5 Ways to Identify + Overcome These Food Behaviors

Do you identify with these triggers?

  1. Boredom Snacking

    1. Eating can be distracting and make us feel good--releases endorphins and serotonin, the “feel good” chemicals in the brain.

    2. Suggestions: Identify activities that will not only keep the boredom at bay but that bring you pleasure (i.e., activities that will also increase serotonin levels). Maybe that’s going for a long, leisurely walk while listening to an audiobook, painting, calling up a friend, gardening, etc.

  2. Panic Eating

    1. The post-news stick-your-head-in-the-fridge panic

    2. Chronic stressors (um, this whole situation!) throw our bodies out of homeostasis. We try to mitigate this with (you guessed it) dopamine--which is why we turn to, say, a pint of ice cream instead of a salad when we’re feeling stressed/overwhelmed.

    3. Suggestions

      1. Tune into what the stress trigger is. Is it that you’re keeping the news on 24/7 or keep getting news notifications on your phone? Maybe set a specific time once or twice a day to check the news, and set up a stress-relieving ritual afterwards (i.e., I usually read the news and go for a slow walk afterwards to help me “process”)

      2. Cultivate some calm in your day. Meditate for 5 minutes, take a long bath, listen to music, etc.

  3. Why am I craving this?

    1. Eating sugary or fatty or high carb foods can give us an immediate burst of energy and endorphins, serotonin

    2. Psychologically, these foods can be associated from childhood with being cared for or being treated. As adults we often soothe ourselves with these “comfort” foods.

    3. Suggestions

      1. This goes for every one of these behaviors: Structure, structure, structure. Eat 3 meals a day and eat them at appropriate times, preferably spaced 3-5 hours apart. This will stabilize your hunger hormones. Make sure your meals are nutritious. This doesn’t mean perfect or even extraordinarily healthy--just make sure you get adequate protein, fat, carbohydrates and phytonutrients.

      2. Eat meals with a variety of food flavours, textures and nutrients to keep it interesting/satisfying.

  4. The All or Nothings or “I’ll start tomorrow”

    1. This can look like being “good” or “healthy” all day, and then overeating or eating “unhealthy” foods at night

    2. Swearing to yourself you’ll “start tomorrow” and then having a last hurrah by eating the contents of your pantry

    3. Swinging from strict to “out-of-control”

    4. Suggestions

      1. Super restrictive or strict eating is a recipe for swinging hard in the other direction. Our bodies are designed to maintain homeostasis.

      2. It’s not a “willpower” issue. When your body is feeling starved, it sends signals to your brain to make you eat--anything--to bring it back into balance

      3. Work on finding that nice middle ground--well-rounded, nourishing meals that will support your body and stabilize your mood

  5. When behaviors become Disordered

    • Obsessing over weight loss, dieting, control of food

    • Skipping meals or refusal to eat certain foods, restricting/eliminating whole categories of food (e.g., no carbohydrates, etc.)

    • Extreme concern with body shape/size

    • an inability to eat anything but a narrow group of foods that are deemed ‘healthy’ or ‘pure’

    • Spending hours per day thinking about what food might be served at upcoming events

    • Binge/restrict cycles, over-exercising, restricting, feelings of being “out of control”

      What to do :

      1. Understand that eating disorders are actually not about the food. It is a psychological coping mechanism--often an attempt to “control”

      2. Seek professional help. Find a therapist or mental health professional that specializes in eating disorders. Eating disorders are the most lethal psychiatric disorder.

Want more tips + information on how to break up with dieting, redefine health, and embrace your intuition? Get connected with a Pharos coach today!

Emylee Covell