Monthly Archives: April 2013

Emotional Eating Can Hurt Your Diet or Lifestyle Change

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emo-eating

Emotional eating can sabotage your weight-loss efforts

Sometimes the strongest cravings for food happen when you’re at your weakest point emotionally and you may turn to food for comfort. Emotional eating can sabotage your weight-loss efforts. Emotional eating often leads to eating too much, and you most likely will eat too much of the wrong things.  I talked to a woman today who ate jelly beans when she knew she had to do a fasting blood test the next day. There are take steps to regain control of your eating habits and get back on track with your weight-loss goals.

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The connection between mood, food and weight loss

Emotional eating is eating as a way to push down or soothe out negative emotions, such as stress, anger, fear, boredom, sadness and loneliness. Things happening to you in life and the hassles of daily life can trigger negative emotions that lead to emotional eating and disrupt your weight-loss efforts. These triggers may include:

  • Unemployment
  • Financial pressure
  • Health problems
  • Relationship conflicts
  • Work stress
  • Fatigue
  • Also, being on diet or change of lifestyle with food and feeling bad about yourself or frustrated at where you are at–physically.

Although some people actually eat less when stressed,  if you’re in emotional distress you may turn to impulsive or binge eating — you may rapidly eat whatever’s convenient, without even enjoying it. In fact, your emotions may become so tied to your eating habits that you automatically or impulsively reach for a treat or a sweat, whenever you’re angry or stressed without stopping to think about what you’re doing. Food also serves as a great distraction. If you’re worried about a test, or some life event, or brooding over a conflict, for instance, you may focus on eating comfort food instead of dealing with the painful situation. Whatever emotions drive you to overeat, the end result is often the same. The emotions return, and you may also now bear the additional burden of guilt about setting back your weight-loss  or health-related goal. This can also lead to an unhealthy cycle — your emotions trigger you to overeat, you beat yourself up for getting off your weight-loss track, you feel bad, and you overeat again. desserts

Tips to get your weight-loss efforts back on track

You can take steps to control cravings and renew your effort at weight loss. To help stop emotional eating, try these tips:

  • Learn from setbacks. If you have an episode of emotional eating, forgive yourself and start fresh the next day. Try to learn from the experience.  So, make a plan for how you can prevent it in the future, focus on the positive changes you’re making in your eating habits, and give yourself credit for making changes that’ll lead to better health.
  • Stress management: If stress contributes to your emotional eating, try a stress management technique, such as yoga, meditation or relaxation.
  • Have a hunger reality check. Is your hunger physical or emotional? If you ate just a few hours ago, you’re probably not really hungry. Give the craving a little time to pass.
  • Keep a food diary. Write down what you eat, how much you eat, when you eat, how you’re feeling when you eat and how hungry you are. Over time, you may see patterns emerge that reveal the connection between your mood and food.
  • Get support. You’re more likely to give in to emotional eating if you lack a good support network. Lean on family and friends or consider joining a support group.  Overeaters Anonymous is a good group and it is free.
  • Fight boredom. Instead of snacking when you’re not truly hungry, distract yourself. Take a walk, watch a movie, play with your dog or cat, listen to music, read, surf the Internet or call a friend.
  • Take away temptation. Don’t keep supplies of comfort foods in your home if they’re hard for you to resist. And if you feel angry or blue, postpone your trip to the grocery store until you’re sure that you have your emotions in check.
  • Don’t deprive yourself. When you’re trying to achieve a weight-loss goal, you may limit your calories too much, eat the same foods frequently and banish the treats you enjoy.
  • Snack healthy. If you feel the urge to eat between meals, choose a low-fat, low-calorie snack, such as fresh fruit, low-sugar Greek yogurt, vegetables with low-fat dip or unbuttered popcorn. Or try low-fat, lower calorie versions of your favorite foods to see if they satisfy your craving.

Realize there are two different cycles:  Healthy and Unhealthy Eating.  First picture here is unhealthy.  Second is healthy.

  • unhealthyeating

healthyeating

Sweet Temptation

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A great proverb:  ““Good habits result from resisting temptation”

I can’t tell you how annoying it is when you are on a diet and someone (who KNOWS you are on a diet) offers you something NOT on your diet.

It happens all of the time.  Temptation.  Sabotage.  Whatever you want to call it.  It is annoying and it is real.

