Bored or reward- what triggers your emotional eating?

Emotional eating triggers are often complex. Perhaps you’re bored, stressed, sad, lonely or anxious. Commonly having a hard day at work can lead to that need to reward yourself for getting through it.

For many, emotional eating has become a coping mechanism – a relief, distraction or escape. Yet it seldom brings comfort- the benefit is mostly short lived. And commonly feelings of shame guilt and self-loathing follow – not the reward you were looking for.

Eating a packet of biscuits is often the automatic response rather than working out what you really need. This might be to de-stress, find stimulation or get some rest. Mostly this survival mechanism has become a habit. Chances are, you have been conditioned to reward yourself with food, often from early childhood. And many of us are almost completely out of touch with our own bodies –which is what makes it so challenging.

When working with clients, the aim is to build in more appropriate ways of making yourself feel better by prioritising self-care and turning to non-food related rewards instead. We all deserve and need time to do positive things for ourselves - without feelings of guilt. 

It can be a really empowering exercise to take a look at what you might normally do to reward yourself and think, are these helpful or do I need to replace them. And then spend some time to identify some activities that you can build into your daily life.

What would you like to spend more time doing? 

What would make you feel good?

What would help you relax or de-stress?

Here are a few examples:

·         Listening to calming music

·         A few minutes of yoga/ pilates

·         A gentle walk in peaceful surroundings

·         Reading a favourite magazine

·         Sitting quietly in the garden

·         A soak in the bath

·         Phoning a good friend

·         10 minutes of quiet relaxation

Use this as an opportunity to improve the quality of your life and build in new ways of feeling joy and enriching your experience of life. 

The simple steps to take:

1.    Identify when you are using food as a reward or to make yourself feel better.

2.    Choose a few alternative things you can do instead to make yourself feel good (that do not involve food).

3.    Try out the new choices - see what works well for you.

4.    If something doesn’t work, change it or add to it until you find the right solution.

5.    Keep practising it until it becomes automatic. You might find you don’t always manage - this isn’t about berating yourself. Instead observe without judgment what might have happened and try again next time.

FREE DAILY SUPPORT 

If you are you struggling with your eating and your relationship with food + your body, head over to The Food Freedom Collective free group, for daily support and weekly live videos to tackle your challenges

If any of these resonate then this community is for you :

💠You are on and off diets all the time

💠You find yourself binge eating

💠You are an ‘emotional eater’

💠You restrict food in order to lose weight

💠 You can’t stop thinking about your weight, appearance or food

💠 You feel overwhelmed and confused no longer knowing what you ‘should’ eat

5 simple ways to jazz up your veggies

Most people know that eating plenty of veg is helpful. Common challenges surround the practicality of upping the variety of veggies in your daily diet. Some people struggle with the belief that vegetables are boring. And yes, if you are dishing up an over boiled side of something- I would tend to agree with you!  

But veggies provide a variety of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and a diversity of fibre that your gut will thank you for. Boosting veggies and thus fibre will also help you to regulate your blood sugar and prevent sugar cravings.

There are a variety of ways to spruce up your veg so they can be tasty and satisfying. If you’re in a vegetable rut, then here are amazingly easy and delicious ways to serve veggies you will never have thought of before

1. Sensational sautés!

This is a great way to serve up a colourful rainbow of veg all in one dish– it literally takes minutes. You can add any seasoning. I personally love paprika, chilli seeds and oregano. But fresh basil, thyme, rosemary, sweet smoked paprika, cumin etc all work beautifully too. Have a look at the video below to see how easy it is!

These veggies work as fantastic potato chip/ crisp alternatives:

2. sweet potato wedges with fresh rosemary salt and pepper

• Preheat the oven to 220°C

• Cut sweet potato into chip or wedge shapes and combine in a bowl with a dash of olive oil, rosemary, salt, and pepper.

• Place in a single layer on a baking tray lined in greaseproof paper. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, turning halfway

3. Courgette and asparagus with ground almonds and parmesan

• Preheat oven to 220°C

• Cut courgette and chip shapes and asparagus into chip lengths- set aside.

• In a bowl combine ground almonds, parmesan, garlic powder, basil, salt, and pepper.

• Whisk eggs in a separate bowl.

• Dip the veg in eggs, coating evenly, and then toss into the ground almond mixture.

• Place on a baking tray lined in greaseproof paper. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, turning halfway

4. Carrots with parsley and paprika

• Preheat oven to 220°C

• Cut carrots into chip shapes and combine in a bowl with a dash of olive oil, parsley, paprika, salt, and pepper.

• Place in a single layer on a baking tray lined in greaseproof paper. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, turning halfway

5. Kale Crisps

• Preheat the oven to 150˚C.

• Blend 75g cashew nuts, 1 shallot (chopped) , 2tbsp nutritional yeast flakes, ½ tsp garlic salt, 4 soft large dates (chopped), 2 tbsp lemon juice, 2 tbsp water, 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar together until you create a thick paste. Add a little more water if you need to.

• Put a 250g bag of kale in a bowl, add the sauce and massage together with your hands. Place on a lined baking tray and bake for 15-20 minutes. Turn the kale over and bake for a further 5 minutes. Cool.

• The crisps will keep for 3 days in an airtight container.

 You can find my video and recipe of an alternative even more basic recipe HERE

Top Tip: If you don’t eat the vegetable stalks eg from broccoli or cabbage, cut them off and freeze them to add to soups at a later date!

I would love to hear what you think of these ideas- just hit reply and let me know!

Until next time

Marcelle x

P.S. If you are someone who battles with sugar cravings, find yourself on a diet rollercoaster, perhaps emotionally eat or binge, there is a way to free your body and mind from the endless misery it brings. 

Introducing foods that will support your physiology is just one piece of puzzle alongside building a healthy mindset, eating psychology and appetite and satiety reconnection to name a few.

If you yearn to to make peace with your body and build a happy relationship with food, come and join us in the FOOD FREEDOM COLLECTIVE, FREE Facebook community- 

This is a safe place where you can question, share, learn + feel supported without judgement, comparison and shame. I share tips, simple recipe, meal, and snack ideas along with strategies, motivation and supportive practices within the group and its FREE to join!

It’s time to release yourself from the shackles of diet culture + empower yourself to create positive change- start today!