What coping skills/ strategies do you use to keep motivated...in an emergency..or otherwise?

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Carol_
Carol_ Posts: 469 Member
in Motivation and Support
What coping skills/ strategies do you use to keep motivated...in an emergency..or otherwise?

Example: (:Coping skills...or lack of? ) When I get all wound up & stressed, what I call being "in a twit" lol...I have been known to binge eat several hundred calories. That is not a lot..I know..but it takes me over my 1200. Any suggestions as to what to do at that exact moment..I feel a strong urge to binge..over some stressful event?

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  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
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    Go for a walk or a run.
  • Cortneyrenee04
    Cortneyrenee04 Posts: 1,117 Member
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    I do some yoga, drink water, pet my dog, stay out of the kitchen!
  • DaneanP
    DaneanP Posts: 433 Member
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    This is going to sound silly but the first thing I'd do is close my eyes and take some deep breaths. At first I'd just concentrate on the breathing, but after I felt a little less tense, I'd start to imagine myself moving away from the food I want to binge on. I'd imagine myself reaching my goals. I'd remind myself that I knew there would be times that were really really hard, and this is one of them. But I can make a different choice than the one that makes me feel like impulsively eating. I'd remind myself that most impulses can be overcome in 5-10 minutes.

    Then I'd change the scene. I'd go into another room or leave the area where the craved food is. I'd find something to distract myself with (chore, book, paint my nails). I'd drink water or eat food that I had planned for that day to satisfy any hunger urges. I might call a friend for support.
  • Carol_
    Carol_ Posts: 469 Member
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    Thanks, everybody. Sometimes, I think I know what to do..but don't do it. :( The last 2 days were good.
  • TheRoseRoss
    TheRoseRoss Posts: 112 Member
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    My goal is to be "water park worthy" by the time summer arrives. I didn't go at all last year because I was too embarrassed to take off my shirt. My daughter loves the water park, so I missed an entire summer that i could have spent with her making memories there. When I'm tempted I ask myself "what means more to you, "donuts," or making memories with your daughter while she's still young enough to want to spend time with you?"

    More simply, "what means more to you? This thing that you want to eat, or the body that you want to have?"
  • SkinnyWannabeGal
    SkinnyWannabeGal Posts: 143 Member
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    I think talking to people helps me. Or even playing video games. Going for a run or a swim helps me to destress too. Or I take a hot shower or bath to relax. Sometimes I even go for retail therapy to avoid a binge. Shopping for things I like helps most times. Recently, I cleaned the house instead of eating junk food. But if I do binge, I try to burn off whatever calories I can by exercising and vow to do better the next day. Oh, also a call to my best friend always makes me feel better. :)
  • mistikal13
    mistikal13 Posts: 1,457 Member
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    I get up and go for a walk/visit with friends and family. Usually by the time I'm done playing with my nieces and nephews I'm more exhausted than hungry lol.
  • Larissa_NY
    Larissa_NY Posts: 495 Member
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    To start with, I consider an "emergency" to be the building catching on fire or a structure-damaging earthquake or someone pointing a gun in my face, which are all circumstances where the last thing I'm going to do is start eating. If it doesn't require immediate medical care or the actual presence of emergency responders, I just think of it as a stressful situation, which might get a strong emotional response from me but doesn't require me to act on that emotion.

    Step back, take a breath, and take a realistic look at the situation. Is it an honest to God emergency? Forget about food and get whatever help you need to stay safe, immediately. Are neither you nor your loved ones currently in actual danger of death or severe physical damage? It's not an emergency; stop thinking of it as something that requires you to react right this second. Recognize that you are human and have emotions but you don't have to do anything they tell you to do, and you don't have to shove them back down your throat with food even if they're not pleasant to feel.
  • 77natalie77
    77natalie77 Posts: 18 Member
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    I picture eating the food I'm about to binge on. The taste, texture, etc. I know that if I eat it quickly, I'm not going to enjoy these things, because im going to be upset that I ate something unplanned. I will also probably eat it quickly and out of shame. My stomach will feel tight afterward, and I'm going to be so tempted to restrict the next day, and it will make me bloated for a week, and for what? A couple hundred calories of a particular binge food? Either you need to get common binge foods put of the house, or you need to incorporate them more often into your diet. Both ways work. Also, when you're doing the self talk I mentioned above, it is most helpful to convince yourself not to binge while you're out of the house on a walk, so you have time to plan out exactly what you will do when you get home to avoid a binge- for example, getting some work done, writing a thank you note, showering, watching a movie, etc.
  • sneaky_teaky
    sneaky_teaky Posts: 30 Member
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    RossAH wrote: »
    My goal is to be "water park worthy" by the time summer arrives. I didn't go at all last year because I was too embarrassed to take off my shirt. My daughter loves the water park, so I missed an entire summer that i could have spent with her making memories there. When I'm tempted I ask myself "what means more to you, "donuts," or making memories with your daughter while she's still young enough to want to spend time with you?"

    More simply, "what means more to you? This thing that you want to eat, or the body that you want to have?"

    I love that post right there because it echoes my mantra, "What do I want more, this food now, or my health later?"

    When I'm feeling stressed I have various fall backs, and they don't always work 100%, but they help me. I will call my mom or a friend and vent. Sometimes I need a moment so I will put on music with lyrics that mirror my feelings and from there move to happier songs. A nice bath with netflix, or reading if I need to get away. If I'm feeling intense anger I find myself cleaning.

    Emergency situations do the opposite to me though, I tend to loose my appetite. If it is a personal emergency I have to do breathing exercises or else my breathing become real irregular, leading to dizziness. If the emergency is a professional one I tend to keep a cooler head (I work with children, they always find new ways to hurt themselves.)
  • SophiaSerrao
    SophiaSerrao Posts: 234 Member
    edited May 2015
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    Not to sound like a grinch or anything, but really, genuinely, truthfully: the days I'm less motivated and wanna let 'er rip and binge... instead of giving in I just do what I gotta do... but miserably. Lol. I mean, I just do it. Eat at the deficit, do my workouts, avoid trigger foods. I do it kind of half assed maaaaybe, but I get it done. The satisfaction at the end of the day for not throwing the towel is pretty nice. And usually enough to get my mojo back for the next day = )

    However, if I do a Yao Ming and just let er rip, I make sure to get back on track the next day. (Or the next next day, TOPS! Ha. Really, no more than 2 days for me.) My goals aren't going anywhere, I'm fine with slowing my process down a bit by seldom periods of some-what-over-enthused splurges here and there, but I do remain in control so they don't become too much of a habbit.

    Good luck!
  • downongreenacres
    downongreenacres Posts: 327 Member
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    Sometimes when I want to binge I get on MFP and read others' postings. Usually by the time I do that, I have gotten past the urge, if not I eat something healthy. Even if it puts me over a little bit I still feel good about making a good choice instead of one based on negative emotions.
  • Carol_
    Carol_ Posts: 469 Member
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    I do that to. (Read members' posts and blogs). It helps a lot. Sometimes I read the articles on 'Spark'. They are really good too.

  • esunabelleza
    esunabelleza Posts: 4 Member
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    I am here to be learn from others as I have not been good at this in the past. You all have really great ideas.
  • Carol_
    Carol_ Posts: 469 Member
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    Sometimes, I can pick up my camera and go for a walk in the woods. Everything looks better through my camera lens. lol

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