Your Year in Review: Reflect and Renew

Your year in review – handwriting on a napkin with a cup of espresso coffee

Right around this time of year you often see lists coming out all over the internet reviewing everything that has happened in the last 365 days. Whether it’s the best and worst of fashion or a list that chronicles important moments in the news, it’s a nice way to take stock of everything that has happened that has shaped 2018.

 

Something else you usually see around this time of year is people making a long list of resolutions on ways they want to be “healthier”, “improve themselves”, or “be better” in the New Year. While it’s always good to set goals for yourself, I’d prefer to celebrate all the ways that you have already made progress on your “well-being” journey. Starting the year off focusing on where you think you “fell short” is not a recipe for success.

 

So let’s forget resolutions and instead reflect and renew as you look at your personal year in review.

 

5 Reflections

 

Start your “Year in Review”by focusing on these 5 reflections.

 

  1. Your Best Moments: Think back on your intuitive eating journey this past year and focus on the moments that you called out the sneaky diet mentality, honored your hunger, respected your fullness,, made your self-care a priority and gave yourself permission to eat what you loved guilt-free! Celebrate these moments that would have been very different had you been living the life of a dieter.

 

  1. Moments You Would Have Changed: Mistakes happen to all of us. There will always be a time where you might have been able to handle a situation differently. But mistakes are a great way to learn! Don’t be ashamed to put these in your “Year in Review”. Identify the lesson learned and be proud that you consider these lessons a sign of growth.

 

  1. Moments that Surprised You: Maybe it was the first time you ate a bagel and didn’t feel guilty. Maybe it was that week you engaged in movement and found it enjoyable. Whatever things you did that you never thought you could, are moments that should be celebrated!

 

  1. Moments You Feared Food but it Turned Out Alright: Maybe it’s this holiday season right now! Or, perhaps it was last summer when you had a busy social calendar with barbecues and pool parties and lots of food! Whatever occasions caused you to have food worry, it’s important to note how you came through them successfully to remind yourself of what you’ve accomplished.

 

  1. Things You’re Most Proud Of: You might find that you will repeat some of your “best moments” here, but that’s okay! Celebrating the positive moments of a year is a much more productive way to approach a New Year, with a great energy and motivation to continue moving forward.

 

Congratulations on making the commitment to honoring yourself through intuitive eating. Here’s to making small steps that lead to huge accomplishments.

 

Please share your Year in Review with me in the comments below. I’d love to hear how your 2018 went, and what you have planned for 2019!

 

 

Can You Fail at Intuitive Eating?

The short answer is no! You cannot fail at intuitive eating. But let’s dig into this topic a bit because the idea of failure is top of mind for chronic dieters.

 

You’ve been down this road before. You want to lose weight so the only way you know how to do that is to go on a diet. You’re going along fine, eating what the diet tells you to, not eating what you “shouldn’t” and you start to feel lighter on your feet. Your clothes are fitting better and you are on a high.

 

Until you aren’t anymore.

 

What happened?

 

Well, you had a bad day at work, you lost a client, your boss yelled at you, you got a ticket driving home, and you had a fight with your partner. You walk in the house and you are in a really foul mood. You head straight to the kitchen and open the fridge to grab that chocolate cake you knew was in there, leftover from the party the other night. You dig in, and you tune out.

 

When you come out of your chocolate cake coma, you are really upset with yourself. You just blew your diet. Now you feel frustrated, angry with yourself, and the negative self-talk begins: “There you go again, screwing it all up”, “You can never stay on a diet, why do you even try”, “You are such a failure”.

 

The above is just one scenario where your desire to be “thin” led you to a diet which led you to feeling like a failure. What are some other scenarios?

 

2 Other Scenarios that Lead to Feelings of Failure

 

  1. Scenario #1: You want to lose weight and be “thin”. You go on a diet, restricting and depriving yourself of your favorite foods. At some point, you can’t stand the deprivation anymore…you must have “just a little” chocolate. You eat a piece, then another, and then another. Now, it’s an all out binge, as you vow to start again tomorrow. What happened here is that the restriction led to cravings which led to bingeing. Now, you feel miserable again and you have a deep desire to lose weight, again. You start the cycle all over> diet>restriction>deprivation>cravings>rebound eating>binge eating. And the feeling you have = FAILURE.

