Revelation. . . Stress Eating!!!

fabandfunat51
fabandfunat51 Posts: 117 Member
in Motivation and Support
Boy did I get a revelation this morning! I am at work (working HARD!) '-) and my boss just stressed me out to the fullest. I found myself heading right to our fridge at the office to get food!!!!

I know I know, Crazy huh (lol) but this time, I had a single serving of Hummus and a cup of carrot sticks - delicious! In the past it would have been carbs for sure - pretzels, candy, stuff like that.

But I have to say it really bugged me that I had that auto-pilot reaction to the stress.

How about you? How do you handle stress and eating?

Replies

  • Valera0466
    Valera0466 Posts: 319 Member
    The first step is recognizing the problem. You are on your way now that you know what to watch for. Train yourself to react in a different way. Maybe take a walk or climb the stairs if you have them there.
  • lynn6575
    lynn6575 Posts: 7
    Wtg on good stress eating, I have had a bad day today with eating, made a little pot of pea soup and i have a weakness for soup, so i had three bowls, so need to exercie more today.
  • pittskaa
    pittskaa Posts: 319 Member
    i have the same problem! and i stress alot!
  • Goal_Line
    Goal_Line Posts: 474 Member
    How do you handle stress and eating?

    Avoid triggers, and have plenty of healthy options available (have a much of carrots in the office fridge); I love the take a walk option!
  • debussyschild
    debussyschild Posts: 804 Member
    The first step is recognizing the problem. You are on your way now that you know what to watch for. Train yourself to react in a different way. Maybe take a walk or climb the stairs if you have them there.

    ^^^ True story there. I've always had problems with eating because I was bored. Making a conscious switch to doing something else instead of eating food is difficult at first. To keep it up, I also avoid rewarding myself with food as much as possible. I try to reward my good eating or exercise habits with things like a new shirt or running shoes or a trip to the salon. Puts me in a MUCH better mind set.
  • sjmgde
    sjmgde Posts: 381 Member
    HUGE STRESS Eater and I HATE it. But i am not to the point hwere i eat the healthy stuff. I eat the fat stuff. Today I ate a KING size kit kat :( I need to get a grip and feel i am at the point where i do not know how to stop. I am ballooning up because i do have a lot of stress in my life. So I need to find a diferent outlet than food. END RANT :)
  • rocket_ace
    rocket_ace Posts: 380 Member
    yeah - totally happens. I just have some beer and that fills me up.

    ha!!

    ...really though....nothing to do but savor the hurt..maybe drink water. maybe double down and go for a walk. I've tried eating something else, like a protein shake or greek yogurt, and sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn't. aint' life funny that way?
  • kbailey8820
    kbailey8820 Posts: 23 Member
    I'm also a stress eater. I've started keeping healthier snacks handy. I don't even buy the high-calorie snacks period. I've also found that when I get stressed I do a lighter and shorter workout then relax in the sauna. It helps me sooo much!
  • lizzieollie
    lizzieollie Posts: 11
    I have the same problem and worse I also eat out of boredom. I am trying to work on it but it is still a struggle for me. I am trying to do cleaning around the house at night, so I don't eat all night.
  • DontStopB_Leakin
    DontStopB_Leakin Posts: 3,863 Member
    How do you handle stress and eating?

    Avoid triggers, and have plenty of healthy options available (have a much of carrots in the office fridge); I love the take a walk option!

    Some people have no problem avoiding stress triggers. I, however, am triggered by stupid people, and no matter how hard I try, I just can't seem to avoid them. That being said, the veggie/fruit option is great. So is the take a walk one.

    To the OP, everyone reacts differently to stress. Most of us on MFP eat when stressed (which is probably how alot of us ended up here) but other people default to things such as alcohol, which is a FAR worse way to deal with stress. Stess happens, and it seems to happen alot. I try to not deal with it by eating, but sometimes I give in. What I've done though, is logged what it is I give into when I stress eat. Generally, for me, it's sweets and crappy carbs. So now I make sure I have loads of fresh, antioxidant rich fruit (they satisfy the sweet tooth) on hand, so if stress arrives and I find myself in the kitchen, I just grab a bowl of fruit, eat my frustrations, and not regret it one bit when I'm done.
  • DontStopB_Leakin
    DontStopB_Leakin Posts: 3,863 Member
    I'm also a stress eater. I've started keeping healthier snacks handy. I don't even buy the high-calorie snacks period. I've also found that when I get stressed I do a lighter and shorter workout then relax in the sauna. It helps me sooo much!

    ^^Love this. A light workout session and a nice lavender bath totally make everything go away.
  • amandaxh
    amandaxh Posts: 38 Member
    We often condition ourselves to certain things without even realizing it. It happens unconsciously. If it is unhealthy, our job is to become conscious of it! You did that, and that is great. In general you are conditioned that when stress enters (stimulus), you eat (response). You want to create a NEW conditioned stimulus, such as when stress enters, you, _______ instead. This happens in all parts of life without us really recognizing it many times, but it is really helpful to step back and try to rationalize what is going on.

    Of course the battle is when you first try to change whatever it is you normally do proceeding a stressful event/feeling. The first few times it will be difficult -- you're changing a habit that is so engrained in your mind that you only notice it a small portion of the time you do it. But if you keep at it, it will soon become a new healthy habit that you barely recognize when it happens, just like the old habit.

    The key is perseverance. It is great that you chose a healthy snack, I love hummus!

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