Why we binge eat

Over eating and emotional eating is just another sign that you are in fact human.

knowing why is more than half the battle

knowing why is more than half the battle

You’ll see a lot of articles about how to fight the occasional eat-fest, in fact I dare you to find one woman’s or man’s magazine near the holidays and at the beginning of summer that doesn’t address this issue.

In these magazines, and even on weight loss forums all over the net, you’ll see suggestions with how to beat it: eat this food, don’t eat that food. Go for a walk, take a bath. But let’s be honest, if these things worked, we’d all be prunes from taking all of those bubble baths and ben and jerry’s would be out of business….well, okay, they’d have to at least sell the summer home in Buenos Aires.

So here’s some more practical advice on discovering your reasons for binging and how to heal from them:

There are only 2 possibilities for eating past hunger:

1) you’re not getting enough nutrients from the foods you eat.

If this is true, your cravings will be for very particular food groups and will often come with other health problems like light headedness, cranky moodswings, headaches, muscle cramps, etc.

For example, someone that does not get enough protein or is getting too much protein will crave sugary foods because both proteins and sugars will show up in your blood sugar insulin levels, keeping the right amount of proteins in your diet will keep sugar cravings at bay. If this is you, you may feel fatigued in your workouts, have irregular periods or feel sluggish.

People on over restrictive diets low on calories will crave carbohydrates and sugars because these are the sources more quickly turned into energy in the body.
If you know that you’re not eating well or are on a ___diet (fill the blank in with any one food item and you KNOW it’s a bad idea), this could be your reason. Do you feel hungry constantly, do you have trouble sleeping? These could be signs of imbalanced carbohydrates in your diet.

2)you’re not getting enough emotional outlets in your life.

Look, we’re emotional beings. We eat for hunger, yes, but we also eat because we’re stressed, tired, lonely, bored, celebrating. And we’re not the only ones. I’ve watched my cat eat until she puked (and then eat the puke, and then puke the puked food and eat it again) because she was lonely, so why should we expect more from ourselves? Okay, fine, don’t eat what you’ve puked.

If you know this is why you over eat, I ask you to think of one question: What feeling am I seeking when I eat too much?

This one question will get you a lot more than you may think. If you eat until you feel happy, what happened today or earlier that made you UNhappy? If you eat until you feel calm, what made you irritated? Generally, emotional eating form their own kind of food groups:

Crunchy salty foods = aggravation, irritation.

Sweet, soft doughy,creamy foods = sadness, need for consolation.

Soft, salty foods = boredom, loneliness.

Fatty, fried foods = feeling spacy, ungrounded, unsure.

Now of course there’s no science book that’s going to break down these parallels in what you eat, when and why. You could be ready to punch your boss in the face and reach for ice cream, not chips, but hey, don’t you want someone to console you after you punch him?

In the end, if you can start with knowing why YOU eat too much, that’s more than half the battle.

So I’m not saying the next time you go shopping to distract yourself from the Dorito aisle because it’s “bad”, but just think, what do I want to feel after I eat this? and see if that changes anything.

Kimberly, counselor since 1998 and founder of www.RedAppleYoga.com, holds a Masters in Health & Healing as a Certified Nutritional Counselor, a Masters in Education and is an internationally trained advanced  Yoga and Yoga Therapy instructor that has worked and studied in New York, Spain and in Southern India. Her practice is based in New York City. She believes in showing her clients how to combine time-tested ancient theories with modern knowledge to get the best benefits from both worlds.

15 Simple Tips to Help You Live to 100

by Susan Jacobs

A study conducted by Boston University shows that the fastest growing area of the American population is the centenarian community (i.e., those who are 100 years of age or older). The second largest growing area is people who are 85 years or older. In other words, you have a great chance to live a very long time in this modern society.

Even more interesting is the sheer magnitude of older citizens. There are approximately 40,000 centenarians living in the United States. Incidentally, 85% of them are women.

How does one make it to the ripe old age of 100? Each centenarian who is asked that question has a different answer. Some say they had a glass of brandy every night, others say they never drank a drop in their life. Some swear by the bacon they eat for breakfast, others are strict vegetarians.

No, there isn’t a magic formula for living forever (though avoiding bull riding and base jumping certainly helps). However, there are proven methods to greatly increase our chances of longevity. Below, I have compiled 15 simple tips to help you make it to 100 years of age:

1. Drink no less than 8 glasses of water a day, though you should preferably have even more than that.
2. Take a multivitamin that is appropriate to your age and gender.
3. Don’t smoke. If you do smoke, it’s never too late to quit and increase your odds of living a long time.
4. Avoid drinking alcohol to excess.
5. If you have no regular exercise regiment, start one. If you hate to exercise, take up a fun activity like swimming.
6. Settle down in a low-crime neighborhood, perhaps in the countryside.
7. Avoid processed foods as much as possible.
8. Eat a balanced diet that is high in fiber.
9. Change careers if you have a very stressful job.
10. If you are a thrill seeker, live vicariously through books or films, rather than participating in dangerous activities.
11. Always practice safe sex.
12. Wear your seatbelt and drive defensively.
13. Surround yourself with only supportive friends and family.
14. Make time for the hobbies you love the most, particularly if they reduce your stress level.
15. Don’t short-change yourself in the sleep department, as sleep deprivation can lead to a host of problems.

Will the tips above guarantee a long life? Barring an unfortunate accident, they can certainly help. No one can predict how one’s body will age. However, being healthy in body, mind and spirit will not only increase a person’s chances of living a long time, it will make the life they do have a very good one.

about the author:

Susan Jacobs is a part-time teacher, as well as a regular contributor for NOEDb, a site for learning about and selecting an online nursing degree program. Susan invites your comments and freelancing job inquiries at her email address susan.jacobs45@gmail.com .

Verified by MonsterInsights