You know how after a long, hard day all you want to do is crash on the couch with a bottle of wine and cake? And I mean, the whole just-hand-me-a-fork cake?
It’s that moment where the height of your stress meets the demise of your willpower. Your body craves sugar, salt, or fat to boost your mood with a hit of happy dopamine for your brain. But it never works.
Next thing you know, you’ve finished the whole cake and your mood isn’t any better for it.
So, how can you stop the vicious cycle? Here are 5 of my tried-and-true methods for conquering stress-eating for good!
1. RETRAIN THE BRAIN
Your brain craves what it can’t have. You need to change the conversation in your head from “I can’t eat this” to “I don’t eat this”. This takes away restriction and gives you back control of your choices.
For instance, my kids don’t eat sugar, therefor they don’t crave it or care when others eat it.
2. FUEL WITH FIBRE
When your stress is high, your stomach acid lowers. This affects your digestion as well as your gut-bacteria balance. If you haven’t heard – your gut and brain communicate through bacteria. This balance is critical in managing stress-eating.
Prebiotics are non-digestible fibres that ferment when they reach the large intestine. Then they become food to fuel the growth of healthy bacteria. A healthy microbiome equals a healthy brain and control over your stress-eating.
Prebiotic foods: garlic, onions, leeks, asparagus, dandelion greens, Jerusalem artichoke, jicama root, banana, apples, oats, wheat bran, flaxseed, cacao
3. SUPPLEMENT WITH BITTERS
Stress-eating happens when cravings become too strong. A dose of Canadian Bitters can reduce cravings by hitting the opposing end of your taste buds.
Bonus: As mentioned above, stress lowers your stomach acid. Canadian bitters help increase stomach acid for better digestion and stress management.
4. EAT AT REGULAR INTERVALS
Managing blood sugar levels is a huge part of conquering stress-eating. If you don’t eat enough calories, your willpower will drop as quickly as your blood sugar levels.
Eating every 2 to 3 hours throughout the day can help stabilize your blood sugar levels and keep you in control. It might look something like this:
8:00am – Breakfast
10:00am – Snack
12:30pm – Lunch
3:00pm – Snack
6:00pm – Dinner
5. EXERCISE AND SLEEP
Exercise is a critical component for managing stress-eating because it improves mood. Aim to be active at least 30 minutes daily. That can be a walk, bike ride, workout, shooting hoops, or whatever floats your boat. Try to go for a walk right after dinner. It can help with digestion as well as keep those evening stress-cravings away.
Have you ever noticed how the later you stay up at night the more junk you tend to eat? That’s because proper sleep helps with stress management and balancing blood sugar levels. Aim to get 7 to 9 hours of sleep every evening. It’s best to be on a sleep schedule that has you going to sleep and waking up at the same time each day.
Now more than ever you’re going through a stressful and unpredictable time, I get it. But stress-eating won’t numb the pain or improve your mood.
And while stress-eating doesn’t start overnight, it won’t disappear overnight either. If you want to address your eating habits for good, you need determination and focus.
Set your health goals high and I’ll help you get there! #byestresseating