 

  1. Scenario #2: It’s the holiday season, and you’ve dieted your way into that little black dress. You are going to kill it at the holiday parties and family get-togethers. You can’t wait to hear all the compliments about your weight loss and how great you look. But wow, you are surrounded by all these goodies that you haven’t eaten for so long. You tell yourself you are not going to eat anything you “shouldn’t”. But then the inevitable happens. You aren’t paying attention, there’s a little too much alcohol and before you know it, you’ve dipped into the appetizers and pastries. At this point you tell yourself “I deserve it, I’m going to enjoy the holidays and not worry about the food. I’ll get back on my diet on January 1st.” And on January 1st, you wake up and feel miserable . You’ve regained much of the weight you lost, that little black dress doesn’t fit so well anymore, and you feel like a FAILURE.

 

What do you do? See scenario #1 above.

 

A Better Option than Dieting

 

I have another option for you where you will NEVER feel like a failure. And that option is > Intuitive Eating.

 

Intuitive eating is eating based on your physiological need to eat, based on your hunger and fullness signals, and NOT based on situations you are in or emotions you are feeling.

 

Intuitive eating is returning to eating the way you were born.

 

Now, just because you were born an intuitive eater, does not mean the journey back to it is an easy one if you’ve been dieting for years. You see, while as a baby you didn’t give much thought to eating, it was something you just knew (i.e. hunger pangs, cry for food; full belly, push away), as a dieting adult, you haven’t been listening to these signals. You’ve been relying on outside influences to guide your eating.

 

One of the biggest challenges I see with women who are learning to return to being intuitive eaters is TRUST. They are afraid to trust that their bodies will guide them correctly.

 

Is this you too?

 

I get it! You have lost trust in your body and in yourself to make your own food decisions because of all the “failures” from dieting (see scenarios above).

 

So, it’s of utmost importance that you understand that there is no pass or fail in intuitive eating.

 

Read and internalize this next sentence – I cannot fail at intuitive eating!

 

One of the biggest objections I hear from women who hesitate to commit to working on their relationship with food through intuitive eating is that they are afraid to fail again. That they’ve done it all and failed, so why should this work.

 

The reason? You have not tried this before. And if you have and you hit some roadblocks, then it’s more than likely that the diet mentality is still lingering. This is NOT FAILURE. This is part of the process.

 

A New Year Decision

 

Take this moment to commit to your intuitive eating journey. Repeat over and over “I cannot fail at intuitive eating” so a new neural pathway forms. Let this next year be the year where you leave dieting and all the negativity that comes with it behind.

 

I am taking new clients now for 2019. If you’d like to speak with me to see if we are a right fit for working together, just click here.

 

8 Benefits of Intuitive Eating (and 3 Ways to Commit)

The other day I was giving thought to this past year and the work that I’ve done with my clients. I often like to reflect at the end of the year about what I accomplished in my work, how I’ve helped clients improve their health, and the impact I’ve made on the lives of people who are finally trusting their bodies again.

 

Not everyone can say that they love going to work every day. I remember sitting on the beach when on vacation a few summers ago with 2 of my close friends and their husbands. We were talking about how we were leaving the next day and going back to work. My friends were complaining about having to return to work. I remained silent. They asked me why I wasn’t complaining too, and I simply said, “I love what I do”.

 

It wasn’t always this way. Back in 2011 I had grown to “hate” my work. I was creating meal plans upon meal plans and really got no joy in it. Why? Because most of these clients that I was creating meal plans for really knew how to eat to nourish their bodies and improve their health.

 

So, what were they coming to me for, you may think?

 

Weight loss!

 

They wanted to me to put some form of magic meal plan together that would help them lose the weight they so desperately wanted to lose. And you know what? If they followed the meal plan, it worked. They lost the weight. But they also learned nothing. All they learned is how to be a good “listener’ and “follower” of when to eat, what to eat and how much to eat that someone else (me) assumed was right for them.

 

You may wonder “what is wrong with that, they lost the weight, didn’t they?”