What can you do to prevent temptation?  10 Ways To Reduce Temptation:

1.  Never go anywhere hungry.  My father was thin and he used to go to dinner after eating a piece of chicken breast at home.  I always wondered why he did such a weird thing.  Eat before going out?  I get it now.  He was a reformed chubby kid and as an adult, he learned how to stay thin.  I didn’t figure it out until after he passed away and I lost my weight.    So, eat some protein before you go out to a dinner with other people.  You will find it easier to pass up the rolls and ordering food based on hunger vs. nutritional need.  Once you get good at doing it, it will become a normal routine or habit.

2.  If you do go out, tell the server to not bring rolls and you will NOT be ordering dessert.

3.  Don’t go shopping hungry and go with a list of items that you need, items that are nutritious and part of your diet.

4.  Don’t keep bread in the house, if at all possible.

5.  Always have protein in the house.  Meat, cheese,eggs, Greek Yogurt, nuts, seeds, protein bars.  If you are hungry, have a protein drink or some cheese/meat slices to kill off the hunger.

6.  Eat protein every 3-4 hours and don’t go longer or you will be more likely to cheat.  You are weaker in your strength of saying “NO” when you are hungry.

7.  Warn people who have invited you over or out that you are on a special diet and just let them know that you need cheese, meat, nuts, eggs and you cannot eat grains like rice or bread and no beans.  If they ask why, tell them it is for something medical or you need to be low sugar and those things convert to sugar.  It is really no one’s business anyway.

8.  Drink plenty of water or some form of sugar free beverage and keep full and hydrated on it.

9.  If someone keeps asking you to try something that is NOT on your diet, don’t be afraid to say something to them.  Don’t cave in.  What they are doing is WRONG.  You can say, “You know, I know you are trying to be nice, but that what they are asking you to eat is not good for your health.  You don’t have to mention weight, just say “health” and they are more likely to back down.  I, personally, have no trouble saying, “Hey, stop trying to sabotage my diet or my health.”

10.  Remember that just because it is a holiday, or someone’s birthday, or the weekend or whatever the excuse–doesn’t meant that you have to eat something that will set you back for days after weeks or months of working so hard.  I never really understood why we have to eat things like cake or ice cream when it is your birthday anyway.  Who came up with that idea?

BONUS ANSWER:  Get sugar free/low carb/gluten-free replacements of items that are sweet.  There are bakeries now that make these things and you can Google and have all kinds of replacements mailed to you.  So look into it and don’t just eat whatever crap comes your way.  You don’t have to do it.  Be strong for YOURSELF!

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Cut Cravings: Eat Protein Rich Breakfasts

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If you want to get and stay skinny, you have to get your brain to help you in the quest to feel full and not overeat.  As you have heard before, breakfast is THE most important meal of the day.  You will also have MORE energy to do things throughout the day.

There has been a study.  http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130326151127.htm

“The consumption of the high-protein breakfast led to increased fullness or “satiety” along with reductions in brain activity that is responsible for controlling food cravings. The high-protein breakfast also reduced evening snacking on high-fat and high-sugar foods compared to when breakfast was skipped or when a normal protein, ready-to-eat cereal breakfast was consumed,” according to Assistant Professor, Heather Leidy.

“Eating a protein-rich breakfast impacts the drive to eat later in the day, when people are more likely to consume high-fat or high-sugar snacks,” Leidy said. “These data suggest that eating a protein-rich breakfast is one potential strategy to prevent overeating and improve diet quality by replacing unhealthy snacks with high quality breakfast foods.

Examples of Protein Rich Breakfasts:

  • Poached organic eggs with smoked salmon, avocado and salad
  • Boiled organic eggs with cold cuts of meat and salad
  • Lightly scrambled eggs with organic bacon and salad
  • Leftover dinner
  • Meat and nuts
  • Protein smoothies (see the protein power example in this article)
  • Full fat organic yogurt with fruit and nuts
  • Canadian bacon, or any other bacon.
  • two tablespoons of a nut butter

Cereal and wheats/grains are NOT a protein rich breakfast, so you will be triggered to eat more later.  Lindora.com sells high protein pancakes, if you are so inclined once in awhile!

Egg Breakfast

Costco brought back my favorite yogurt! Dannon Greek Light and Fit!

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I just came back from Costco and I am so happy.  Less than $10 for a box of 12.  Only 8g of carbs per container.  Only 80 calories and 12g of protein (more than double than that of just regular yogurt) and half the carbs!  A win-win!

danon dannon

The price is great, the protein content is great and the carbs are excellent.  What a great breakfast, snack, lunch or dessert.  Put a few strawberries or blueberries in it and it is a true filling, delish dessert.  It is so creamy and tangy compared to plain boring ole yogurt.

