Wondering how to create a healthy relationship with food? Let’s explore cues that can cause you to overeat, what to do instead, and why how you eat can help create a healthy relationship with food.
Cues to overeating
Are you tired of eating handfuls of candy or snacks at night in front of the TV when you’re not even hungry? Environmental and social cues often cause us to overeat or eat unhealthy foods. Change these cues to disrupt old patterns. How? Three of the most effective ways for changing your behavior according to behavior change theory are to:
- Change the environment;
- Eliminate the cue; and
- Dis-associate the cue from eating.
Change the Environment and Social Cues Examples:
Eliminate the Cue Examples: Ever notice that you eat more when food is visible and within reach?
Answer: Change your environment. At home, put foods you plan to eat more of within easy reach. Example, put a bowl of washed fruit and a tray of washed and cut up raw vegetables like carrots, celery sticks, and cherry tomatoes on the kitchen counter.
Keep foods that you plan to eat less of out of reach or better yet don’t buy them.
Dis-associate the cue from eating examples: Break the habit of eating high calorie snacks in front of the TV. How? Make eating off limits while watching television or choose a low-calorie filling food like a 100-calorie bag of popcorn.
Social Cue Example: While you’re watching TV, does your husband ask you if he can bring you anything from the kitchen? Make a habit of saying, “No thank you” to avoid overeating or ask for a glass of water.
Note: Changing your response to certain cues doesn’t mean that you can’t eat your favorite foods. The key is to plan how much and when you’ll eat them and then enjoy them with pleasure and without guilt.
How You Eat
Do you want to eat less and enjoy your food more? Here are my top 3 secrets about how to change the way you eat to avoid overeating.
- Eat more slowly and mindfully
Eat more slowly, be present, and take pleasure in food as a way to eat less. This new mindful way of eating will help you eat less and notice when you’re full.
Did you know that, from the time you begin eating, it takes 15 minutes for your brain to detect and signal that you’re full?
- Eat low calorie filling foods first
Start a meal with vegetables. Eat a salad or broth-based soup to help you feel fuller at the end of a meal without overeating.
- Set a schedule for regular meals
Create a schedule for when you eat meals, with flexibility instead of skipping meals. Having a routine for when to eat is helpful if you’re a person who skips meals and then overeats in the evening. Eating regular meals and snacks is a helpful way to avoid becoming overly hungry.
Sometimes we eat because of stress or from emotions. Find out more about stress eating and what to do about it by taking a look at our Is Why You Eat Holding You Back blogpost.
Need help figuring out what creating a healthy relationship with food means for you? Don’t worry. Give me a call. We’ll make an appointment to talk via Zoom or by phone. We’ll see what’s right for you.
Together we’ll create your healthy sweet life by building a healthy relationship with food.
To your Joy and Health,
Kay Loughrey, MPH, RDN, LDN
Transformational Speaker, Breakthrough Coach, Registered Dietitian-Nutritionist