire, catch up on social media and current news reports
knit or crochet or start a new hobby
organize a messy closet

source: Tufts University Healthy Eating Newsletters

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