How to Stop Overeating

Jul 14, 2012 by Janette

A lot of people, usually those who don’t have a problem with their weight think that overeating and food cravings are simply a sign of greed, but if you have a poor relationship with food then you will be well aware that the truth is a much more complex than simply being greedy.

The reason so many of us are overweight and have a dysfunctional relationship with food is that we eat in order to avoid dealing with difficult or emotional issues.

The bigger we are the less we want to exercise or go out in public. We get depressed, stuck in a rut and so we find comfort in the one thing that is always there for us; food.

As someone who struggled with her weight for most of her life I can tell you that the answer to your question how can I stop overeating lies within you.

Eventually you have to face facts and understand that you can’t keep stuffing your feelings down with junk food day after day and expect to get slim because it’s not going to happen.

The Solution For How To Stop Overeating Starts With You Needing To Be Truthful

Be honest, are you genuinely hungry every time you open the fridge door or are you just bored or lonely? Do you eat to feel less stressed or when you are upset?

I ask those questions because it’s exactly what I used to do and more often than not I would overeat without even thinking about what I was doing until it was too late, the damage had been done, I felt guilty, ashamed and loathed myself so much that I quickly found myself stuck in a vicious cycle of binge eating and dieting.

There are 2 types of hunger; physical hunger and emotional or psychological hunger.

Emotional hunger appears suddenly and is usually triggered by a little voice in your head. Many overweight people use food as a drug to tranquilise or calm them down when they are experiencing bad feelings and even things like smells can invoke memories of certain foods.

Physical hunger appears more gradually and it is when your body asks for food. You might experience a rumbling tummy. Try to ignore physical hunger for too long and you’ll likely get a headache and start to feel pretty poorly.

A person who is physically hungry is willing to eat practically anything, even a food they don’t really like but the person who is emotionally hungry only wants food that tastes good, sometimes craving only certain foods.

We all know that the answer to how to stop overeating is to eat only when you are truly hungry and stop when you are full but the problem is that if you are emotional eater your stomach never has the chance to really get empty because you spend so much time going from snack to snack.

In fact there is scientific research to show that most overweight people have completely lost the hunger sensation. Eating has become a habit and their response to all emotion, whatever they might be feeling.

So Back To The Question Of How To Stop Overeating?

Well first of all it’s important to discover what triggers you to overeat. Before you reach for the fridge door or the bars of chocolate always remember to ask your self “Is my body asking for food or is my mind asking for it”?

Really ask yourself if you are genuinely physically hungry? Probably not; so why then are you looking for something to eat?

Aren’t you really just bored, unhappy, lonely or tired? Yes. So what is it you really need? Motivation, a chat, some company, an early night or some help to complete a task which takes the pressure off you?

I have a sticker on my fridge and it says “Am I really hungry or is it something else” It is really effective as I can’t help but see it every time I go to the fridge and it made me realise how often I was using food as an emotional crutch.

Once you learn to recognise this pattern of behaviour you can then change it – if you really want to

The easiest solution is to stop for a second, take a deep breath and get whatever it is you need to stop you from emotional overeating. Perhaps clean your teeth, drink a big glass of water, phone a friend, go for a walk, have a nice long soak in a bubble bath or go to bed early with a good book. It can be done but you have to want to do it – there is no magic cure for this.

How to stop overeating is simple but it’s not easy. It’s about getting your head in the right place and the only way you will beat these demons is to get tough and take back ownership of your own body and mind.  No matter what has happened to in the past, you deserve a decent future and in the coming weeks i am going to be launching a bootcamp for obese women who want just that – their life back and a decent future where food doesn’t control their every thought.

More to come…