Stess eaters - advice please!

loyemarie

I think I've tried about 2 dozen "diets" in my time. I'm a "rule follower", so, following a plan isn't hard for me, but any kind of stress just sends me to the pantry! So, it starts a vicious circle of doing well, then stress eating, then "forget it", then trying again. I guess we only fail when we quit trying :-)

Any suggestions, oh wise ones?

jodi1215

When I get stressed and want to eat, the majority of the time I want something crunchy and salty....sooo I ususally try to get some fat free sour cream and mix the hidden vally ranch dip mix in it and dip veggies in it. It keeps your mouth moving, with very little calories. One of my other faves is pickled cauliflower very low in calories and crunch salty all at once. I continue to have the stress eating habit, but changing what you reach for when you want to eat is the key! Hope this helps and good luck!

ruqayyahsmum

find something else to do to occupy you when your stressed

go for a run or a walk, take up knitting, paint your nails and pamper yourself, anything to take your mind off things

i have so called treat food in the house due to other members of the family but the rules are they are kept where i cannot get to them

v2embee

Rule #1:
Don't go to pantry if stressed.

If you're as good of a "rule follower" as you say you are, that should pretty much fix your problems. :9

Haha, but in all honesty, I find that during times of stress to either:
(1) Quickly throw yourself into something that takes a lot of mental space (eg. work)
(2) Exercise and go at a high enough intensity that all you can focus on is the pain.. I mean burn.
(3) Steam a vege (waiting time allows you to calm down, re-evaluate if you really need to eat x steamed item)
(4) Chomp on something frozen; this will hopefully force you to eat it slowly enough to calm down, in order to avoid a "brain freeze" or tooth pain? I like frozen bananas.

I've heard meditating (or deep-breathing) also does wonders. Just focus on breathing in and out for about 2 minutes.

cmeade20

I have tea when I'm stressed instead of comfort food now.

loyemarie

Thanks, everybody for the seasoned advice!
My husband likes "crunchy, salty" , too (and has been searching for the ultimate potato chip substitute!), but I am a sweet tooth all the way!
Maybe I'll say only fruit is allowed at those times. Can't do too much damage with that!

I find it hard to not "wallow in" the stress. I just need to push through the "woe is me",and get outside!

Here's a weird one, but may be one of my best ways to fight stress. Last night, I couldn't sleep. :yawn: I was worrying about a situation in the family, then I got up and started working in this math book I got at the thrift store to get me back up to speed. Before I knew it, I was both tired and got the situation out of my head! :laugh: