Let's cut the crap: you probably know what you should and shouldn't eat to lose weight. You've read all the blogs and books, and tried many diets that didn't work.
In fact, if you google "number of diets women try in a lifetime" you will find crazy numbers ranging from 16 to 130(!!) and references claiming that women spend 17 years of their life dieting.
Whatever the number is, I am sure by the third diet, you figured out exactly what to eat and what to avoid but you just can't resist the cheesecake of mom or the "because I had a tough week" friday night pizza.
Weight issues cannot be solved with a checklist of do's and dont's. The issue is broader than gluttony, and scientists are aware that psychology is a big component in eating behaviours. That's not surprising since eating disorders are treated with psychological therapy and sometimes antidepressants.
What will really help you is to understand -and control- the triggers that make you binge on food.
Below are 4 steps to help control your eating behaviours
1.Analyse and identify patterns
Spend the first 2 weeks analysing your eating habits. Do not start your diet just yet. Try to find triggers that make you over eat. These can be
-Stress at work
-A fight with close friends, family
-Being tired
-Peer pressure, "one beer will not make a difference"
-Lack of options
-Boredom
Keep a diary of what you have eaten and the environment you were in when you overate.
2.Work on predicting the triggers before they actually happen
Now that you know what your triggers are, spend the next few days or weeks to try and plan ahead.
For example, if you know that stressful meeting with your boss is your weak point, make sure you have healthy food ready before that meeting.
3.Keep a diary of how you felt after overeating
We all have ups and downs when it comes to controlling our food intake. Make the most out the days where you "cheated" and keep a diary answering the following questions
-Was the food as good as my expectations?
-How long did the pleasure last?
-Did I feel guilty afterwards? If I did, for how long?
-Compare the amount of time spend enjoying your food vs feeling guilty.
-Most importantly: did eating solve my problem? (stress at work, feeling tired).
The more you write down those answers the more you will realise that over-eating did not bring you joy (Marie Kondo would tell you to get rid of it), it probably brought negative feelings rather than positive ones.
4.Practice, practice, practice
Studies have shown that it takes up to 9 months to change a habit. So don't be too hard on yourself but strive for the best. Every day it will be easier and the overeating crises less frequent.
Gook luck!
References:
1.https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/eating-disorders/
2.Lally P. How are habits formed: Modelling habit formation in the real worldy. European Journal of Social Psychology. 2009
