Tag: binging

How To Handle A Food Craving And Avoid Binging!

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Food cravings can lead to binging and sabotage your weight loss efforts!  If you haven’t already, read part 1 — Cravings vs. Hunger: How to Tell the Difference  The last thing I want is for you to ignore true hunger signals. 

Food cravings are normal!

We all experience food cravings from time to time.  Don’t worry!  It’s normal.  You just need to follow some simple steps that will help you handle the craving and avoid the binging.

First off, there is a difference between craving food and experiencing real hunger.  Part 1 gives you detailed steps on how to tell the difference.

Have you ever heard that if your body is craving a certain type of food, then “it probably needs it?”  This is not always true.  If your body is craving a big salad with lots of raw vegetables, that concept is totally reasonable.  However, I don’t think there is anyone on the planet that has to eat Chocolate Chip Cookies to survive!

Simple Tips to Stop Food Cravings from Controlling You!

1)  Give in!  Yes, you read that correctly.  Years ago I was taking classes from a well known nutritionist in southern California.  Because of her location, many of her clients had eating disorders.  She told me a story about a young model who would eat an entire bag of baby carrots in one sitting to keep herself from eating a chocolate chip cookie.  She told the nutritionist she was trying to avoid the “bad” food.

Fortunately, she got some health benefits from  eating the carrots.  But, she consumed more calories with the carrots than if she ate one small cookie.

The point of the story is that when you attempt to eliminate a food from your diet entirely, it can trigger binging. You’ll may redirect the binge to another food. Or once you allow yourself to eat the “forbidden” food, you are at risk of over doing it.  Better to have a small amount of the food you are craving than to try avoiding it entirely.  For example, if you crave ice cream, find a low calorie flavor you like and measure out a serving.  You may even find a half serving will do the trick.

Don’t let food control you!  If it’s only certain foods, try keeping them out of the house for awhile until you can practice moderation.

2)  Go to bed!  When you are in need of rest your body will crave sugar for a pick me up.  Go to bed early that night.  Your body will thank you for it.

3)  Drink some water!  Dehydrated bodies can send a hunger signal.  If you have eaten a full balanced meal within the last few hours, then try a glass of water before you eat more.  If you are still hungry, have a small snack.

4)  Redirect!  Find yourself digging through the cupboards for no reason?  You could be bored.  When you find your self mindlessly foraging for food redirect that behavior.  Try walking, doing a household chore, meditating, catching up on phone calls or email, or reading.  Make a list of replacement activities and keep it posted.  Use the list when the craving begins.

5)  Avoid using food for comfort! We’ve all heard of “comfort food.”  There’s no such thing as comfort food.  Food does not offer comfort.  We can associate a positive time in our life with certain foods, which is why you may feel warm and fuzzy when you eat them.

With that being said, elevating your serotonin levels does help fight depression.  But, turning to the sweets to elevate your serotonin levels is not the best choice.  You may feel great for a moment after eating a large piece of cake.  However, when your blood sugar drops, you can go right back into the dumps and may experience guilt for sabotaging your weight loss goals.

Choose a balanced meal with complex carbohydrates to elevate the serotonin in your body.  If dessert is really your thing, have a small serving that will fit into your daily calorie expenditure.

Just remember we all have food cravings from time to time.  It’s how we deal with them that will make or break our weight loss and management goals!

I hope this has been helpful.  Please let me know if you have any questions or tips you’d like to share to control food cravings.  I love to hear from you!

Blessings!

Jennifer

 

A Healthy Body Image Is Key to Permanent Weight Loss

 

Are you searching for some encouraging words on body image? I found a great quote by Oprah Winfrey.  It is such a powerful statement that I want to share it with you and discuss the importance of a healthy self image.

“Say bye-bye to feeling bad about your looks!”

 

“Say bye-bye to feeling bad about your looks.  Are you ready to stop colluding with a culture that makes so many of us feel physically inadequate? Say goodbye to your inner critic, and take this pledge to be kinder to yourself and others.

