Tag Archive for: emotional eating

3 Reasons to Start Journaling to Stop Emotional Eating

Emotional eating is eating for reasons other than hunger, such as using food to cope, numb or deal with a difficult emotion, thought or feeling. It’s usually born out of an unmet need, whether physical- such as fatigue, or emotional – such as sadness or loneliness.

 

For many, food is love, comfort, reward, or a reliable friend that won’t let you down.

 

Emotional eating is not a component of biological hunger, but instead is of emotional hunger. You’re longing for something, you have a void in your life, and you are filling it with food.

 

You may know exactly why you emotionally eat, or perhaps you don’t. Journaling can help you figure it out.

 

Journaling is verbalizing your feelings by writing them down and it’s very beneficial for your emotional well-being and to discover things that might have been buried for years.

 

3 Ways Journaling Can Help with Emotional Eating:

 

  1. Journaling allows you to express and release your feelings. By writing down your emotions, the intensity of those feelings goes from your body onto the paper and diminishes in time. You acknowledge them which enables you to release them.

 

  1. Journaling allows you to slow down and insert that pause, instead of impulsively reacting. This pause makes all the difference between whether your thought leads to impulsive eating or to reflection and consideration of maybe there’s a better path to take in that moment.

 

  1. Journaling replaces food. It can be used in the moment that are you feeling distressed and about to turn to food but instead, you pull out your pen and your note pad and you journal on the following prompt: “What am I feeling right now?” Put a name to your feeling and write it down. Just let your pen do the writing, don’t stop to edit, just write what you are feeling in that very moment. By writing down your feelings, you’re becoming more mindful and aware which is the first step in managing emotional eating.

 

When you turn to the journal during these difficult moments, you break the habit of turning to food automatically to deal with your strong emotions. Instead, you are replacing it with a healthier habit by asking yourself “okay, what do I need. I’ve identified my feelings, now what do I really need to feel better”.

The answer is usually not food. It may lie in connection, self-care, the need for support, to be nurtured. Journaling can help identify the real need.

 

Grab your free copy of: 20 Day Deep Dive Emotional Eating Journaling Prompts

 

 

5 Ways to Overcome Overeating During the Holidays

It’s no secret that it’s easy to overindulge during the holiday season. Between the abundance of food offered and available along with a packed social calendar filled with parties and festivities, it can be easy to overeat. However, if you don’t stay mindful, it can develop into an unhealthy habit that results in weight gain and an increased risk of diseases such as heart disease and diabetes.

Oftentimes, the holiday season can bring on difficult emotions which leads you to eating emotionally. Breaking the cycle of emotional eating and overeating can be challenging, but I know you can do it.

Here are 5 Tips to Overcome Overeating During the Holidays

  1. Practice Self Care. Rest, exercise, and stress management are essential components of a healthy life, and when ignored, it’s easy to turn to foods high in sugar and fat as a way to manage your energy and emotions. The fact is, stress increases cortisol, a hormone that increases appetite levels. Therefore, being stressed can lead to increased hunger, overeating, and, ultimately, weight gain. By making a conscious effort to practice self-care by reducing stress, you can help prevent overeating.

Holiday Tip: Maintain a regular sleep and exercise schedule and find a buddy to keep you accountable during this busy season. Manage stress by listening to music, gardening, practicing yoga, meditation, exercise, and breathing techniques.

  1. Minimize Distractions. From scrolling through your Facebook feed during lunch or eating popcorn while watching your favorite TV show, being distracted during mealtime can cause you to overeat. Distracted eating can also cause you to eat more food later in the day because you do not realize or remember what you consumed at the prior meal.

Holiday Tip: Make an intention to unplug from phones, computers, and other reading materials (aka magazines), so you can tune into your body and the food you are eating.

  1. Understand Your Triggers. Empower yourself for success by understanding what foods or situations might increase your risk to overeat or binge. Simply understanding your struggles can help prevent or at least reduce the frequency of overeating episodes.

Holiday Tip: Remove temptation from your fridge, pantry, or office stash. Share your goals with someone close to you and make a conscious effort not to bring leftover foods home that are tempting.

