Learn to Eat Yummy, Healthy Food, Not Our Emotions
Do you eat food to feel better or alleviate stress? These suggestions may help you avoid emotional eating, combat cravings, identify your triggers, and find effective methods to curb your emotional eating.
What Is Emotional Eating?
We don’t always eat to fulfil our body’s hunger. Sometimes we eat to comfort ourselves when we’re stressed, upset or even celebrate when we’re happy. Many of us use food as a source of comfort, stress reduction, or a way to reward ourselves. We are more likely to look for tempting but unhealthy items during stressful or emotional situations. When you’re feeling down, you may go for a pint of ice cream, order a pizza if you’re bored or lonely, or stop at a drive-through after a long day at work to satisfy your cravings.
Emotional eating is consuming food to make oneself feel better — to satisfy emotional demands rather than the body’s fuel requirements. Unfortunately, emotional eating is not a solution to emotional issues. Most of the time, overeating or indulging in unhealthy food makes you feel worse. Afterwards, not only does the initial emotional problem persist, but you also feel guilty for overindulging in the food you were craving. In the long run, this can lead to weight gain and increase the risk of chronic diseases like heart disease.
How To Eat Yummy and Healthy Food?
Many people reach for comfort food when experiencing stress or anxiety. In the short run, starchy or sugary meals may taste nice and provide emotional satisfaction, but this is works in the short term. This is because they raise your blood sugar levels and stimulate the same pleasure regions in your brain that addictive substances such as narcotics do. After digesting meals laden with sugars and processed carbohydrates, you may experience an energy drain or experience plummeting energy levels. Healthy and wholesome food helps keep your blood sugar steady, which may assist in keeping your mood consistent throughout the day.
Start Your Day with a Healthy Breakfast
A healthy and yummy breakfast consists of lean protein, complex, whole grain carbs, plenty of fibre, and a small amount of healthy fat. A full night’s sleep does wonders for your body and energy levels, setting the base from which you start your day, especially if you begin your day with a well-balanced breakfast. Eggs, avocado and greens with wholegrain toast or rolled oats with fruit and Greek yogurt and nuts are great ways to start the day.
Eat 3 Meals a Day and Don’t Skip Your Meals
You must stick to an eating routine when it comes to staying healthy. It is imperative that you eat your meals regularly and don’t skip them. Skipping your meal will result in low blood sugar levels, which will make you feel tired and crave more food. As a result, when you eat your next meal, you might overcompensate and eat a lot more than you intended. This can make you feel bloated or even upset because you overindulged. Classic examples of this are missing breakfast or lunch and then overindulging in doughnuts and chocolate. While intermittent fasting (where you eat between a shortened window of time and may miss breakfast) may help some people manage their weight, it’s best to do it under the supervision of an Accredited Practising Dietitian to see if this is appropriate for you.
Keep Yourself Hydrated
Make sure to plenty of water to hydrate well and increase blood flow. Proper hydration boosts your ability to concentrate. Stay away from sugar-filled sodas and beverages and anything containing artificial sweeteners, colours, flavours, or preservatives. Limit or avoid alcoholic drinks, and limit coffee consumption to no more than 3 cups per day, if possible. Still have a craving for a hot beverage? Green tea has been proven to decrease anxiety and improve mental concentration, and since it contains less caffeine, it provides a mild boost.
Take High Protein Foods
Protein is made up of amino acids, the building blocks of your brain’s molecules to control your thoughts and emotions. It also aids in keeping you feeling fuller for a more extended period and strengthening your immune system.
Protein is found in various foods, including lean meat, nuts, fish, eggs, seeds, cheese, legumes, and soy products.
Eat Healthy Snacks
Healthy snacks such as nuts, cheese sticks, fresh or dried fruit, dried chickpeas and vegetables may help you maintain healthy blood sugar levels and provide you with additional energy. Furthermore, since they are lightweight, you may take them with you everywhere you go.
Practice Mindful Eating
A simple invitation to be present when preparing or eating is all that mindful eating is about. This method aims to spend less time thinking about your weight and the stories that surround your weight. It allows us to enjoy our meal without being distracted by feelings of guilt, worry, or inner criticism. People who practice mindful eating learn to achieve the weight that is most comfortable for them naturally.
Conventional diet culture is responsible for a significant amount of stress-related eating, bringing a slew of pressure, intensity, and false expectations. Consequently, many of us prefer to see food as a reward or punishment. For this reason, we believe we deserve a certain nibble, snack, or spoonful of anything and consider it a treat as if we were a well-behaved puppy or kid. Those preoccupied with being slim may undereat and repress sensations of hunger, while people who overeat may disregard their feelings of satiety and discomfort.
Practice Healthy Lifestyle Habits
Your physical habits directly relate to what you eat, so make sure you are staying positive.
Try to Sleep 8 Hours Every Night
When you don’t get enough sleep, your body may crave sweet meals that provide you with a fast burst of energy. Healthy adults require anywhere between 7–9 hours of sleep per night. Getting enough sleep will aid in the management of one’s appetite and the reduction of unhealthy food cravings.
Exercise Daily
Physical exercise is a powerful stress reliever in addition to improving your mood and energy levels. Following a regular workout routine is less challenging than you may imagine. Start by limiting yourself to fifteen minutes a day of working out and increase as you see fit.
Be Social and Connect with Others
Never underestimate the significance of personal connections and social activities in one’s sense of well-being. It is important to shield yourself from the harmful effects of stress by spending time with good people who make your life better. If you can exercise and enjoy healthy meals with them, so much the better!
Conclusion
Following a healthy eating plan will assist you to stay energetic and feel your best all day, every day. While appropriate nutrition is an essential component of your emotional well-being, it should not be used to replace medical care and treatment as prescribed by your doctor. If you have any concerns about your mental health, you should speak with your healthcare practitioner.
Consuming a yummy and nutritious diet may go a long way toward promoting a happy outlook. In today’s world of hectic schedules, it is necessary to put in a little additional effort. However, it is helpful to eat wholesome food to feel your best in all aspects of your life: body, mind, and spirit.
