How to Stop Overeating

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By StacyP
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Regularly overeating is unhealthy and often signals a deeper problem. The good news is that an overeating problem can be overcome. It’s all up to you! Here are some suggestions on how to stop overeating.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Step 1

Keep trigger foods out of reach.

Resist the urge to buy food that you are likely to binge on. Eat a well-balanced meal before heading out to the grocery store. Going grocery shopping on an empty stomach will increase your urge to buy binge foods. Stock up on easy-to-prepare, healthy foods. Also, keep healthy snacks in your car so you’ll have something to munch on as you pass by binge triggering fast food joints.
Step 2

Make friends with healthy people.

Research shows that the people we hang out with influence our eating habits, for better or for worse. See if you can talk your friends and family into changing their unhealthy eating habits along with you. If that’s not a possibility, you may need to minimize the time you spend with them until you can get your overeating under control. At the very least, bring along healthy snacks on outings with them to help keep you away from binge triggering foods.
Step 3

Keep a visual motivator close at hand.

Having an old photo of yourself at a healthier weight can serve as motivation for kicking your unhealthy eating habits. If overeating habits have kept you overweight all of your adult life, you can use a picture of a model or celebrity that has a reasonable body weight for weight loss motivation. Keep this photo in your purse or on your fridge (or both). It will make you think twice before reaching for binge foods. Alternatively, you can hang a pair of 'skinny jeans' or other article of clothing to serve as motivation.
Step 4

Get out of the house.

Take a walk when the urge to binge strikes. And keep your cash at home so you can’t stop off at an area store or restaurant for binge foods. The fresh air and exercise will usually reduce your urge to overeat.
Step 5

Don’t go hungry!

A growling stomach needs to be fed, even when you are on a diet. It’s what you fill your stomach with that matters. Eating regular meals and snacks that are nutritious will help you avoid the extreme hunger that can trigger a binge.
Step 6

Find the root of your binge eating problem.

Sometimes we overeat because the food just tastes so darn good. And sometimes overeating is a sign of some other problem, like job stress, loneliness, boredom, a painful divorce, or loss of a loved one. Treating the underlying cause of your overeating will provide for a lasting solution to your problem. If self-help treatments, like meditation, exercise, and confiding in close friends don’t provide relief, then seeking professional help may be the answer.

Comments

jasminemars said

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on 3/4/2009 Overeating is a curse, an indicator of something else wrong. Eliminating all the causes you can for overeating (such as going hungry, traveling by fast food restaurants, etc) goes a long way toward helping the problem. The emotional reasons for overeating are the hardest to overcome. Excellent article, I really enjoy your writing. 5*

MidniteWriter said

on 2/8/2009 I loved the headings to your six steps on not overeating. It never ceases to amaze me how much food is pushed on me, despite my weight struggles! Thanks for the inspiration and tips! 5*