This is a call to arms. A call to be gentle, to be forgiving, to be generous with yourself. The next time you look into the mirror, try to let go of the story line that says you’re too fat or too sallow, too ashy or too old, your eyes are too small or your nose too big; just look into the mirror and see your face. When the criticism drops away, what you will see then is just you, without judgment, and that is the first step toward transforming your experience of the world.”

I agree wholeheartedly with Oprah that we have actually allowed the media to make us feel inadequate. We have succumbed to unhealthy diets — and sometimes painful exercise just to “fit in”.

I believe that you were uniquely designed. Some of us are thinner than others. I also believe it is perfectly normal to exercise and eat right so you look great in a bathing suit — or getting those “guns” to look good in a t-shirt. However, not everyone has the time or the desire to look like a model on the cover of a fitness magazine.

Interestingly enough, an unhealthy body image does not discriminate. This type of self-loathing can occur for any body size. When I was a size two, I was never satisfied with my looks. Now, I’m a size 6-8 with lots of curves and I love the way I look. Am I motivated by vanity? Sure I am.  However, I am no longer a slave to it. I exercise, eat healthy, and focus on living a balanced life.

A poor self-image sabotages your weight loss.

 

An unhealthy body image leads to yo-yo dieting, over training, and unhealthy eating patterns. These patterns can actually cause weight gain. Yo-yo dieting and over training can actually cause your metabolism to slow down. Being unhappy with your body can cause binge eating which will destroy your hard work. At this point, guilt can set in which may lead to depression and often times more binging.

What do you say to yourself when you look in the mirror? Years ago a fellow fitness coach used the phrase “watch your words, your body’s listening!” That forever stuck with me. When you speak negatively about yourself, your subconscious accepts the information as truth.

And, since the brain “fights to be right,” your subconscious will automatically want to carry out what you said about yourself. If you say “I have a big gut,” then your brain will agree. You will do what it takes to maintain that “big gut.” This is not just ooky-spooky hocus pocus. This has been proven by neurologists!

You can develop and maintain a healthy body image — here’s how:

 

1)  Discover what you want! Take time to write what you want your health and body to look like — not how the media says you should look. Research what it would take to accomplish these goals. Then decide if your goals are realistic and mirror the life you desire. Not everyone wants to be at the gym five days a week. 

Once you have a reasonable set of health and fitness goals, ignore the outside chatter. There will always be some new diet or pill, a well-meaning friend, and Lord knows the magazines waiting to tell you that your plan is not ambitious enough. Or, that their way is better. My favorite is the person posing and asking “don’t you want to look like me?”

Now, I’m not saying to be closed-minded on a better way of doing things. I’m saying you should always question if a health or fitness idea fits into your life and values.

2)  Speak Success! Tell your body what you want, not what you don’t want. When you look in the mirror, use phrases like “I am losing weight,” or “I have a flat stomach.”  In the beginning this can be tough. You tend to think “you are lying.” However, you are not. In my favorite success book, The Bible, it says “speak as if it is already.” This is called faith my friend! You are believing you can accomplish your goals!

Negative thoughts will enter your mind. That’s normal. You’re human! Just don’t let them leave your lips. Replace each negative thought with a positive statement. If that’s tough in the beginning, use one of my favorite personal quotes. If you don’t have anything nice to say about yourself, don’t say anything at all. You wouldn’t say something that mean to a friend, so why say it to yourself?

Leave notes around the house as reminders to speak positively about yourself. This will help you build the mental muscles you will need to make success talk a habit.

3)  Birds of a feather flock together! Pay attention to how your friends talk about their own bodies. Do they have a healthy self-image, or do they tend to put themselves or others down? Now I’m not suggesting you dump all your friends. Sometimes we need to examine if a relationship is healthy for us or not. If you notice friends putting themselves down, take the opportunity to respond with positive attributes you can point out about them. This practice will help you do the same for yourself. And, you will discover people just can’t seem to get enough of you!

A healthy self-image is critical to losing weight and maintaining it without having to be a slave to dieting. This is powerful my friend. Take it seriously!

Have a question or a tip on  overcoming body image issues?  Please comment below. I want to hear from you!

Blessings to you and yours!

Jennifer