Eating Your Feelings?

Who here copes with life's ups and downs by eating?

Me!!!!!!!

Eating is just very comforting. I love food! As I have gotten older, I actually have more appreciation for good food and so I love to enjoy it. There is little more that I enjoy more than going out for a good dinner and drinks with my husband. I do not want to be a person who cannot indulge in the good things in life, including food.

Here's the problem, though - there has to be balance! I historically will come home from a long day of work and just pick up the first thing I see because I'm tired and starving. And the first thing is usually animal crackers, popcorn or Taco Bell burritos I grabbed on the way home. When I am stressed, tired, and irritable, it takes too much time to make something healthy. It really takes a conscious effort to beak this habit.

Boredom is my biggest enemy. Because I work a lot, when I'm off I just want to veg out with my dogs. And the more I sit around, the more I snack, snack and snack. I will eat till I feel sick, just because it's in front of me.

Using a food tracking app has really helped me personally avoid this pitfall and stop the detrimental snacking. 

When I saw how many horrible, empty calories I was eating a day, it really triggered the guilt for me and it has helped me get control. 

And to go along with it, I have changed the foods I snack on. Berries are my favorite snack to have on hand. They are naturally sugary and a much better alternative to eating processed snack foods. So, now the blueberries are the first thing I reach for when I come home.

I know other people who will do one day of cooking and meal prep for the whole week. This is anther great strategy that eliminates the chaos of finding something decent to eat at the end of the day.

I still have my emergency stash of nutty bars... but I haven't had to reach for them lately. If and when I do, I am not going to beat myself up! I am not perfect! As long as I keep working on it everyday, that's what matters.