stress eating? I gotchu.
Stress eating. Now more than ever does that feel like a relevant topic to talk about. What with so much uncertainty in what the future holds (and even the next day), it is totally normal to find yourself eating because you’re (probably more than anything, subconsciously) stressed. But it can be a scary cyclical cycle – one where you feel negative emotions that push you to eat and then you beat yourself up over stress eating and thus trigger more negative emotions and you just eat some more. I use to be there – but over the years I have found positive ways to get me out of that cycle. Over the past 3 weeks being home, my diet has not changed. I haven’t found myself falling into the cycle of stress eating. Ry says I am an “anomaly” but I like to think it’s because I have found tools that work for me and I wanted to share them with you.
First, be gentle with yourself. This is the most important step – because it’s important to remember you are human. You are not perfect – and being paralyzed by perfection will do you no good. Being “healthy” is not always making the right or perfect decision. It is recognizing that your week long, day-filled or night-binge stress eating was not your most proud moment but that you don’t like the way it made you feel so you are going to forgive, forget and put together a plan so you don’t repeat it. That is being healthy.
Once you have showed yourself that compassion and some much needed self-love and acceptance, start with asking yourself, “Am I actually hungry?” A lot of times, our bodies cue cravings when we are actually dehydrated or thirsty. So then you’d be asking yourself, “When was the last time I had water?” If it’s been a couple hours, that could very much be the underlying reason why your cravings are coming on strong, so try drinking a big glass of water and check back in with yourself to see if you’re still hungry. If that answer is “yep, still hungry as hell” then it is super valuable knowing “why” maybe you’re having cravings for certain foods. Often times it is not random that you are craving something sweet or something crunchy, so let’s break that down.
Why You're Having a Craving for Sweets
A craving for sugar can mean your body is trying to tell you something about your emotional health. It’s common to crave cakes, cookies, and ice cream when something is bothering you, like stress, anxiety or restlessness. A general rule of thumb to combat all these food cravings is to get out and move! Even walking for 15 minutes can help, especially outside when you can get some vitamin D, which has actually been shown to reduce the onset of depression.
Why You're Having a Craving for Chocolate
Chocolate definitely falls under the “sweets” category, but if you feel like you’ve honestly got stress under control, then it might be a deficiency in magnesium that you’re dealing with. Try adding more foods to your diet that are rich in magnesium, like dark leafy greens, avocado, and bananas.
Why You're Having a Craving for Something Crunchy
If you are reaching for crunchy snacks, it may be a hint to some inner frustration or irritation going on. The act of chewing can help momentarily, but most of the crunchy foods we reach for – like chips and pretzels – are often quick-digesting and high in sodium and leave you feeling both unsatisfied and thirsty. Thirst is then often mistaken for hunger, tricking your body into eating more versus reaching for a glass of water, and before you know it you’ve polished off a bag of chips.
A better way to release that tension is to do any kind of exercise, which will release endorphins to boost your mood. Or, listen to music to help relieve stress. If you are actually hungry though and want something crunchy, go with a healthy snack like carrots and hummus, bell peppers and salsa & guacamole, or apple slices and nut butter.
Why You're Having a Craving for Cheese
Cheese often makes everything better, I get it. Especially when you’re having a rough day. And, there’s science to it. L-tryptophan, an amino acid (found in cheese) that boosts serotonin production—gives you that short term happy feeling. A combat to this craving is rewarding yourself for having a “rough day” in a different way – like with exercise. I know, I know, exercise is the answer to almost every craving at this point – but it is crazy how powerful exercise is in influencing how happy you feel.
Why You're Having a Craving for Carbs
There are definitely physiological reasons why you could be craving pasta, bread, and all those (amazing) carb heavy foods – like a high insulin level or low blood sugar, but it's more likely that you're depriving yourself of them for too long. If you are trying to eat “perfect” and limit carbs in your diet to the point where it’s making you ironically only think about carbs - know that those restrictions are often doing you more harm than good. All foods—in moderation—fit into a healthy eating plan, and you'll be less likely to feel the need to overindulge in carbs if you’re allowing yourself to have them as part of your regular diet. Complex carbs like rice, oats, beans, potatoes, vegetables, whole wheat breads and whole wheat pasta are especially important for those who are active and exercise regularly. During a workout, you are putting your body and muscles through intense “stress” and in doing so your muscles are looking for fuel, and the place your body turns to first is glycogen stores in your muscles. Your muscles get glycogen from glucose found in carbohydrates. Carbs thus give your body the energy it needs to get through an intense workout, they help with muscle repair and growth and prevent the breakdown of muscle mass (i.e. your body eating at your muscle versus body fat). In high intensity and resistance training workouts your body craves energy from glucose and if you are not stocked up on carbs, you are limiting your ability to exercise at your fullest potential.
Why You're Having a Food Craving for Salt
A craving for salt is most commonly due to dehydration or an electrolyte imbalance. For those who exercise a lot or are starting to exercise more, you're sweating and losing salt, which means you end up craving salt more to replenish what you’re losing during your exercise. Don’t cut out salt completely (especially if you are active), but make sure you are getting enough water before, during and after your workouts, and throughout the day. Use fruits like lemons, limes, strawberries, and watermelon to make your water more exciting.
Why You're Craving Caffeine
Just as with a craving for salt, a craving for coffee or soda often means you are dehydrated. Not drinking enough water leads to a lack of energy, so before you fill up your cup with anything else, try drinking water and assess how your energy levels feel.
Beyond recognizing “why” you may be craving a certain somethin somethin, one of the best tools I have found in avoiding finding comfort in food is to recognize other things that make me feel good and to tap into those more than ever when I am stressed. This could be exercise – anything from a high intensity workout to a walk in the neighborhood – or listening to music, calling/Facetiming a friend, etc. Honestly, anything where I am putting action into something is the best way I deal with anxiety. Sitting on the couch, in my own thoughts with a big bowl of (insert your stress eating guilty pleasure) really just puts me in a bad place mentally, so I choose to get full off other joys in my life and find that putting action into that plan is sustainable and works 9 times out of 10. As for that one time it doesn’t and I turn to food, I allow myself to embrace it, enjoy the food and move on and don’t think twice about it – because while you may think stress eating is a bad habit, the worse habit is beating yourself up over it and carrying that guilt around with you every time it happens.