Tip to deal with emotional and stress eating 🍎

A few weeks ago, a reader sent me this question:

I exercise regularly, but I still struggle with stress. Where and how do I start dealing with this?

It is probably that you can connect. How do I find out? 1) You are a man. (Unless you are a robot … In this case: Hi, and please don’t turn us into batteries like in Matrix 👋)

2) When we work with clients, they fill in a reception questionnaire so that we can learn more about them, their goals, what are their biggest challenges.

Emotional and stress eating is thehe The most common challenge that our customers report – more than time, motivation, or do not even know what to do.

If nothing else, eating, when we feel stressed, is something that most of us have in common!

Emotional nutrition and nutrition of stress are complex behavior and they are shown to many people in different ways. Until I am a therapist or registered nutritionist, I can Share some models and strategies we have seen help others as part of our Nerd Fitness coaching work.

This said that if these behaviors feel particularly intense or overwhelming, I would like to admit that working with a licensed mental health specialist (especially someone trained in disorderly eating) can be really valuable. Therapy can be a change of game here and our coaches often work in tandem with therapists to make sure that our work is in support of what they do. Не

With all the above, let’s study some practices within our coaching range that we saw help. 🙌

One of the most powerful things you can do is just pause and Notice What happens when you find yourself reflexively.

Is it stress? Exhaustion? Boredom? Powerlessness? Hunger? Just because this is that time of day?

This is not about stopping behavior right away – it just becomes more and more aware.

I literally had people to say it aloud at the moment: « I just had a stressful interaction with my colleague and my instinct is to reach for something crunchy. »

Once we are better to understand our behavior, we can use some of the other strategies that we will discuss to help.

Although sometimes this step alone is enough! I remember my client Liz told me that this only practice was so powerful, it helped her to redirect her behavior in a way that felt good with her (though it wasn’t the intention!)

2. Proactive care for yourself (also known as your nourishment menu)

Very emotional nutrition stems from dissatisfied needs – fatigue, loneliness, stress, overstimulation.

Therefore, we recommend building a « nourishment menu »: a list of small, deliberate activities that help you recharge. Reading, stretching, journals, walking outside. Whatever helps real youS

Choose one thing from this list every day to practice proactive care for yourself.

My client Mark often found himself for snacks at the end of the day while watching TV, though he did not feel hungry technically.

We realized that part of the trigger for him was a feeling like He has not received time for himself on his hectic dayAnd so that this time for decompression at the end of the night was important to him.

Every time he tried to just fight « discipline », it would cause fire and he could not support it.

Only when we took the time for small pockets from other recharge activities early in the day when the basic need was satisfied, and eating stress at the end of the day was easier to change.

3. Use the « always » and « sometimes » language

A useful refract we often use: instead of labeling foods like « good » or « bad », think of them as « always » or « sometimes » foods.

« Always » foods maintain your goals and energy consistently. These are things you want to include regularly in your dishes and snacks.

« Sometimes » foods are still great opportunities for pleasure, we just choose to eat them at a smaller frequency than our food « all the time ».

The key here is: no foods are out of the table, constantly.

Many times I hear people say things like, « I’ll finish this pint of ice cream left in the freezer, and then it’s not ice cream for me! »

Although I know it is well -intentioned, it ends with its back in almost any case.

Although we want to be realistic about the types and quantities of foods that support your goals, we also want to build a healthy relationship with food that does not moralize it as « good » against « bad ».

And this refrruma can help.

4. Enter a step to break

Then it’s time to experiment with a break step.

If you notice a strong impulse to eat in response to stress, try to pause. We usually recommend finding something else to do in five minutes.

This can go for a short walk, listen to music, arrange your work space, whatever it is.

You can then ask yourself:

« Am I physically hungry or is there something else? »

Sometimes this break is enough to redirect the desire, or at least bring some awareness of what drives it.

Then you can make a conscious choice instead of responding to autopilot.

Then we learn and build from there.

–

If eating stress is something you have struggled with, you are not alone (and we have the data to prove it!)

And if you are not sure where to get started, choose one step from the list above and see how it feels.

You have this.

-Matt

PS We hire! We are looking for a ​Marketing Specialist to join our team​ And he works closely with me!

If you have experience and striving to help us make a change in the fitness industry, please check out the relationship and consider applying. Не