  1. Use a food and mood diary to help identify patterns and triggers around overeating. Record what you ate, who you were with, how you felt before you ate, how you felt during the meal, and how you felt after. Over time you can reflect and see what food or situations might trigger a binge episode.

Holiday Tip: Practice identifying the emotion before eating your feelings. Were you hungry? Anxious? Angry? Lonely? Tired? Bored? Embarrassed? While it can be uncomfortable to sit through and feel your feelings, it can also be powerful to realize the emotions will pass. Food is only a temporary fix to your feelings.

  1. Eat on a Regular Schedule. Avoid the temptation to save up your calories by not eating all day so you can indulge in dinner or party foods. Waiting to eat until you are starving only leads to overeating! Eating well-balanced meals and snacks regularly help stabilize blood sugars and hunger levels, ultimately empowering you to not overeat later in the day.

Holiday Tip: Aim to fuel and nourish your body regularly by incorporating plant-based fats, lean protein, and high fiber foods at meals and snacks.

If you struggle with overeating, the holiday season can be particularly challenging. While the tips listed above are an excellent place to start, they are just the beginning.

Contact me to schedule a consultation, and we can work on specific strategies for you, empowering you for a healthy and happy holiday and beyond!

HOLIDAY SPECIAL: Overcome Holiday Stress Eating with the…

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Overcoming Your Fear of Bread

Food fear, it’s a real thing. If you’ve been on and off diets over the years, losing and gaining the same weight repeatedly, you probably have some food fear. And this fear is driven by diet culture messages. Most restrictive weight loss diets ban bread, or severely restrict bread. This sets you up to believing that if you eat bread, you’re going to gain weight.

I recently met a lovely woman at a party. I didn’t know her, she’s my friend’s friend but we got along quickly, almost as if we knew each other for years. Where do you think the conversation went?

“Oh, I hear you’re a nutritionist. I’ve recently lost 20 pounds. I’m trying so hard not to gain it back, and to lose even more weight.”

This conversation is not new to me. Oftentimes, when I am introduced to someone and they ask what I do for a living, they move right into telling me how they eat, what they eat, what they don’t eat and the different diets they’ve tried.

I don’t want to be rude, but I am really done with having every social conversation revolve around diets do’s and don’ts.

Anyway, back to this woman. She was asking my advice on some lunch ideas because she’s getting tired of salad and tuna (can you relate?). I suggested a sandwich of some kind, using whole wheat pita bread, tortilla or a really nice stone ground bread. Her reaction?

“Oh, no I don’t eat bread. I’m afraid of bread. I don’t want to regain the weight.”

I really felt sorry for her. And if this is your reaction too, I am so sorry. No one should be afraid of any food. Here’s what I shared with her , and what I’m sharing with you…

No one food has the power to make you fat or skinny!

That’s right, diet culture has caused you to believe that if you eat bread, you will gain weight and that is absolutely false! Whole grain breads are rich in nutrients such as thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, folate, iron, magnesium and dietary fiber to name a few. You will not gain weight by eating any one singular food. When you incorporate bread into an overall healthy well-balanced eating regimen, you will provide your body with the nutrients you need for good health.

What does this look like in real life?

Perhaps that means having whole grain toast with scrambled eggs for breakfast, a stuffed whole wheat pita with chicken and avocado for lunch and a whole grain Quesadilla filled with beans and veggies for dinner.

Diets are not sustainable for life. Avoiding bread for life is not a realistic expectation for most people. I know, you don’t even want to avoid bread. You do enjoy it, but the fear holds you back.

Making Peace with Bread

The first step to making peace with bread is to eat bread. So, decide when and how you want to reintroduce bread into your eating life. Then sit down and mindfully enjoy, savoring the taste and texture of your meal.

Then do it again the next day, and the day after that. You will see that nothing changed, you didn’t miraculously gain 5 pounds over night.

The more you expose yourself to bread, eating it mindfully and will full attention, the less fear you will have over it.

Bon Appetit! Let me know what types of bread are your favorite.

And if you need help making peace with other foods, just head on over to www.TalkWithBonnie.com and schedule a complementary call.

Busy woman eating at her desk

4 Triggers to a Challenging Food Day (and Strategies to Try)

You’ve been traveling along your intuitive eating journey and making progress. You remember that it’s not about perfection, instead it’s about learning and growing. You have done great work in rejecting the diet mentality and recognizing the diet culture messages that swarm all around you.

