Emotional Eating is a sure fire way to have you overweight and wondering how in the hell you are going to fix your life.

My biggest problem, prior to losing my 43 kilos/95 pounds was emotional eating and a lifetime of emotional eating.

Me before I lost 43 kilos/95 pounds

For 95% of my clients, emotional eating is a real problem.

Below I have included an extract of a journal from one of my successful clients.

“A life not lived to the fullest, a life full of regrets. A thousand broken promises to myself that I can not mend and a mind full of dreams that seem impossible to make a reality. This is my life and I am but 20 years old. I weigh 138 kilos and am trapped in a body that is slowly killing me everyday. I have no self esteem, no confidence and don’t really care whether I wake up tomorrow or not. My weight has swallowed up my life. I feel too far gone to be helped and even if I could be I am not sure I have the energy or the will to do it anyway. I wear size 26 clothes and my mum shops for me. Despite loving the water I have not swam for years, my once tanned skin is now pale and never revealed. I have no summer wardrobe as it is always winter in my life. My life revolves around two thoughts – What I am going to eat next and what the hell am I going to do about my life”.

For this client, her biggest problem was emotional eating.

So, how do you stop emotional eating?

The answer is not a quick one.  However, if you take the time to sort it out, your life will change forever.

Firstly, you need to be aware that you are doing it.

You need to work out when are your danger periods.

If you can work that out, you have won half the battle.

How do you work that out?  Well, keep a journal for one week of every single thing you put in your mouth and then beside it put what you were doing and how you were feeling when you ate it.

It is a real wake up call to

a) how much you are eating;

b) what sort of food you are eating;

c) when you are eating; and

d) how you are feeling when you are eating.

You will be surprised by the outcome of this.  Remember, be really honest, because if you don’t, you are only cheating yourself.  This is for you to have a reality check of your eating habits.

This will really show you your danger periods.  When you work them out, you then need to put together a game plan.  What are you going to do, at your danger periods?

Look for something really productive that will make your life better.  For me, it is exercise.  Even if it is grabbing my dog CJ and my children and just getting outside.   I am now at a point though, that I just don’t go for food to fix my problems.  This, however, takes a while to create the new habit.  Potentially food has been your “crutch” for a very long time.  You now need to teach yourself some new habits.

As I mentioned in a previous post, every single time you eat something ask yourself, will this heal me or hurt me? This question will just make you aware of what you are doing.

So go ahead, grab an exercise book and do this for just 7 seven days.  Commit to it and then use the information you gather to take control of your life.

Yours in Health,

Rebel.