 

Yes, at first. But months or years later, that weight came back. Okay, not for all these people. But for a large majority of the chronic dieters that I saw in my office back then, this was the outcome.

 

You know why? Because…

 

Following a meal plan that someone else creates for you takes you further away from listening to your own body. You and your body become strangers.  ~Bonnie R. Giller

 

And I didn’t want to continue to cause this harm for people. That’s when I decided to learn about intuitive eating and become a certified intuitive eating counselor.  I am so thankful that I got to a low point in my business back then, so that I can have the positive impact on people’s lives that I have today.

 

8 Benefits of Intuitive Eating

  1. Intuitive eating helps you to become friends with your body again.

 

  1. Intuitive eating helps you to trust that you, yes YOU, can decide for yourself when to eat, how much to eat, and what to eat.

 

  1. Intuitive eating brings peace around food, allowing food to be a non-issue in your life.

 

  1. Intuitive eating helps you eat without feelings of guilt, shame, embarrassment or regret.

 

  1. Intuitive eating brings you pleasure and satisfaction in your meals.

 

  1. Intuitive eating shows respect to your body.

 

  1. Intuitive eating allows you to live your life to the fullest!

 

  1. Intuitive eating helps you regain WholeBody Trust™, which encompasses 3 pillars: Mind Trust, Hunger Trust and Food Trust™.

 

If you haven’t yet ventured into learning intuitive eating, what is holding you back?

 

3 Ways to Commit to Your Intuitive Eating Journey

 

  1. Declare Yourself Diet-Free: Decide that you are giving up dieting forever and declare it. Scream it at the top of your lungs. Hear yourself say the words. If you want to, tell a trusted friend or loved one that you have made this important decision, so you can change your future.

 

  1. Dump All Diet Paraphernalia: Go through your house and get rid of all the diet books and other items that reek of dieting. Seriously, doing this will show yourself that you mean business. If you hold on to even one diet, you are not fully committed to this journey.

 

  1. Decide to Ask for Support: Realize that you don’t need to do this alone. Asking for support takes courage and shows strength. Think about the other areas of your life that you have gotten support – tutoring at school, physical therapy for a broken leg, therapy to help your marriage etc. And, if you’re not one to have ever asked for support in the past, maybe this is the time to start.

 

Every day when I wake up, I am thankful for the work I get to do with my wonderful clients and the women in my Intuitive Eating Mastery Circle™. I would love to help you too. If you feel so inclined as to explore how you can learn to have WholeBody Trust™ through Intuitive Eating, contact me here.

 

 

 

 

6 Tips to a Mindful Holiday Season

The holiday season is a joyous time, but it can also be a very stressful time. Your celebrations likely include hosting friends and family, which means lots of planning, cooking, cleaning and entertaining. This stress can start to affect how well you listen to your body – which is why it’s extra important this time of the year to take care of yourself.

 

Taking Care of YOU

 

When it comes to taking care of yourself, start with what your body needs.

 

Is it an extra 20 minutes of sleep? Or, making time for yourself to exercise, read a book, or take a bath?

 

Whatever it is that helps you to remain relaxed and calm, make the time each day to do it!  Don’t be afraid to delegate tasks or ask family and friends to help. Your physical and mental health is just as important as everyone else’s!

 

The Day of the Dinner Party

 

You got this! You’ve worked hard to take care of your own needs in the early weeks of December. But now that the big day is here, and your company will be ringing your bell, (or you’re ringing their bell), do you push your needs to the side?

 

Along with taking care of yourself leading up to the holidays, it’s also important to take the steps you need to on the day of the dinner party to ensure you are honoring and respecting your body’s needs.