 

So why does food feel so difficult today? Why are you feeling blah in your body today?

 

The answer might very well lie in one of 4 triggers that I see often when working with clients.

 

Mindless eating

Do you find yourself eating without full attention to what or how much you are eating? This is mindless eating. You may go through your day not even realizing that you picked on the cake on the counter, ate from the chocolate bowl on your bosses’ desk, or popped several grapes in your mouth each time you passed through the kitchen.

 

When you engage in mindless eating, you are not eating to satisfy a physical hunger and at some point, you feel it in your body. Perhaps you feel sluggish, bloated, or tired. Then you blame the food and vow to be “good” the rest of the day (or tomorrow!).

 

Strategy to try: Call yourself out each time you find yourself engaging in mindless eating. Bring yourself back into the present moment and name the behavior. You will find, over time, that you are no longer mindlessly eating.

 

Distracted eating

Watching TV while you eat dinner? So many people do. This, however, is distracted eating and it prevents you from appreciating your meal, tuning in to your fullness signals and having full satisfaction.

You might tell me that eating while watching TV slows down your eating, and maybe it does. But it is still distracted eating and your body views distraction as stress which triggers the fight or flight response which effects your digestion and absorption of nutrients.

Looking at your cell phone, eating at your desk while working, reading or sending texts, and reading the newspaper, a book or the mail is also distracted eating.

 

Strategy to try: Make a commitment to yourself that you will not watch TV during dinner. If your spouse wants the TV on, calmly explain to him/her why it’s important to you that the TV be off. Do not bring your phone to the table, and save the reading for after dinner.

 

Lack of planning

I’ve said many times on my blog, in my videos and in Facebook Lives that planning is not dieting. That is, if you can roll with the punches and be flexible. If planning meals means you put pressure on yourself to “follow” the plan and if you “can’t”you break out in a sweat, then we should talk. That’s still dieting.

Without proper meal planning, you run the risk of grabbing food on the go, popping through the drive through, or maybe even skipping dinner and mindlessly snacking instead.

To me, as a busy working mom, I have to plan meals or my family (and me) won’t have food at the ready. So, think ahead to your week and what you might want to eat for dinners. Make a shopping list so you have the necessary ingredients on hand. Write out your plan if it helps and prep ahead as much as possible.

My freezer is really my best friend. I often cook extra and freeze for a future meal. I always think tonight about what I want to have tomorrow night so that when I get home from work (or my kids get home from school and I’m working late) there is a dinner ready to go.

Strategy to try: Plan a few dinners for the week ahead of time, go shopping to have the ingredients in the house and give thought to what you can prep ahead of time.

 

Emotional eating

You are human which means you have emotions! And yes, sometimes, you might consciously acknowledge that you’re feeling sad (fill in any emotion here) and a bowl of ice cream would really help you to feel better.

This in my opinion, is not of issue.

But when the first and only way you cope with difficult emotions is to turn to food, then this is an unhealthy behavior that needs to be addressed.

If you are having a challenging food day, give thought if perhaps you are using food to numb, sedate and distract you from some underlying emotions that you’d rather not feel.

Strategy to try: Seek support to help you identify your emotional eating triggers and learn how to customize your strategies to best cope with the emotions without turning to food. For more info on overcoming emotional eating, check this out!

 

As you look over the above triggers to a challenging food day, which do you resonate with most? Let me know below!

How to NOT Eat Your Frustration

Frustration. That is the emotion that I’ve been feeling this week. Here’s why:

 

The Set-Up

I decided to change the hosting of all my websites and domains that I use to run my business. I chose a very large hosting company and was feeling confident that all would go smoothly, at least that’s what they promised. However, after 1 ½ months of back and forth phone calls, the migration of my websites was still not complete. I asked for a refund and went on the search for another hosting company.

 

I found another company who seemed eager to help me. I signed up with them and followed their directions to migrate my sites. After many back and forth phone calls, we were getting somewhere. However, I’ve come to learn that there is always going to be a glitch. And, what’s important is how I handle that glitch.

