Emotional Eating Can Hurt Your Diet or Lifestyle Change

Posted on April 13, 2013 by therapysoup

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.

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.

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.

Sweet Temptation

Posted on April 11, 2013 by therapysoup

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!

Cut Cravings: Eat Protein Rich Breakfasts

Posted on April 8, 2013 by therapysoup

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!

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

Posted on April 7, 2013 by therapysoup

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!

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

Posted on April 6, 2013 by therapysoup

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.

Stop Your Yo Yo Dieting Already!

Posted on April 1, 2013 by therapysoup

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

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.

I Made The Low Carb Lasagna and it Was Delish

Posted on March 26, 2013 by therapysoup

I wrote a couple of days ago about a recipe for low carb zucchini-based lasagna (instead of high carb noodles). So, I made it and had it for dinner. My husband a d I thoroughly enjoyed it. I definitely recommend it because low carb should not have to be boring. It was Italian, delicious and had vegetables!

I recommend that you bake it high up near the heat to get the cheese crispy and to bake it for an hour. The recipe says half an hour, and that is just not enough cooking time. I purchased the ingredients at Trader Joes and I bought a mandolin slicer (my first use of one, ever) at Target. I have pictures from start to finish. I hope you try it. It took me about 30 to 45 minutes, but it could go faster each time I do it.

Skinny Italiany

Posted on March 25, 2013 by therapysoup

Every now and then, I miss pasta. So, I have been working hard to get back down a few pounds to my goal weight. Today is day two of two hours of exercise (Pilates and Elliptical). I should get to goal soon enough, so I ordered some low-carb lasagna noodles. I am going to attempt to make a low-carb lasagna with these noodles. I ordered them from FiberGourmet.com. 2 ounces of the noodles is 42g of carbs, but the fiber is 18g, making the net total to be 24g of carbs.

However, in the meantime, my caulflower-based pizza was so delish (haven’t done the delish zuccini-based one yet), I am going to attempt to make a low-carb zuccini (replacement of pasta) lasagna this week, since I am taking some time off to do things for the holiday week.

Here is the recipe that I found. If anyone does it first, let me know how it came out.

This low-carb lasagna uses zucchini “noodles” instead of lasagna noodles. The trick to making this work is to take some of the water out of the zucchini first by salting the “noodles”. Then they firm up and are more noodle-like, instead of mushy. This recipe can be made with or without meat.

The picture is what I am HOPING for!

Ingredients:

1¼ – 1½ pounds of zucchini
salt – enough to lightly salt the zucchini – between ¼ and ½ teaspoon
1 lb. ground beef (can be made without the meat)
1 lb. ricotta cheese – whole milk preferred
2 eggs
½ cup chopped fresh basil or 1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 cups jarred pasta sauce (any variety with no added sugars)
8 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded (not dried/powdered)

Preparation:

1. Slice the zucchini into strips, length-wise. The strips should be about 1/8 inch thick. I find the best way to do this is with a mandoline. See a vegetable being sliced with a mandoline and find out more about them. Discard any pieces that are mostly peel.2. Put the zucchini strips into a colander and sprinkle the salt on them. Toss to coat. Put the colander over a bowl to catch the juice. After 10-15 minutes, toss the strips again so that the brine will more-or-less evenly coat the strips. Drain for at least an hour.

3. While the zucchini is dripping, cook the meat. Then, combine the ricotta, eggs, and basil or parsley.

4. Spread the zucchini strips on paper toweling or a cotton tea towel to take away most of the surface liquid.

DIRECTIONS:

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

1. Put ½ cup of the pasta sauce into the bottom of a 9 X 13 pan, and combine the meat with the rest of the sauce.

2. Begin layering by covering the sauce with a layer of zucchini. Then cover the zucchini with about one third of the ricotta mixture, one third of the sauce, and one third of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat, only arrange the zucchini strips in the other direction, e.g. if in the first layer the strips are lined up along the length of the pan, for the next layer line them up across the width of the pan. Alternate again for the third layer. After the third layer, finish with the Parmesan cheese.

3. Bake until the cheese is golden brown, about 30 minutes. (Note, if you refrigerate the lasagna before baking, cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes covered, then remove the foil and cook an additional 30 minutes, or until cheese is golden brown.)

Makes 8 Servings.

Nutritional Information: Each serving has 8 grams effective carbohydrate plus 2 grams fiber (10 grams total carbohydrate), 25 grams protein, and 408 calories.

For Meatless Version: Each serving has 8 grams effective carbohydrate plus 2 grams fiber (10 grams total carbohydrate), 17 grams protein, and 242 calories.

Weight Management Success Tools

Posted on March 24, 2013 by therapysoup

How much do you want to lose weight? Do you really want to do it? Then, you have to work for it. You can’t do anything half-assed and expect full results. So, here are some suggestions to do it and do it well.

WEIGHT MANAGEMENT SUCCESS TOOLS:

1. Plan and prepare your meals for each day. You gained weight because of BAD choices or UNINFORMED choices, so this is not a diet, this is a change of LIFESTYLE. You have to plan what you will eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner and your three protein snacks in between and after dinner. You have to prepare to eat something with protein every 3-4 hours, four small vegetable servings a day, two small vegetable servings a day and two small salads a day. You can even make part of your plan to go out, but have in mind what you would order that will fill your daily requirements. If you eat pasta, rice, wheat products or starchy vegetables, you might be ruining your chances for success.

2. Your in-between meals can be snacks that are protein-based like a protein bar, but choose snacks wisely. Low carb choices have to be the way to go. Even yogurt needs to be a good choice. Dannon Greek Lite and Fit has 8 g of carbs and Chiobani has 20g of carbs.

3. Try to eat items that have a lot of fiber. Some protein bars have fiber. Good vegetables have fiber. Fiber makes you feel full and less like snacking. You can even use a fiber supplement like Metamucil.

4. Shop smart. “When I go shopping, I read labels. I look at carbohydrates, and I don’t buy anything that’s over 20 carbohydrates. I Don’t buy large quantities of food because then you don’t overeat.

5. Find an enjoyable exercise. I prefer Pilates, Yoga and the elliptical if I can use my IPAD while on the machine (killing two birds with one stone.) Some people hate all of that and love Zumba or dance, or even swimming. Some people like group social hikes. Some people only like walking their dog. Find something and do it. No more excuses. Moving your body is good for being youthful, healthy in body and mind.

6. Portion control! 4-6 ounces of meat/protein per serving, six servings of protein a day. And the alloted vegetables, fruit and salad (see number 1)

7. Educate yourself. I learned a lot by going to Lindora and reading their books. I read online a lot about carbohydrates, glycemic loads, etc. Read Skinny-Rules to learn. You need to learn what to do to lose the weight.

8. Get support. The nurses at Lindora were excellent support for me. Some like groups like Weight Watchers or Overeaters Anonymous. Look into a support group, person or website.

LOW CARB is a LIFESTYLE, NOT A DIET!

Posted on March 23, 2013 by therapysoup

Handy chart to help you remember what is low-carb. Cut it out and hang it on your fridge.

Emotional eating can sabotage your weight-loss efforts

The connection between mood, food and weight loss

Tips to get your weight-loss efforts back on track

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