Are You an Emotional Eater?

Emotional eating can really get the best of us. It puts us out of alignment with our well-being due to the physical and mental side effects. If you think you might be an emotional eater, answer these questions to find out and continue reading for tips on managing your habits.

• Do you eat when you’re stressed, angry or bored?
• Do you have a hard time controlling or stopping how much you eat of certain foods?
• Do you eat more of your favorite foods with less control when you’re alone?
• Do you feel less in control of your eating when you’re tired?
• Do you feel guilty when you eat certain foods like sweets or fatty foods?
• When you overeat, do you give up completely and start eating out of control?
• Do you often feel that food controls you instead of the other way around?
• Do you feel like the scale has power over you and your mood?

If you answered yes to more than half or all of these questions than you most likely are an emotional eater.
If you answered yes to half, then you may be dealing with some emotional eating.
If you answered yes to less than 4, you most likely are not an emotional eater.

6 Tips to implement mindful eating and tools to help you overcome emotional eating.

1. Ask yourself, “Do I need this food right now? Am I eating out of hunger?” and if not, ask, “Why am I eating? Am I feeling stressed, bored, lonely, excited or could some other emotion be driving this?”
2. Truly focus on the way your food tastes. Remove distractions (phone, T.V etc.) and close your eyes while you chew. This will enhance the flavors and textures.
3. Eat slowly and chew your food 30 to 50 times before swallowing.
4. Notice any feelings that come up around food. Do you feel anxious or guilty for eating it?
5. Begin to explore healthier versions of the things you like. Try foods with natural sugars in them versus processed sugar
6. Try doing something different besides eating next time you catch yourself. Go for a walk, play with your kids, call a friend, go workout, pick up a book

If you’re having trouble implementing these strategies, enlist the help of a Coach (Hi!). Investing in your health and well-being is always worth it.