Stop Stress Eating And Over Snacking
Stress and eating go hand-in-hand.
We are being bombarded with information from the COVID-19 crisis many times throughout the day. It's everywhere and it's hard to get away from it. This causes even the most dedicated of us to do a bit of stress eating. And when you add in working from home and having a kitchen right around the corner, weight gain might be knocking at your door. Let's get this under control before you've added the #quarantine15.
To begin with, pay attention to your WHY. Why are you reaching for those snacks? Are you bored, sad, tired, or stressed? Are you eating because someone else is? Do you have something in your house that you can't say no to? Or are you truly hungry? I know, sometimes food just makes you feel SO good! There's a calming effect when you eat something sweet or crunch on something crunchy. But, when you get into a daily habit of using food to deal with your feelings, it will come back to bite you with extra weight gain, tiredness, and you'll just feel crappy!
Keep track of your food and mood in a food journal for a week or longer.
Take a walk with your spouse or friend and tell them when you are stressed.
Eight Strategies To Stop The Over Snacking:
1. Monitor your eating by using a food tracking app or journaling. Not only should you track your food, but you should also write down why you’re eating. This can be a huge eye opener! I recommend tracking your food for a week to see how much you are eating and why your are eating. Track longer if you feel it is necessary.
2. Do you eat your snacks out of the bag? How many times have you started to eat something from the bag but ended up eating the whole bag?? Measure and see exactly what a serving size looks like. Stick to that measurement and don’t go back for more!
3. Are you mindful when you’re eating or do you eat without thinking? Many eat while watching TV or working at a computer, and then you don’t realize how much you eat. Take a break from what you are doing, and really pay attention to your food, using your senses. Sit down, slow down, and really chew and taste your food. You need to learn to understand when you start to feel full, and you can’t do that when you are distracted.
4. Schedule your snacks. If you find yourself eating constantly throughout the day, schedule one or two snacks into your day. Maybe it’s late morning and sometime in the afternoon. I usually have a piece of fruit mid morning and a healthy mini meal mid afternoon. Examples of my mini meals: scrambled egg whites, sweet potato, protein pancakes, soup, cashew butter on celery or apple, smoothie, etc.
5. Eat protein at most meals so you feel full throughout the day. Protein will help you boost your metabolism, reduce your appetite, and build muscle. All necessary when you want to stop the over-snacking and lose weight.
6. Tell your spouse or a friend that you want them to check in on how you’re doing with your eating. Having someone to hold you accountable will make it harder for you to eat those cookies or donuts.
7. When you are stressed and feel like eating, go on a long walk or do some other form of exercise. When you are done, have a mini meal with some protein in it so you rebuild those muscles.
8. Talk to your spouse &/or friends about how you’re actually feeling during this time of stress. Many of us keep the anxiety inside of us and that’s when we start to over-eat. Remember, we are all in this together, so everyone can relate. Talk about your stressors, fears, and how you miss seeing your close friends and family. Your loved ones will understand and support you!
Which of these strategies do you feel will work for you? If you have other strategies you use, post below. Looking forward to hearing from you!
Choose healthy snacks.
Measure your snacks.