Emotional eaters?!

It took me awhile to get over my emotional eating and I still struggle with it at times. I mainly just tried to redefine my relationship with food and teach myself that reaching for the bag of chips or ice cream wouldn't make me feel any better, it would actually make me feel worse. I also replaced it with exercise and now if I am feeling stressed or upset I just go for a run and feel so much better!

It's actually really strange, I've been dealing with some emotional stuff lately and before MFP I would have drowned my sorrows in junk without a second thought, but now I really do not even want to, which is great but, it's a weird feeling. I always used to deal with things by eating and know I am faced with not knowing how to deal with things. It takes time, but you'll get there!

I have a terrible time with emotional eating. But I try to take a deep breath and be intentional about what I'm doing before I grab the candy, cookies, chips or whatever I'm craving. I ask myself if I really want to add those calories today when I've worked so hard at getting fit. I also tell myself to focus on something else---like exercising or doing a chore and just try to delay the gratification for ten minutes or thirty minutes. It seems to help. I'm not saying I'm always successful, but it does help to tell myself no because each time it gets easier. And the more intentional or thoughtful I am about eating something, the more likely I am to choose something healthy. I also try not to eat "fun" foods when doing anything else (e.g. watching t.v., surfing the web), because the mindlessness of it makes me eat more. When I think about what I'm doing when I eat a comfort food and stay in the moment doing it, I'm less likely to over-indulge and more likely to enjoy the treat rather than feel guilty. I also find looking at the nutritional information before I eat something helps a lot because then I have to think about all the fat, calories, etc. I'll be consuming. And sometimes I even go through what the pay off for those calories is. For example, I could have a 140 calorie greek yogurt that gives me protein and calcium or a 140 calorie cookie that gives me no nutritional value at all. Again, it helps me be more intentional about what I'm doing. Hopefully this advice helps! Good luck!

This ^^^

I know it can be tough to remember all of that - but I know whenever I am busy (chores, work, classes) i don't binge. And I try to NEVER eat while doing other things (tv watching, internet surfing, even Kindle reading) - because it takes my focus off the fact that iv'e just eaten a sandwich - so i go fix another, and then another…

I would eat badly when stressed or storing up too much anger; I just wasn't in the mood to make something that is healthy when the quick and tasty is available and they take debit cards. Now that I've been working out steadily and able to put some of that energy to the weights or run it helps. One thing I grab to fight off the "hey, let's eat a sandwich for a snack" is those dum-dum suckers. It lasts a while, only 20 cal, and I can gnaw on the paper stick when done (that's what I did when I quit smoking, dum-dums, toothpicks, and coffee stir sitcks). Now that I'm seeing some results I can stop and say "do I want to undo all the exercise and salads?" It helps me to refocus.

One thing that my boyfriend shared with me was try snacking on peanuts (you *can* use mixed nuts, but straight peanuts have more protein); as you snack on the peanuts, your body gets the protein it needs and then signals you that it has enough, hence the 'full' feeling. Whereas tasty junk food breaks down into nothing but sugar and disappears, so you eat so many calories that essentially just spike your blood sugar and then disappear from your stomach, leaving you still hungry. I've found that it helps me

I used to have a HUGE emotional eating problem; I grew up with an abusive Dad and was bullied at school for being fat, so my coping mechanism was to turn to food. I would eat when I got depressed, I would eat with I got angry, I would eat when I was bored (especially when I was bored...). That's how I got to 374 pounds at age 24. I know it's hard, but the point I want to share with you is that do NOT expect yourself to be perfect at stopping the emotional eating straight off the bat. Try your hardest, and if you mess up, DON'T beat yourself up needlessly; simply use that as motivation to work harder. Start over the next day and don't hold yesterday over your head. Another tip I can give you is to not entirely cut out those more junky foods you love; indulge every once in a while, but only a small portion (do NOT just eat straight out of the package!!!) This will help keep down your cravings if you have a little bit but don't over-indulge. My personal thing is chocolate, I LOVE it! So what I try and do is if I feel a chocolate craving coming on, I keep the fun size bars around so I'll have one, maybe two of the fun size bars and that satisfies my craving, BUT I didn't go on a crazy chocolate eating binge.

So to sum things up...
Try snacking on peanuts or mixed nuts that give you protein.
Do NOT expect yourself to be perfect!
Do NOT let yesterday keep you from trying your best today!
Indulge in your favorite snacks in SMALL portions every once in a while as a treat.
Do NOT snack straight out of the bag; take out your small portion and put the package away!
Above all, remember that some days you will be better than others, and that's OK! As long as you tried your best, you are doing awesome! Some days your 'best' will be great, some days it will be just Ok, but the point is that you tried your best.

Stay strong and keep on truckin'!

Amanda

Herbal tea was a godsend for me in university. I suggest a good strong tea, Celestial Seasonings has a Bengal Spice tea as well as Cinnamon Apple. I describe both of those teas as "beefy" Also you can put a little milk in them for creaminess if you like.

I also found this recipe yesterday, planning on making them tomorrow!
http://www.keyingredient.com/recipes/14606034/jillian-michaels-low-calorie-brownies/

I am totally an emotional eater - doesn't really matter the emotion, it's a good reason for a snack. I have started to plan out how long I would have to work out to make up for that snack and if it's worth it. If I choose the snack, I do the workout. Works most days

I get like this from time to time (when I'm not in control) and I combat it with having only healthy things around. Things that fill me up but come out quickly... fruits and nuts. It's better at least. Then four cookies and a whatever the hell else I would grab before. More cookies! haha

YEP! I do this... as a matter of fact I did it yesterday! The good news is, I threw away all the junk food in my house so there's only good stuff to "snack on". So, yesterday when I was looking for something i ate fruit instead of cookies. I'm just too lazy to make a special trip to the store for food, thankfully.

I've been trying lately just to drink water or tea when I have the urge instead of eating. I also keep the sugar free extra gum on hand (the kind that comes in yummy flavors) so I have something to chew on until it passes.

Good luck!

OMG this was sooooo what I did. Tuck the kids into bed, pass the fridge, grab a handful of something bad and walk into the other room to sit down. Yeap.

One day I finally caught myself and it was if I had woken up. I put the junk down and grabbed water. It was VERY strange how one day I realized what I had been doing. I broke that habit a while ago, but sometimes I catch myself trying to grab "a little something." I just try to be more aware, and put it back.

What a tough habit to break. Recognizing it is the first step. lol