I have been an emotional eater for 6 years...*correction - I WAS an emotional eater for 6 years. At one point in time, I thought I would never stop overeating and conquer my food addiction. Most days I was happy if I could just have one day without eating everything in the fridge at night. But I found a few practical tips - and of course, some spiritual ones - to finally stop binge eating without relying on willpower or some magic pill.
Before this I tried every diet, pill, trick, and promise I heard to stop the sugar cravings. Each time I would feel so defeated when it did not work and would turn to food because I saw no hope. After a couple weeks I would try again with the same result. Sound familiar?
After 6 years of this I FINALLY found what works for me and today I am officially two weeks of no binging without doing anything crazy. Better yet, I have not had to urge to overeat at night or eat my favorite binge foods.
Watch this video to hear my best practical tips and subscribe below for more details on our newest course which teaches both the spiritual and the practical tips to help you overcome food addiction.
1. Make Sure You Are Eating Enough Throughout The Day
Restricting yourself during the day - intentionally or unintentionally - will make you more hungry leading to a binge. Aim to eat at least 3 meals a day and focus on high volume foods, such a vegetables, to keep you full.
2. Drink Enough Water
Our bodies confuse thirst and hunger signals all the time. Make sure you are getting at least half your body weight in ounces of water a day or 9-11 glasses. This will also help keep you full and let's be honest - we all need to up our hydration game.
3. Get Rid Of Your Triggers
If you don't have your favorite binge food in the house, you can't eat them! Start a donation or trash bag for food that you tend to turn to when you are emotional. At the very least, make them harder to access. Put them in a higher cabinet, hide it behind healthy options, ect.
4. Reach Out For Support
It takes a village right? Especially when it comes to overcoming an addiction. Reach out for support from the people you live with, friends, and family. This is probably the hardest step but one of the most beneficial. (My inbox is always open if you need someone healthbytara@gmail.com
5. Create Coping Skills
In my experience, if I can distract myself for 15 minutes the urge to eat goes away. Here are some of my favorite things to do when I want to emotionally eat.
Get creative and find what you love. Maybe you have a hobby you miss from childhood or a video game you haven't won yet?
Reminder - these coping skills are not a long term fix. You have to heal from within to truly overcome emotional eating for good, but these coping skills can help in the moment.
6. Be Mindful When You Eat
Before you sit down to eat, quiet the TV, put the phone down, make your plate pretty, and enjoy eating. We eat with our stomachs and our eyes. If your plate looks full, you are more likely to feel full, but if you are snacking all day you will not even realize how much you have already consumed. Make eating a ritual, not just a necessity.
Reminder - you HAVE to heal emotionally and spiritually as well. While all these tips can help you in the moment, true healing occurs when you discover what lies below the triggers.
For more details on how I healed myself and my newest online course to help you do the same, leave your email below <3
xoxo,
Tara Simone
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