Processing the Urge to Overeat

Same old story

Over the years I’ve done countless diets and programs. I buy the book, I sign up for the gym, I have someone tell me what I can and can’t eat and what time I can eat it. Here’s the routine: weekend splurge, diet starts Monday. The excitement and possibilities of something new. The grocery list made, the food purchased, the gym clothes laid out the night before.

I start off doing really well. Weeks go by and I start to see some results. Soon I start to rationalize eating extra food with the idea that I’ve been “so good for so long”. I start giving in when I want the desserts and baked goods, and suddenly I’m back where I started.

After 30 years of dieting, I finally called it quits. I found my way to peace with food and my body that didn’t include any lists, any off-limit foods, and any guilt. At last, I was the one in charge. I learned how to eat when I was hungry, stop when I was satisfied, and how to process the urge to eat during all of the times in between.

Imagine this:

You take your 3-year-old to the grocery store. You’re in the checkout line and just like almost every other time, your toddler asks for a candy bar. You’ve been saying yes for about 3 years, but this time you decide to say no. Tell me what happens next…Your toddler starts to throw a fit. He kicks and screams. He’s pretty mad. You tell him you’re planning on a treat this weekend, but that doesn’t seem soon enough for him. What will you do next?

This toddler is a lot like the urges we have. Of course, the toddler in us is going to be upset and throw a grown-up sized tantrum. We’ve been giving in to the urges again and again for years. The urge feels “urgent”, but if you stop giving into that urge eventually it will get less uncomfortable and it will start to subside.

Do you want to stop overeating for good?

  • Start by getting curious and present with yourself.
  • Name the feeling – What does that feeling of wanting to overeat even feel like to you? For me, it feels like an anxious feeling and my head spins and buzzes.
  • Now just let that uncomfortable feeling be there. Don’t resist it. Don’t try to change it.
  • That’s it. Just don’t answer that uncomfortable feeling with food.

Now, ask yourself this –

If you said YES, I’d love to help you along the way.

Sign up for a mini coaching session with me.

We’ll work together to find clarity about what’s keeping you stuck, plus I’ll share tools that you can start implementing immediately to get you on your way to a happier and more content version of yourself.

This is exciting and empowering stuff!

Get curious and sign up today.

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