The practice of mindful eating can be profoundly enlightening and healing. We can learn about our relationships to food and notice our habits. We can feel our body’s signals more clearly, recognize physical hunger and fullness, and even notice the places in between.
Anyone who has dieted, and especially repeat dieters, can tell you that feelings of deprivation kick in before the diet has even begun. It’s 6 AM on Saturday morning. You just weighed yourself and decided to “take control” of the situation. You’ll start a(nother) diet on Monday. At precisely 6:01 AM, feelings of deprivation strike. Dieting, no matter the type, creates deprivation. • Physical deprivation comes...
As stress increases, self care decreases and you are more vulnerable to binge eating and emotional or compulsive eating. However, there are many self-care strategies you can use before, during and even after an emotional eating episode to reduce the chances of it happening again. Stop binge eating before it starts Make sure to front load self care throughout the week by finding ways to move into a sense of well-being. Important ways include: •...
Most people might think that if anyone needs a strict eating plan, it’s a person with Type 2 diabetes. After all, eating to manage diabetes is simple if we understand food exchanges and count carbohydrates, right? Not so fast. If that were true, there probably wouldn’t be so many people who struggle to keep their blood sugars in a healthy range even though they’re pretty clear on what they&rsquo...
Either you’re in or you’re out. You’re on or you’re off. This sounds like a diet but it can also describe how you approach exercise. It’s diet mentality thinking, which is marked by extreme thinking and judging yourself and your body as good or bad. There’s no in-between. This polarizing thought pattern sabotages women who struggle with weight and weight management. ...
When women talk about their biggest obstacles to successful weight and health management, we often hear about hurdles like not enough time or knowledge to prepare healthy meals. Or frequent social occasions that involve food. Or hectic schedules, or stress in their lives, or transitions they're currently going through. The list goes on. But if you're like many of us, it's really none of these. Instead, our biggest obstacle is unrealistic expectations. ...