MIDDAY SLUMP: You Have To Eat A Snack Between Lunch and Dinner

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Ever catch yourself nodding off about an hour or two after lunch?  “If you started your day with nothing more than a cup of coffee or a bowl of cereal, you’re bound to feel your energy start to drop sooner in the day.”  Protein six times a day helps this from happening.

And if your lunch mainly consisted of carbs, then after a meal later on,  there is a huge drop in blood sugar.  However, after any meal, your blood sugar rises for about two hours—and then it drops off.   Your lunch has to contain enough protein and fiber, and if not, then your blood sugar can rise and drop even more quickly, causing you to feel groggy.

Even if you eat a substantial breakfast and a lunch that combines carbs and protein, you might still have the midday slump. Eating raises your body’s core temperature as the body works to digest and metabolize your food.  After you eat a meal, a few hours later, your core body temperature drops, signaling your brain to release melatonin, which causes you to feel tired.

One thing that can help is to exercise.  Regular exercise has been shown to provide more energy throughout the day. If you aren’t able to get in an early-morning or lunchtime workout, try a 15-minute power walk around the time you usually start your slump.   Snacking helps to control blood-sugar levels.  The ideal snack is around 200 to 300 calories and contains a balance of carbohydrates and protein.

If you want to lose weight and keep your metabolism going AND you want to stay awake during the day and be productive, you need to eat your midday snack.

8 suggestions for a snack:

1. A piece of fruit and two tablespoons of peanut butter (or another nut butter).

2. One ounce of almonds and a handful of grapes or a piece of fruit.

3. One ounce of cheese with a few whole-wheat crackers.  Watch the carbs in the crackers.  Look at the box.

4. Two ounces (a moderate handful) of trail mix.

5. Six ounces of greek yogurt with fruit.

6.  A low carb protein bar

7.  A hard boiled egg and a piece of fruit.

8.  A couple of slices of meat, cheese and a piece of fruit.

Chobani Greek Yogurt Bites–a dessert that is good for you!

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My friend, Anne, alerted me today that Chobani (which makes Greek Yogurt that I usually don’t buy because it is 20g of carbs in one container, vs. Dannon Greek Fit and Lite 8g of carbs)………is now making bite sized desserty type yogurt.  I looked it up and nutritional content seems to be 13g of carbs per container– and 8g of protein.  Not bad for a “desserty” treat that also acts as one of your proteins for the day.  Thanks, Anne.  Will have to try it.

ChobaniBites-300

Stop Your Yo Yo Dieting Already!

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If you want to lose weight, you have to do it the right way. Skipping meals, not starting your day out with breakfast, or following an extremely low-calorie diet is not in any way going to help you lose weight. Calorie deprivation only sets you up for yo-yo dieting, or “weight cycling.” Your weight will continue to go up and down for the rest of your life.  You need to learn what to do to have permanent weight loss.

You might have initial success on one of these extreme diets, but the toll it takes on your body is not at all worth it. Extreme diets that promise big weight loss in a short amount of time cut out macronutrients like carbs and fats — which is horrible for your hormone balance and your metabolism.  I do not worry too much about fats and my carbs are just kept low and healthy carbs is the way to go.

Some people want to desperately want to lose weight for a special occasion and figure that only a couple of weeks at 800 calories a day can give you results you want. And maybe it does…but when you go back to a normal eating pattern, your body is messed up.  According to Jillian Michaels, “While you weren’t taking in enough calories, your levels of T3, the thyroid hormone that boosts your metabolism, plummeted and you slowed down your metabolism. Also, your response to insulin has taken a hit, so instead of glucose entering your cells, where it can be used for energy, your body lets it roam around in your blood, where it can cause trouble. Your sensitivity to leptin (which regulates appetite) is also reduced, so you’re never quite sure when to say, “Enough!” at the table. Plus, the hormone that tells your brain you’re starving, called ghrelin, shoots higher than ever. That is just the beginning of your problems. When you inevitably start gaining back weight, you start the cycle of yo-yo dieting all over again. It gets more and more frustrating every time you do it.”

http://www.jillianmichaels.com/fit/lose-weight/quit-yo-yo-dieting?xid=nl_EverydayHealthHealthyAging_20130331

yo-yo-dieting (1)

So, stop calling it a diet and start looking at your choices in eating as a lifestyle change. Shift your thinking from merely “cutting back” to simply eating proper portions of the right, nutritious foods. Whole  foods will repair, nourish, and support every cell so that your body will work for you and not against you.