Article on tips from Bethenny Frankel's book, Naturally Thin

DeeDeeLHF

Interesting article from Mydaily.com. I enjoyed reading it and thought some of you might as well.

D:flowerforyou:


How Bethenny Frankel Helped Me Get My Emotional Eating in Check

Posted Mar 1st 2011 at 8:00AM by Ellen Collis
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Bethenny Frankel, author of Bethennyfrankel.com



After first sharing my struggles with emotional eating, many of you wanted to know more about how I finally got a handle on my cathartic chewing. What are my secrets? How did I do it?

As some of you (cleverly, I might add) said, I gave you an appetizer, but left out the meat out of my story. Well, I'm more than happy to share my tips with you, but just know right now that the dish I'm about to deliver might not be as tasty as you would like.

The truth of the matter is this: It's not easy making consistently healthy food choices, whether you're walking with a skip in your step that day, or there's a gray cloud hanging over your head. The sooner you accept that, the better.

If you continue to wish it was easy, or that you were in the .01 percent of people who can eat everything they desire and not gain weight, you won't succeed. (But, eww, don't you want your heart to be healthy anyway?) Place your energy towards figuring out how you can make small improvements and develop a healthy lifestyle that you also enjoy. It gets easier, I promise.

But let's rewind a bit. When I started putting the pieces of my life back together after losing my job, I picked up Bethenny Frankel's book, "Naturally Thin" on a whim. I knew that if nothing else, Bethenny would make me laugh, which is something I desperately needed at that time.

And I did. A lot. But I honestly didn't expect to be so inspired. This is not a celebrity who tells you that she maintains her size-2 figure by hula hooping for ten minutes each day or chasing her baby around the house. She's honest and real, and quite frankly, her no-b.s. approach works! At least for me it did.

After reading the book a second time, I started loaning it out to friends. I've lost track on its whereabouts, but luckily, I still recall several of the key components.

Don't Like It? STOP EATING IT -- Pronto
How many times have you taken a bite of a bland piece of chicken or tried a new flavor of chips and thought, Eh, this isn't very good. Yet you continue to eat it. And then you reach for something else-something unhealthy-in order to feel satiated. Next time, stop dead in your tracks and find something reasonable that you know you will enjoy. Trust me, the homemade nachos you just burned in your microwave won't get tastier with each bite; I learned that the hard way. It's quite the opposite actually....

Nothing Tastes As Good As the First Few Bites
I always, always remind myself of this when I'm eating dessert. You might disagree, but think about this the next time you dig into a yummy slice of cheesecake. Sure, the fourth, fifth, sixth bites will be good, but they will never, ever be good as the first few bites. That's when you need to ask yourself, Is it worth it?

Eating Nothing, Taste Everything
Bethenny LIVES for this rule. Personally, I'm still working on it. She'll order soup, a crab cake appetizer, a side of veggies, maybe even some bruschetta and then steal nibbles of steak off her dining partner's plate. See? Eat nothing (to its entirety), taste everything. I personally prefer enjoying one entree. Only now, I almost always start my meal with a salad or vegetable and I leave something, even if it's just a few bites, left on my plate.

Think About, and Tune In to What You're Really Craving
If you wake up in the morning with a hankering for honey wheat pretzels dipped in cottage cheese, have it. Is your leftover Chinese takeout calling your name? Finish it. If you wake up and can't decide what you're in the mood for...wait. Have a cup of coffee, maybe a piece of fruit. If you eat something just because the clock says it's time to eat, you might end up scarfing down a sausage-egg-cheese bagel sandwich in four big, messy bites on your way to work without even tasting it! (Oops!)

But the trick is, Balance your account, as Frankel says. If breakfast was all carbs, get those veggies in at lunch. This brings me to rule #5...

You Can't Have Everything You Want When You Want It
What are you? Twelve?! Bethenny's words. Not mine. But it's true. We teach this to our children, so why shouldn't we follow suit when it comes to our health? Go on, order that juicy cheeseburger you've been thinking about since Thursday. Swap the fries for a salad (unless you really want them and trust yourself to have just a few), and leave a bite of beef on your plate. And nope, sorry, this is not the time to order a milkshake. You already had your treat.

Don't Beat Yourself Up When You Fall Off the Track
Stop it. Don't berate yourself when you slip up. First of all, you don't deserve it. Secondly, if you get upset, the chances of saying, "Ah, to heck with it!" and eating even more is, Ohhh, 99.9999 percent, I'd say. I was feeling blue the other day and made myself a generous bowl of Cookies 'n' Cream. After I licked the bowl clean, I went back to the kitchen for more. I took a few bites (yes, out of the carton) and stopped. And you know what, I was proud of myself. For me, being aware of what I was doing and how it was making me feel (bad!), was an accomplishment. Celebrate those small successes...they do make a difference!

Let me also add that I think it's important to know what kind of emotional eater you are. Unfortunately for me, I'm what you might call an every day mood muncher. If I'm feeling bored, sad, stressed-that's when I turn to food-during life's every day obstacles and emotions. (The Sunday Blues? Forget about it!) Although, I'm not a "big events" emotional eater. I made it through my father's death and my brother's two tours in Iraq without enlisting help from Ben and Jerry. And now that I know this about myself, I can be more aware of my emotions and how to better control my actions towards them.

So tell me, readers, did any of these tips resonate with you? What kind of emotional eater are you?

Bethenny Frankel helped one writer get her emotional eating in check.Ellen Collis is a freelance writer, reporter and blogger who chronicles her life in New York City on Fired N Fabulous. She has never met a cupcake she didn't like.

FaithandFitness

excellent tips . . .

