A few weeks ago, a reader sent me this question:
I do the exercise regularly, but I always find it difficult to eat stress. Where and how to start solving this problem?
There is a good chance that you can bind yourself. How to know? 1) You are human. (Unless you are a robot … in this case: hi, and please do not turn us into batteries like in The matrix 👋)
2) When we work with customers, they fulfill an admission questionnaire so that we can know more about them, their objectives, what are their biggest challenges.
Emotional and stressful food is THE The most common challenge our report on coming customers – more than time, motivation or even not knowing what to do.
If anything, eating when we feel stressed is the thing that most of us have in common!
Emotional food and stress diet are complex behaviors, and they appear for many people in different ways. Although I am not therapist or dietitian recorded, I can Share certain models and strategies that we have seen to help others as part of our coaching work at Nerd Fitness.
That said, if these behaviors are particularly intense or overwhelming, I want to recognize that working with an approved mental health professional (in particular a person trained in a disorderly diet) can be very precious. Therapy can change the situation here, and our coaches often work in tandem with therapists to ensure that our work supports what they are doing. ❤️
That said, let’s explore some practices within our coaching field that we have seen help. 🙌
One of the most powerful things you can do is just take a break and notice What happens when you find yourself eating by reflex.
Is it stress? Exhaustion? Boredom? Frustration? Hunger? Just because it is this hour of the day?
It is not a question of immediately stopping behavior – of becoming more aware.
I literally made people say that people said out loud how they feel in the moment: “I just had a stressful interaction with my colleague, and my instinct is to reach something crunchy.”
Once we are better able to understand our behavior, we can use some of the other strategies we will discuss to help.
Although sometimes this step alone is enough! I remember that my client Liz told me that this unique practice was so powerful that she helped her redirect her behavior in a way that made her good (even if it was not the intention!)
2. Auto-care proactive (alias your food menu)
Many emotional products come from unsatisfied needs – fatigue, loneliness, stress, uplestimulation.
This is why we recommend building a “food menu”: a list of small intentional activities that help you recharge. Read, stretching, journalization, walking outside. Everything that really helps You.
Choose one thing in this list every day to practice proactive personal care.
My client Mark often found himself looking for snacks at the end of the day while watching television, even if he had no technically hunger.
We realized that part of the trigger for him was a feeling He had no time for him throughout his hectic dayAnd so having this decompression time at the end of the night was important to him.
Whenever he tried to fight with “discipline”, it would turn around and he could not maintain it.
It was only when we took time for small pockets other recharge activities earlier during the day that the underlying need was satisfied, and that stress consumption at the end of the day was easier to change.
3. Use the language “always” and “sometimes”
A useful cropping that we often use: instead of labeling foods like “good” or “bad”, consider them as “always” or “sometimes” foods.
Foods “always” regularly support your goals and energy. These are things you want to include regularly in your meals and snacks.
Foods “sometimes” are always excellent options to taste, we simply choose to eat them with less frequency than our food “all the time”.
The key here is: no food is out of the table, permanently.
Often, I hear people say things like: “I’m going to finish this pint of ice cream in the freezer, and then it’s not an ice cream for me!”
Although I know that it is well intentioned, it ends up turning against almost all cases.
Although we want to be realistic about the types and quantities of food that support your goals, we also want to establish a healthy relationship with food that does not moralize it as “good” compared to “bad”.
And this cropping can help.
4. Introduce an interruption step
Then it is time to experiment with an interruption stage.
If you notice a strong desire to eat in stress, try to insert a short break. We usually recommend finding something else to do for five minutes.
It could make a short walk, listen to music, store your workspace, whatever.
Then you can wonder:
“Am I hungry physically, or does something else happen?”
Sometimes this break is enough to revive the urge, or at least bring a certain consciousness to what motivates it.
Then you can make a conscious choice instead of reacting on the automatic driver.
Then we learn and build from there.
–
If stress consumption is something with which you had trouble, you are not alone (and we have the data to prove it!)
And if you don’t know where to start, choose a step from the list above and see what it feels.
You have this.
-Mast
Ps we hire! We are looking for a marketing specialist to join our team And work in close collaboration with me!
If you have experience and driving to help us make a difference in the fitness industry, please consult the link and consider applying. ❤️