 

Among the many glitches was that a client was not able to access her training modules for a few hours. Okay, not so terrible, I actually figured out how to fix that myself (pat on my back!). But for the few minutes, I was terribly frustrated.

 

Now that all the sites are transferred over successfully, it was time to migrate my Outlook email. This proved to be more difficult. I’m the first to admit that computer and tech language for me is a foreign language. You might as well be speaking to me in Greek, Chinese, or any language other than English. I don’t get it.

 

So, at the time I’m writing this blog post, I have been without email for 36 hours and counting. This means that if you’ve tried to email me, I likely didn’t get it. So, please email me again!

 

(Note – if you are reading this blog in your email, it’s because you received it through iContact, my email management system, which is totally separate from my Outlook email – am I confusing you now??)

 

What’s my point of sharing this all with you?

 

Coping with Frustration

Just a few years ago when I felt frustrated, I would let it get the best of me. Perhaps I’d have a pity party, you know, the ones that include ice cream.

 

But today, things are different.

 

I reframe what is going on. I put things in perspective. I think to myself “how does this affect the real important things in my life, such as my husband and kids, my parents, my health and their health”?

 

Throughout this pause, I breath deeply. This breath work takes me from stress mode (fight or flight) into calming rest mode! And, it helps me process and make the best decisions to take care of myself in the frustrating situation I find myself in.

 

There is no ice cream. There is no chocolate. There is no pity party.

 

There is nothing wrong with ice cream or chocolate. But in a moment of frustration, that’s not what I need to take the best care of ME.

 

Your Turn

How do you handle frustration? Or any emotion for that matter? Comment below!

 

And, if you want to learn strategies to stress less and eat less, then check this SPECIAL out that I have for you, only during the month of April, which is Stress Awareness Month.

 

woman plate food

3 Reasons Why You Don’t Stop Eating (and What to Do About it)

You’ve decided to give up dieting (yay!) and you’ve been working on making peace with food. You’re doing a great job at giving yourself unconditional permission to eat and you are truly enjoying your meals.

 

All this sounds amazing, but you are facing a dilemma. You’re enjoying your meals so much that you don’t want to stop when you recognize fullness, you want to keep eating. This is causing you to doubt your ability to become an intuitive eater.

 

First, let me assure you that this is a “normal” part of the process. Be gentle with yourself as you reacquaint yourself with your body and the foods you haven’t eaten for a long time.

 

Here are 3 reasons why you don’t want to stop eating, and what you can do about it:

 

  1. You haven’t truly given yourself unconditional permission to eat that food. Here’s the thing…if you don’t really believe that you can eat this food again whenever you want it, it will be more difficult to stop when you recognize fullness.

What to do: work on giving yourself emotional/mental permission to eat this food in addition to the physical permission.

 

  1. You are checked-out during mealtime. If you are eating with distraction (phone, newspaper, T.V etc.), you are not fully paying attention to your meal and are missing the signals of comfortable fullness. Now, suddenly you are overfull.

 

What to do: Put away all distractions. I know it’s challenging to sit and just eat, especially if you’re so used to multi-tasking through your meal. But you deserve better than that, and so does your body.

 

  1. You are eating to numb your feelings. If you are used to coping with difficult emotions by turning to food, then consider whether you are trying to stuff down those emotions, so you don’t have to feel them.

What to do: Pause and ask yourself “am I still hungry?”. If your honest answer is no, then ask yourself what you are truly feeling and what do you need to help manage those feelings without food.

 

Your intuitive eating journey is not a linear path, it is a process that has twists and turns.

 

Each twist and turn is a learning experience for you. Remember to be kind and gentle to yourself as you relearn how to trust yourself, your body and your food choices. You’ve got this!

 

Can I help in any way? If so, just email me at Bonnie@DietFreeRadiantMe.com.

Using Food as Fuel, Not Therapy

There is nothing wrong with foods being a source of pleasure.  In fact, the more positive your relationship with food, the better you will feel about your eating habits.

 

But, there is a fine line between a positive food relationship and using food as comfort.

 

The notion of seeking “comfort” from certain foods can lead to problems with your relationship with food.  If you are eating something to gain a sense of comfort, this begins to connect your eating to emotions instead of satiety.

 

There is a difference between eating a food you love because you are enjoying the taste of it or the ceremony for which the food represents, and eating to soothe emotions.