One that has helped me too is to remove myself from the kitchen (sometimes even removing myself from the floor of the house where the kitchen is). This eliminates a lot of stress / boredom eating. At night if I am upstairs in my room or down in the basement with my kids I am generally too lazy to walk up or down a flight of stairs for a snack that I might otherwise seek out. I can't begin to estimate the calories I have saved by doing this! I play the wii with the kids or crochet in my bedroom and get my nervous energy out that way.

Robin1117

great article--thanks for posting!!

spatticus

All I could think about while reading this was .. All that wasted food! Lol. Taste everything but don't finish it? How does this teach you better eating habits for life?

CaityB14

All I could think about while reading this was .. All that wasted food! Lol. Taste everything but don't finish it? How does this teach you better eating habits for life?

I was thinking something similiar.... You are paying for each course, of course Bethenny Frankel can do that. But if you take one bite from everything, you'll be wasting food

Atlantique

All I could think about while reading this was .. All that wasted food! Lol. Taste everything but don't finish it? How does this teach you better eating habits for life?

I think the overall message wasn't that one should feel virtuous throwing food away, but rather that you may be more satisfied with several small servings of different tastes than one big serving of something bland and 'safe'; and that joining the 'clean plate club' isn't always a good idea.

You can accomplish the goal of having several small servings by planning meals better, or eating like you're in a tapas restaurant. There are ways to work more flavors and foods into your meal plan without throwing away lots of food.

DeeDeeLHF

All I could think about while reading this was .. All that wasted food! Lol. Taste everything but don't finish it? How does this teach you better eating habits for life?

I was thinking something similiar.... You are paying for each course, of course Bethenny Frankel can do that. But if you take one bite from everything, you'll be wasting food

I would not be likely to do this at a restaurant either. Blimey! Going out to eat is such a treat and a luxury but it is basically what I do every Sunday when my extended family gathers together and there is lots and lots of food. I take a bit of almost everything but not too much of any one thing except maybe the tossed salad or roasted meat.

D

janiedoe111

In Bethenny's book she talks a great deal about saving food and portioning things out. How in not eating a meal in its entirety you are saving money by dividing the cost of the meal among multiple sittings.

I am really enjoying the book and I am trying to let two concepts sink in right now. One, that any meal is likely not going to be the last time I eat ever and that even if it is I don't want to be sick-full and nauseated. I can have something tasty awesome amazing tomorrow I don't always have to eat it NOW.

And two, don't let me eyes control what I put in my mouth. I may want to eat a big plate of something but in reality I don't need that much food and I really like how different items taste so I would be better off sharing multiple little dishes than have three full courses of food all on my own.

bellinachuchina

I think the overall message wasn't that one should feel virtuous throwing food away, but rather that you may be more satisfied with several small servings of different tastes than one big serving of something bland and 'safe'; and that joining the 'clean plate club' isn't always a good idea.

You can accomplish the goal of having several small servings by planning meals better, or eating like you're in a tapas restaurant. There are ways to work more flavors and foods into your meal plan without throwing away lots of food.

Yes ^

Positively_Me

I love love love bethenny frankel
I read both book, natually thin and unleash ur skinny girl. I am on her third book , a place of yes.
She's a great writer a lot of what she writes about are about the struggles in life and how to overcome them... Not to back down from anything, whether diet, business, or family life.

kklindsey

All I could think about while reading this was .. All that wasted food! Lol. Taste everything but don't finish it? How does this teach you better eating habits for life?

Then you must be a "clean plater", lol. A lot of people are. My husband nearly died the first time I ordered a small Blizzard from DQ, ate 3 bites and tossed it in the trash. Thank goodness they make minis now. The point is, just because the meal comes with a hunk of meat, a pile of potatoes and a slab of bread doesn't mean you have to eat all of it. And you don't have to get the diet plate instead. Order the meal you want, eat a reasonable amoun that will allow you to maintain your weight(or lose) and move on, leaving it behind.

If you don't eat all of it is it going to cost any less $ ???

kristelpoole

Haha, I started doing that with desserts and half the time I'd rather not go through the hassle of making a mini sundae at home so I just skip it all together. If I'm willing to go through the hassle, I know I really, really want it.

Last night I made a salad, pasta with pesto cream sauce and Greek zucchini boats. I served each thing on small plates so it seemed more like tapas and lots of food. We ate just about half of what we put on the table and made sure that salad went first so we'd fill up on the good stuff first.

ladybug2020

Bump

bankofsara

I think she said leave it if you have to, but take home leftovers most of the time. The big point was to get 2 or 3 meals for the price of one.

aspen1377

I loved the book as well. I and I loved how nothing is off limits with her. Sure she tries to make healthy choices often, but she has dessert and all the other things she enjoys in moderation. Being a mother of four, I find my favorite tip is the eat nothing taste everything. I can order a side salad at a restaurant, and then take a nibble from each of my boys plates of something they ordered. I get to sample quite a few yummy dishes and it's more economical because I'm not even ordering a meal for myself. I haven't read her other books although I want to now!

Aspen

carey1932

I think she said leave it if you have to, but take home leftovers most of the time. The big point was to get 2 or 3 meals for the price of one.

That!

rlysrh

I like the "you can't have whatever you want whenever you want" part. I'm learning now that if I want to be thinner then I can't just give myself everything I want to eat just because I'm craving it, and I can't treat myself to large amounts of chocolate whenever i want. And a year ago if I'd thought about this it would just make me feel really sad, like I was missing out or not living life happily because I couldn't indulge every single day, but now I'm just accepting it. A long and slow realization I've had from joining MFP last January and failing to reach my goal 3 times and having to start all over again every time.