How I Mastered Sustaining Healthier Eating Habits and How You Can Too

The days of coming home from work and emotionally eating are long gone for me. It was a horrible roller coaster ride that I do not wish to go on again. The art of mastering healthier eating habits is a process and takes time but I can help get you started with just this article.

Let’s face it, food is not just fuel; it’s emotional too. We use it to add to celebrations and to help us feel better (sugar addiction). Nurturing our relationship with ourself and healing our relationship with food are important to do. The 3 Steps to Transformation were a big part of my work around this, in addition to healing emotionally and finding work I love were also important paths to achieve mastery around my eating habits. While those paths require more in depth work, let’s focus today on somethings you can take with you now;

1. Ditch foods that have labels or an ingredient list, but also, treat yourself

Ah, it’s so confusing! I know! Hear me out, all or nothing mentality never works when it comes to sustaining habits. Practice eating more whole foods 80% – 90% of the time and treat yourself 10% – 20% of the time. Your body will feel better and over time finding your balance will get easier.

2. Don’t skip meals but instead eat regularly – use the hunger scale and keep portions healthy (think twice about seconds). Eat when you’re hungry to stroke your metabolism. Listen to your body and when it’s hungry, eat. When you’re not hungry, stop eating. A lot of people wait too long to eat, then overeat and feel stuffed. Instead use a hungry scale; on a scale of 1 to 10, how hungry are you?

1-3 stuffed and unbuttoning your pants

4-6 not hungry but not stuffed

7-9 hungry

10  ravenous  

The point is to start eating at a 7 or 8 and stop eating at a 5, or within the range. Start building body awareness and practice using the hungry scale. 

3. Build your tool box of ways to de-stress by finding ways to self soothe other than food.

You can do this several ways;

• Nurturing or get a hobby
• Do something physically active – Go for a walk alone or with a friend
• Meditate
• Journal
• Take your dog to the park
• Play with your kids
• Take a bath and give yourself an at home facial
• Get a massage
• Take to a professional
• Get out of your head and help someone else

Practice makes progress. You’re not going to change your eating habits over night and never have challenges again – sorry. The good news is that these tools work when implemented consistently. Let’s quickly review;

1. Use The 3 Steps to Transformation
2. Emotionally heal
3. Do work you love
4. Ditch foods that have labels or an ingredient list, but also, treat yourself
5. Don’t skip meals but instead eat regularly
6. Build your tool box of ways to de-stress by finding ways to self soothe other than food