 

If you eat to feed your emotions, then you may be an emotional eater.

 

Let’s take a look at the cycle of emotional eating.

 

Emotional Eating Cycle

 

Your emotional trigger might be stress or even loneliness, which can lead to overeating and bingeing.  You might be looking for “something” to fill a void that you seem to have in your life.  That food may give you relief in the moment, but shame, guilt and body bashing can quickly follow.

 

This can become a vicious cycle, leaving you with a poor body image, negative self-image and those same emotions you started with.

 

When you eat for comfort, you are likely looking to avoid feeling whatever feelings you are experiencing. Because let’s face it, feeling feelings is hard! You hope that food will solve whatever problem you are having, but you know what? Food will not solve the problem.  Once you stop eating, the root of your problems will still be there. And on top of that, you likely feel bloated, tired and physically uncomfortable.

 

The best way to deal with your emotions is to look at the root of the problem, instead of turning to food.

 

Food as Fuel, Not Therapy

 

It’s best to use food as fuel rather than therapy. This is not to say you can’t eat the foods you previously considered to be “comfort foods”.  Instead, simply redefine their place in your eating plan, and make them a part of your healthy lifestyle, not a part of your mental well-being.

 

Would you like to delve further into your emotional eating and learn how to use food as fuel and not therapy? 

 

Join me on Friday November 9th at 12:00 pm EST for a LIVE Master Class where I will coach you through your biggest emotional eating challenges.

 

Your 3 Step Plan to End Emotional Eating

 

 Join me. Register for free HERE.

The Secret Sauce to End Emotional Eating

In July 2017 I had oral surgery. I had a tooth extracted, it wasn’t fun. My plan was to have an implant once it healed, which I did in May 2018. This was part 1. I knew I had to return after 4-5 months to have the implant finished. Then it’s off to the dentist for the crown.

 

I don’t know if you’ve ever experienced having a tooth pulled or an implant placed, but I’ll tell you this is a very long process. And not very pleasant.

 

Last Friday I returned to the oral surgeon to finish the implant process. As she was about to inject me, I happened to say, “I’m waiting until January to have the crown done”. She stopped right as the needle was about to penetrate my gum. She told me she cannot finish the implant today if I am waiting another 2 months to have the crown taken care of. After explaining in detail the reason why, I got up to leave, feeling very disappointed.

 

I had driven all the way to the oral surgeon’s office, in traffic, which took me way too long on a Friday morning when I had a zillion other things I had to do. I psyched myself up for this visit, and now she tells me she cannot move forward.

 

I was upset, frustrated, and irritated…and you know what the oral surgeon told me to do as I was leaving her office?

 

“Bonnie, stop at the bakery and pick up a treat. You’ll feel better!”

 

Whaaattt?

 

I swiftly turned around to look at her. For a moment, I was inclined to go into a speech about how I don’t feed my emotions. But I thought the better of it and decided to smile and leave.

 

The surgeon’s immediate response to my feelings of disappointment is not uncommon for many people. Experiencing an uncomfortable emotion? Feed it. It’s easier to feed the emotion that to feel the emotion.

 

But is this in your absolute best interest? Is numbing the pain or stuffing it down with food the best way for you to take care of you?

 

No.

 

Many times, your eating response to an uncomfortable emotion can feel impulsive.

 

Let’s examine this further.

 

The definition of the word impulsive means “actions based on sudden desires rather than careful thought; based on emotional impulses; acting under stress or emotion.”

 

When acting impulsively, you are acting quickly or acting without fully examining the consequences.

 

So, for example:

  • when you impulsively grab for the cookie when you walk in from work because it was sitting on the counter

 

  • or you impulsively reach for the ice cream in the freezer after you have an argument with your partner

 

These are examples of you acting without fully examining the consequences. And it’s only after you finish the cookie(s) or the pint of chocolate fudge ice cream that you stop and wonder “why did I do that, again?”

 

Does this resonate with you?

 

Do you suddenly find yourself eating without having even thought about it first?

 

Then you feel guilty and the negative self-talk starts (“there you go again, you just can’t’ control  yourself”) and you start to criticize yourself for “not wanting IT bad enough”? And we know what IT is, right? Weight loss!

