Binge eating can negatively impact your health and life in several ways, such as unhappiness and weight gain—and these in turn can lead to more emotional eating.
Whether you’re snacking out of boredom or as a way to deal with stress and your emotions, if you’re not eating for hunger then that’s not a healthy habit.
Coping with stress and other negatively influencing factors in our lives can often lead to binging. Here are 5 tips for fighting the temptation to snack and binge:
1. Stay Positive
Focusing on the positive outcome can help you remain in control and aware of how you feel.
2. Know Your Temptations
Identifying why you’re tempted to overeat can give you a way to not only resist the temptation, but also to get at the bigger problem underneath. For example, if you over-indulge in a particular food or substance (e.g., alcohol and coffee), think about why you feel compelled to abuse that food.
3. Remove Temptations and their Triggers
Get rid those unhealthy snacks or take a break from stressors in your life. Make it harder for you to give in to your temptations. If you’re always reaching for the cookie jar, put it out of reach—make yourself really work to get it. You’ll be less likely to binge if the effort to satisfy your temptations is too great.
4. Build a support structure
Get friends and family involved! It’s easier to resist unhealthy temptations if you can rely on the support of those around you. If you’re setting goals for yourself, they can help you stick to them—or get you back on course if you slip up.
5. Use the 15-minute rules
The 15-minute rule is a fantastic tip to remember in the fight against binging. When you feel the urge to start binge eating, wait for 15 minutes. If it comes and goes then it was just a craving. Having a glass of water during this time can help too. You’ll feel stronger for having demonstrated self-control and because you resisted an unhealthy habit!
Food can be used as a drug or a source of comfort when times get tough. Even the tiniest stressful event can trigger binge eating. You can learn how to identify binge-eating triggers, and how to substitute the habit with a healthier treatment for stress.
You can even learn how to keep up with a healthier life—and habits—with a natural health plan.
