Instead of jumping into another diet or another vicious cycle with weight loss (that you know won’t last), why not do it differently this time? Why not start by addressing the real problems – the reasons that you are overeating or using emotional eating in the first place?
When you tackle the root cause of your overeating – step by step, in a way that won’t overwhelm you, you are much more likely to create lasting results.
Start doing things differently by answering four key questions which I’ll be sharing over the next several days. I’m spacing these out because, for these to really work, you are going to want some time to really mull them over, look at them from different angles, and digest the answers that you come up with (pun intended).
Don’t just answer quickly and move on. That’s not likely to create real results. Instead, I invite you to take these questions and really let them percolate. Ask them over and over throughout your week. Notice how the answers change from situation to situation. Start keeping track of all the ideas and thoughts and feelings that come up about each question in a journal. Don’t judge what you notice and write down. Simply collect the information and respect that, even if you don’t understand fully what it means, your observations and your behavior are important.
The first key question to answer if you are overeating or want to lose weight:
Am I a mindful eater or am I eating on automatic pilot?
Do you create a space – a pause – between your hunger and your eating? Do you stop, breathe, think and then make a decision to eat, or do you instinctively eat and then think and feel? Are you fully present and experiencing what you eat or is your mind someplace else, not even engaged in what is happening?
Notice whether you do more or less mindful eating in different situations. If you are eating on autopilot, notice the costs this has for you. Do you eat more or even feel uncomfortably full afterward? Do you savor your food or even taste it?
Are you willing to commit to more mindful eating? Mindful eating puts you in the driver’s seat.
A pause, even a breath, taken between hunger & eating, is the first step toward taking control.
It’s virtually impossible to control overeating if you aren’t fully engaged, present and making choices. An added bonus – research shows that people who eat mindfully eat less and feel more satisfied with what they have eaten.
Spend the week noticing where your mind is when you eat and pay attention to any mixed feelings you have with the idea of more mindful eating. We’ll be talking more about this over the next few days.
Talk soon,
Check out the rest of this series covering the four essential questions to ask if you want to stop overeating, emotional eating, or lose weight:
Question Two: How to move from eating on autopilot to mindful eating (and why you want to)
Question Three: You need this if you don’t want to overeat
Question Four: Why mindful eating may not be enough