 

Impulsive eating can be an emotional roller coaster with triggers at almost every meal or time of day that can lead you to overindulge.

 

And more often than not, there is some emotional reason behind that impulsive decision to eat. It’s just that sometimes it’s not so easy for you to figure it out.

 

But, you have the power within you to identify the WHY behind your impulsive and emotional eating. You must first become aware in order to have change.

 

I’m going to show you how to start this process in my FREE 5-day challenge called ‘How to Triumph Over Emotional Eating’. This challenge will help you begin to break your pattern of emotional eating. Together we’ll find YOUR power.

 

During the 5 days, you’ll learn my “6 P’s to Success” in changing your relationship to food, so food no longer has power over you.  Each day you’ll receive an email with training and a quick assignment to complete. Then later that day we will meet in our Facebook group for a Facebook Live training to dig deeper into that day’s lesson. You’ll also be able to ask questions and get my personal help.

 

This challenge will help you triumph over emotional eating and give you the tools you need to succeed.

 

You will truly learn the secret sauce to end emotional eating!

 

As a bonus, you will have a chance to win prizes just for participating in the challenge!  You will also get access to all 5 videos after the challenge is over.

 

What are you waiting for?  Head over to http://dietfreeradiantme.com/howtotriumphchallenge and sign up today to secure your spot!

 

4 Tips to Best Handle Life’s Stressful Events

Life happens. Twists and turns appear out of nowhere and even as an intuitive eater, you may lose focus and fall back to some of your dieting ways.

 

The truth is that no matter where you are on your intuitive eating journey, stressful life events are bound to occur. It is okay to feel stressed or anxious at times, but you don’t want to lose yourself to life’s surprises.

 

When you feel life weighing you down, it may feel most comfortable to turn to food but the thing is, food is meant to nourish you, not be used as your crutch.

 

So what can you do to keep moving forward during stressful times?

 

4 Tips for Moving Forward and Not Backward During Stressful Events

 

1. Focus on your big WHY. When you feel like you are falling apart, ask yourself the reason you embarked on your intuitive eating journey. Was it to feel better in your body? Was it to stay healthy for your kids? Was it to get off medication?

 

Chances are your “why” still resonates somewhere within you, even on your darkest days. Let this motivate you. Some days are easier than others but if you keep your “why” in focus, you can navigate the bumps along the way.

 

Instead of letting the bad times discourage you from working to better your health and yourself, use mindfulness to clear your headspace and find peace within yourself.

 

2. Make every day the best it can be by prioritizing your own needs. That may mean making a list of goals, tasks to tackle, or fresh produce to pick up from the grocery store. Each step in the right direction is an important one.

 

You can make the most of each day by scheduling time for your own priorities into your daily routine. There is a time for work, a time for taking care of the needs of others, and a time to care for yourself. This includes time to sit down for meals and to be engaged, mindful and do nothing but focus on your food.

 

3. Take time to unwind each day. This can be exercise, taking a bath, catching the newest episode of your favorite TV show, or talking with a friend. Remember that you do not have to navigate alone. At times life is too much to balance on your own so reach out to friends, coworkers, family, and loved ones for support when you need it. By letting go of pent up emotions, you will be clearing your mind and allowing more room for mindfulness.

 

You may be thinking “but I don’t have TIME to relax.” Trust me, I know the feeling. With busy schedules, sometimes it may feel like there is just no time to unwind. Even just taking 15 minutes to vent to a friend or to decompress your thoughts onto paper will benefit your day and your overall goals.

 

4. Tap into the messages your body is sending you. Your body speaks to you, yes it does. But too often during a busy stressful time, you don’t hear it because you are not listening to it. Instead of putting energy to fretting about the worry at hand, stop and listen to the messages your body is sending to you. Is it tired? Hungry? In need of conversation with a loved one? This will help you gain clarity and continue to move forward, honoring yourself and your body.

 

The truth is, life comes at you fast. You cannot go back in time but you can make the most of your present and future. Honing in on your intuitive eating and mindfulness will help you navigate through life’s obstacles so you can enjoy being the best version of yourself.

 

Always remember, when you are feeling low, there is nowhere to go but up! If you keep your focus and mindfulness, you will find inner peace on even your worst days.