 

6 Tips to Help You Stay Mindful During the Party

  1. Plan ahead. It’s important to plan ahead so you can enjoy your favorite foods without guilt. The day before the big dinner party, plan out what you will eat for breakfast and lunch that day. It’s important to stay nourished so you don’t arrive at the dinner party too hungry!
  2. Focus on friends and family. The holidays are all about spending time with your family and friends (I know you know this, but it can be challenging to remember this when you are not at peace with food). Give thought to something special that you love about each guest, and be sure to tell them how you feel. Put the focus on them, not the food.
  3. Savor your food. Focus on each bite of food that you put into your mouth. Experience the taste, texture, flavors and aroma of the food. Do you like it, dislike it, or it’s just okay?  If you aren’t fully satisfied with it, don’t finish it.
  4. Sit down at the table. Eating while standing around the buffet table or while walking around will decrease your attention and satisfaction with your meal. Instead, plan to sit while eating. Fill your plate with food and find a table to sit.  Friends and family will likely join you and you can enjoy nice conversation while being more mindful of your eating.
  5. Listen to your body. It’s important for you to take the time to listen to your body’s inner signals as you are getting satiated.  Stop eating when you feel comfortable, you can always wrap up the rest for another time.  This will help you enjoy the homemade pie without guilt.
  6. Indulge in your favorites. Don’t avoid your favorites that come around once a year. Avoidance can lead to caving in and then to overeating.  It’s much better to eat a small portion of something you really want than to give it up entirely. Choose those foods that you don’t typically have year-round. Take a portion and enjoy without guilt.

If you’re looking for more help to ensure you have a stress-free holiday season, look no further than right here!

December 1st marked the month-long Holiday Special of my Stress Less, Eat Less – Holiday Edition Program. This program is designed to help you develop personalized strategies specific to your situation to help you beat holiday stress eating.

 

In this program, you can go at your own pace. I will walk you through the 3 simple steps to developing a calm mindset and learning the strategies you need that will help you stop stress eating in its tracks.

 

Click the link here to read more about the program and sign up today! You can also reach out to me here if you have any questions.

 

Here’s to a stress-free holiday season!

 

4 Tips for a Happy and Mindful Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is hands down one of my favorite holidays.  I love having the whole family over and a table full of good food.  It is the perfect way to kick off the holiday season!

 

Despite my love for this holiday, I do know it can be easy to get lost in the chaos, especially for an intuitive eater in training. I can understand that the whole thought of sitting down to a Thanksgiving feast might be intimidating. Maybe you still have some food fear and haven’t fully allowed all foods into your life yet.

 

Well, I’m here to help you because I don’t want you to let yourself feel out of “control” this year. It’s time to start your holiday season off on the right foot! Make this the year that you conquer your dieting habits and turn to intuitive and mindful eating for a body you love.

 

Mindful Eating 

 

Engaging in mindful eating can be the perfect way to help you enjoy Thanksgiving this year.  Here are four tips to help you stay mindful.

 

1. Stay fully conscious. It’s easy to lose yourself in all the food, conversation and football.  If you maintain an awareness of your food choices, amount of food you are serving yourself and eating, you can avoid overindulging.  This can be difficult in a social situation, but if you set your intentions out in the morning, you can do it!

2. Serve small portions. With a holiday that only comes once a year, you can easily serve yourself large portions of your favorite dishes.  You may even fall prey to “my eyes are bigger than my stomach”.  Start with small portions to avoid overeating yet still satisfies your craving.  If you are still hungry you could always have more.

3. Listen to your body. Do you belong to the “clean your plate club”?  This year commit to staying present and listening to your body’s signals as you are getting satiated.  Stop eating when you feel comfortable, you can always wrap up the rest of your food and take it home.  If you do this, you will be able to enjoy your favorites when you get hungry again.

4. Pace Yourself. During the meal, pacing yourself is key. Put your fork down and spend time talking to relatives in-between bites. This allows your brain to register the food that is entering your stomach. Your body will be able to signal when you are satisfied and have eaten enough.

 

The holidays can be a difficult time for someone who has just started on the intuitive eating journey.  Resisting the urge to overeat can be hard to overcome.  But you can do it!  

 

Still looking for more ways to have a mindful Thanksgiving?  Start your day off with a long morning walk to kick-start your body.  Also, don’t forget to eat breakfast!  This will keep you satisfied and help you avoid heading into dinner starving.

 

Remember, the most important person is YOU. Have confidence in yourself and in your food choices that you are making to honor and respect your body. You are in the drivers seat now, you are no longer a passenger on the diet train.

 

If you’d like my support at any point on your journey, just reach out to me HERE.

