What’s there to do about it?

By now, you should, through reading the earlier blog posts, know that we are all at some point emotional eaters.  What’s there to do about it?  Here are a few things that may help.

1)  Clean out the junk!

As always, it’s a good idea to do a little “spring cleaning”.  At some point we all accumulate impulse purchases of unhealthy food.  Take a look around the kitchen and get rid of any sort of temptations.

2)   Keep a food journal

It can be very helpful to keep both an emotional and food journal.  Take a few days out of the week and one weekend day to keep tabs on your food intake and how it relates to emotions.  If you have a short memory, like myself, it is helpful to right down your food when you are eating.  Think about how you are feeling when or right before eating.  Are you happy, stressed, tired or content?  It may be also be helpful to go back at the end of the day and recap your food intake and your emotions.

3)   Graph

Ok, you don’t actually have to make a graph, but it’s a good idea to review your food journal to see if you find common connections between food and emotions. One of my readers commented that they like greasy/oily foods when stressed.  I on the other hand go for the sweets - rocky road ice cream! 

4)   Substitute

Now that you know you are a salt addict or sugar addict during emotional times you can begin to find substitutes for those unhealthy cravings.  For example, when I’ve had a bad day and am craving something sweet and naughty like ice cream, I treat myself to orange juice.  I know it doesn’t sound as fun, but I get the the sweet, sugar that I would and to me juice is an indulgent treat! 

Next week I’ll give you some foods to consume to try to alleviate some of the stress in your life.  Until then, happy eating!