 

Want more tips to manage the stress and overwhelm in your life? Listen to this free class I recorded – 3 Steps to Stop the Stress – and the resource I’ve made available to you at the end of the class.

 

 

How to Advocate for Yourself at the Doctor’s Office

My client walked into my office. We’ll call him Bob. I had not seen Bob for 2 weeks because I was on vacation. Bob has recently decided to quit dieting. Yes, after 50+ years of trying every diet known to man AND undergoing bariatric surgery (of which he gained back most of the weight he lost) he decided he needed to finally address the true underlying reasons why he was overeating.

 

Emotions.

 

Namely sadness and loneliness with a dose of frustration thrown in there.

 

But Bob knew that no matter how much his doctor told him he had to lose weight because he has diabetes and other chronic conditions, the diets just did not work. He was able to follow the diet for a short time and then an emotion would hit, and he would numb out with food. The diet was over.

 

Is this a familiar story to you?

 

On this night when I saw Bob in my office he had only been working with me on intuitive eating for about 2 months. But he was doing a great job at rejecting the diet mentality. So I was surprised that this night when he walked in, I can tell by the way he was speaking that he was slipping back into diet mentality.

 

I asked him what was going on. He shared with me that he was having terrible back pain and all the doctors he’d been to over the last 2 weeks while I was on vacation told him to lose weight to heal the back pain. He was seriously considering starting a diet, although I pointed out to him that he was already restricting (a.k.a dieting) which I could tell based on what he was sharing with me.

 

He looked me straight in the eye and he said “you’re right. I didn’t realize my actions were actually dieting”. Yet, he was still so shook up by the doctors prescribing weight loss to him AGAIN, that he was desperate.

 

Bob is a physical therapist and I asked him how he would treat one of his patients who complained of back pain. He laid out a physical therapy protocol. I then asked him “Bob, wouldn’t this protocol be appropriate for you?” And he said yes.

 

And then he realized what’s really going on!

 

He was embarrassed by his doctors, ashamed that he had gained weight again, that he was forced to get on the scale and that his doctor’s only treatment prescription was weight loss when there were a slew of other treatment options they could have suggested.

 

Unfortunately, this is not uncommon.

 

One of the biggest fears I hear from clients about going to a doctor’s appointment is hearing the words:

 

“Get on the scale”!

 

And then the chills, the heart racing, the stomach sinking…and the words that follow:

 

“Lose weight and your blood pressure and blood sugar will come down”.

 

Well, dear doctor, you’ve said this a thousand times before and where has it gotten your patient?

 

I’ll tell you! A lifetime pass on the diet roller coaster ride.

 

What to Tell Your Doctor

  1. It’s time to take a stand. To let your doctor know that you will not be fat shamed.
  2. That you will no longer take “lose weight” as a solution to your current health issue.
  3. That you will not let your health evaluation be determined by a number on the scale.
  4. That you want to know what treatment options he gives his patients who are in smaller bodies – that’s the treatment options you want to discuss.

 

Listen, I realize it’s not always easy to advocate for yourself. I get that. But you know by now that weight loss and dieting is not the answer you are looking for.

 

I want to help you get off this vicious cycle of yo-yo dieting so you can learn to focus on habits and behaviors, not weight loss.

 

Please join me for a free webinar:

 

“THE 5 STEPS TO BREAK FREE OF DIETING”

So You Can Make Peace with Food, Enjoy Guilt-Free Eating and Get The Body You Love

 

======> Reserve your virtual seat here

 

You will discover…

  • The 3 essential ingredients you need to never diet again.
  • Why diet and food restriction are not the answer to long lasting weight loss.
  • The #1 reason why changing what you eat is keeping you spinning your wheels.
  • My 5 step system to finally achieve the body you love (that you can start using right away).

 

You will walk away from this training with the knowledge you need to get started so you never have to be afraid of the doctor’s scale again!

 

Click here to register now!

 

Bob called me the next day. He called to thank me for caring about his health and wellbeing. And for guiding him on how to advocate for himself at the doctor’s office. He reported to me that his back pain was hardly noticeable that morning. That’s the power of CARING SUPPORT!

 

Hope to see you on the Webinar. Join us here!