 

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

 

5 Ways to Manage Your Diabetes, Without Weight Loss

“Lose weight and your A1C will go down!”

 

Is this statement something you’ve heard before?

 

Has your doctor told you that in order to manage your diabetes, you must lose weight?

 

In more cases than I want to remember, clients have walked into my office telling me that this is what their doctor told them. And, it makes them so upset because this is NOT helpful. These clients have tried over and over to lose weight on the typical “diabetes diet”, only to gain the weight back plus more.

 

So yes, maybe in the short term they saw a reduction in their A1C, but in the long term, NOPE!

 

This is because the doctors are approaching diabetes management in the WRONG way!

 

Weight loss is NOT A BEHAVIOR. It’s an outcome! An outcome of habit and behavior changes!

 

November is National Diabetes Awareness Month, and today is World Diabetes Day. Today is a day to raise awareness of this disease that affects millions. Education in disease management and prevention is KEY.

 

Are you among the increasing number of newly diagnosed diabetes cases each year?

 

Signs and Symptoms of Diabetes

  • Urinating more frequently
  • Increased thirst
  • Feel hungrier than usual
  • More tired than normal
  • Dry mouth and dry, itchy skin
  • Slow healing cuts

 

If you have experienced any of these symptoms (and have a family history of diabetes), it’s important that you get your blood sugar levels tested. Type 1 diabetes usually develops earlier in life, however a person at just about any stage of life can be diagnosed with Type 2.

 

So, what’s the best treatment for Type 2 diabetes?

 

It’s NOT weight loss!

 

Introducing…..

 

A Weight-Neutral Approach to Diabetes Management

 

Simply losing weight will not control your diabetes and blood sugar levels. Reason? Because most people who have struggled with losing weight before will regain that weight back. I’m not making that up. Statistics show that 95-97%% of people who lose weight will put that weight back on, plus more within 2-5 years. The 3-5% that do keep it off do so most often with disordered eating behaviors.

 

Who wants to live in fear of food? Not me, and I don’t want that for you either.

 

The most effective way to reach target blood sugar levels and improve your A1C levels is through behavioral changes, without the focus on body weight.

 

As a certified diabetes educator, this weight-neutral approach allows me to focus on what’s important in my sessions with clients; that is teaching them about their bodies, ways to decrease insulin resistance, increase insulin sensitivity and how to help their bodies work better for them and their diabetes.

 

My Weight-Neutral Diabetes Management Program has 5 Diabetes Education FOCUS Areas:  

FOCUS 1: Nutrition

FOCUS 2: Movement

FOCUS 3: Habits & Behaviors

FOCUS 4: Stress Management

FOCUS 5: Sleep Hygiene

When you make behavioral changes in these 5 focus areas, you will see your blood glucose levels come back into target range, your A1C will decrease, and you will decrease your risk of long-term diabetes complications.

 

This month as part of the National Diabetes Awareness celebration, take charge of your diabetes with a weight-neutral approach!

 

Learn more about my Weight-Neutral Diabetes Management Program HERE and contact me to set up a consultation.

 

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.

Intuitive Eating Sounds Glorious. Count me in!

“Intuitive eating. You mean I can eat whatever I want?”

 

This is a common question I hear from people when I introduce them to this practice of relating to food.

 

To someone just hearing about intuitive eating, it sounds glorious, almost too good to be true.

 

“You mean I can eat all those foods I’ve deprived myself of all those years? And still lose weight? Where has this been all my life?”

 

Today I want to address 2 misconceptions about intuitive eating:

  1. Intuitive eating is not about losing weight.
  2. Intuitive eating is not about instant gratification.

 

Weight Loss is Not a Goal

It’s very hard for most chronic dieters to immediately embrace the idea that the path towards intuitive eating does not guarantee weight loss. As a chronic dieter, you’ve started each diet with one goal in mind – weight loss. You were willing to restrict your food intake, say no to eating your favorite foods, even turning down social occasions (where there would be a ton of food you’d have to face) all with the final goal in mind of losing weight.

 

You’re tired of this battle. You are at your wits end. You don’t want to count another calorie, point, carb grams or mile walked. You just want to eat. You just want to be.

