Struggle with CRAVINGS and/or OVEREATING?
A recent research study found that 3 main things cause cravings & overeating.
This is important to know because the more you understand craving & overeating triggers, the easier it is to strategize solutions!
Research Background…
Researchers wanted to study the interaction between food cravings + dieting + hunger + emotions. The people in the study (123 people, 86% women, average age 41) each answered 3 questionnaires per day for 10 days all about their eating behaviors, feelings, and cravings.
Research Results…
– HUNGER can cause cravings & overeating. This makes sense because when we’re too hungry, our instinct is to want a quick fix of carby/sugary foods and to eat so fast we tend to overdo it.
– Out of the 9 emotions measured (guilt, sadness, fear, stress, loneliness, boredom, anger, nervousness, anxiety), the emotions most linked to cravings and overeating were: STRESS AND BOREDOM!
– Having a “DIETY ATTITUDE” (like restricting favorite foods) also caused more cravings and overeating.
Who cares? What does this mean?
The bottom line: If you are struggling with cravings and overeating, there are 3 MAIN AREAS TO FOCUS ON…
1. Hunger
2. Stress/Boredom
3. Diet Mindset
What can I do?
1. Eat Regular Meals.
Balanced meals, especially early in the day, can help regulate your appetite to reduce cravings & overeating. Click HERE for some balanced & easy meal inspiration.
2. Identify & Soothe.
Stress & boredom are inevitable. The first step is to identify when you’re feeling stressed or bored. Then once you acknowledge you’re having that feeling, test non-food ways to self-soothe.
There are lots of things you can do for stress & boredom, but the key is to pick ONE THING at a time and test it out. And keep testing ideas until you find what works for you. Some of my examples…
For stress, I like to lay on the floor, snuggle in my fluffy robe, put on my PJ’s, or listen to an interesting guided meditation on an app like Insight Timer.
For boredom, I like to do crossword puzzles on the NYT app, listen to a podcast, look at old pictures, or trampoline/jump rope.
3. Shift Out of a Diet Mindset.
A diet mindset can be improved by practicing my 3-step strategy called: Want-Balance-Own. Read about this healthy & positive eating mindset HERE. This is the strategy that MOST improved my own relationship with food! It’s so powerful! xx
