Things You'll Need:
- Food diary
- Understanding
- Self-control
- Diversion tactics
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Step 1
Determine why you are eating. First, you must understand why you eat when you're not hungry and why you're making poor choices when you are legitimately hungry. The next time you eat, think to yourself: Am I really hungry? Put down the fork for a moment and tune into your belly. If you are truly hungry, eat, but don't overdo it. If you're not really hungry, what ARE you feeling? What need are you trying to fill? What emotion can you place on it? Are you bored? Sad? Lonely? Stressed? Angry? Tired?
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Step 2
Try to keep a food diary. Every time you eat, write down the time, what you were doing before you ate, and the emotion you felt that prompted you to eat. At the end of the week, look back to see if there is a common theme. For instance, perhaps you ate every time you felt angry. The next step is to think of other healthy coping mechanisms and implement those each and every single time you feel angry. Do this enough and it will become habit.
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Step 3
Tell yourself that food with not fill the emotional hole. If you feel sad or lonely when you eat junk foods you may be trying to fill the sadness or loneliness with food but it won't work. It fills you up physically but not emotionally. In fact, over time, it can just make you feel worse (i.e. lazy, overweight, unhealthy, out of control).
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Step 4
Determine if you feel stressed and eat as a response. People are often stress eaters and don't even realize it. The act of chewing something or tasting something good distracts them from the real issue-- whether it's reality or starting a task that they dread. Eating when stressed can be considered a form of avoidance. If you realize you eat when stressed, stop, put down the food, and think about what you are anxious about. Could it be that you do not want to acknowledge something is true, such as a painful event that is plaguing you but which you haven't dealt with? If so, pick up the phone and call a friend (or family member). Discuss the issue openly. Allow the person to listen. If might be difficult to do but you will feel better once you do.
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Step 5
Procrastinating can be the culprit. If you are dreading a task or a big project and immediately think of food as an answer or diversion, take a quick walk to clear your head, burn off some energy and, in the process, eliminate some stress, and renew your energy. Tell yourself you will complete step one of the task or work on it for just 10 minutes. Chances are, you will want to continue after 10 minutes. Many times, just beginning is the hardest part of all.
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Step 6
Do something different, yet healthy, to distract yourself. If you feel angry, try walking or kick boxing. If tired, rest. If you cannot rest at the time, have something healthy to drink, such as some tea or water. Keeping hydrated can help keep you alert. Whatever your emotion, create a new and healthy habit to replace eating. Once you identify your emotional eating trigger from your food diary, you can think of creative things to replace the food.