 

So, when you hear that there are no food rules in intuitive eating, it sounds glorious.

But what about your desire to lose weight?

 

It is of utmost importance that you put weight loss on the back burner. This means put it out of your mind for a while. Don’t think about it. There is no promise that you will lose weight with intuitive eating. Some people do, some people don’t. Some lose weight, some gain weight, some stay the same. Your body will do what your body will do, and no one can tell you what that will be.

 

You were born with a genetic blueprint of what your natural weight is. All the years of dieting has messed with that natural body weight. So when you finally stop interfering with nature, your body will likely settle in to where it was intended to be all along. This might be at a size or weight that you are happy with, or it might not. The next step is then body acceptance. This is not an easy step by any means, but with the right support, you can get to a place where you really accept and respect wherever your body lands.

 

Intuitive Eating is Not Instant Gratification

See it, want it, eat it.

 

That’s what a lot of naysayers think intuitive is. But it’s far from this.

 

Intuitive eating is not about eating whatever you want, whenever you want. It’s about changing your relationship to food, your mind and your body.

 

As you move through your intuitive eating journey, you learn to ask yourself questions before you decide to eat. You recall how this food felt in your body the last time you ate it. You turn inward and ask yourself if you are physically hungry or if you are eating because the clock says its time. You explore whether there is an emotion underlying the choice to eat in that moment.

 

At first, it might seem like you are eating without thought. This is because you have opened up the gates to enjoy all foods, you have taken off the handcuffs that kept you in diet prison, and frankly, you are eating all the foods you didn’t allow yourself to eat for years.

 

This is part of the process, but over time, your eating will normalize. Eventually, you will come to a point that you choose foods that help your body feel energized, not because you think you “should”, but because this is what feels good in your body.

 

Is intuitive eating glorious? You betcha!

 

But embark on this journey for the right reasons: to change your relationship with food and your body so you can live a fun filled life without food worry and body shame.

 

To learn more about intuitive eating, click 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!

 

How the Power of Your Self-Talk Can Help You “Just Do It”!

Guest blog Post by Anonymous

How do you know when it’s the right time? What sign do you get? What feeling do you have when you absolutely know without a shadow of a doubt that THIS is the right time?

 

Sure, there’s fear!

 

Fear of the unknown, “what will be, how will I manage?”

 

Fear of capability, “can I do it? Do I have enough confidence in myself do be able to survive?”

 

Fear of loneliness. “What happens when it’s only just me?”

 

Fear of the talk. “What will people say? Are they feeling sorry for me, shushing when I walk in the room? Are they staring at me? Will they pity me?”

 

I am broken. I am sad. I am angry at myself for letting it go this long. For not facing my fears. For not having the confidence in myself. For not thinking more of myself. For not feeling deserving.

 

It STOPS right here, right now!

 

Yes, I AM deserving.

 

Yes, I CAN do this.

 

Yes, I WILL have the support of people who love me.

 

Yes, I WILL pick up the pieces.

 

It all starts with ONE decision.

 

Just ONE!

 

Just do it!

 

————————————————-

This writing can define different things for different people. I won’t divulge what this author was referencing, but I feel that it can relate to you if you are contemplating leaving dieting behind.

 

There’s fear – “will I gain weight?”

 

There’s the unknown – “how will I know what to eat without following a meal plan?”

 

There’s fear of capability – “will I be able to learn to trust my body?”

 

There’s fear of loneliness – “all my friends are dieting, I’ll feel like an outcast!”

 

There’s fear of the talk – “will people speak behind my back, saying how I gained my weight back? Will they pity me?”

 

These are all valid fears! But it’s important to push through these fears if you want to get to the other side and find peace with food and your body…

 

…to live your life to the fullest without the constant thinking and worry about food and your body size.

 

JUST DO IT!

 

Make the decision to say NO to the next diet! Say NO to diet culture! Say NO to chasing the thin ideal.

 

You are deserving, you are worth it, you CAN DO IT!

 

I’m here to support you if you’re ready. Just reach out to me at Bonnie@DietFreeRadiantMe.com.

 

Do you resonate with the author of this guest blog post?

 

Share below for support.