Why Changing Eating Without Emotions is Pointless

Trying to change habits without examining them emotionally is pretty pointless because it won’t last.

However, experimenting with changing the behaviors you’re drawn to and feeling about them emotionally can produce lasting change.

There are many aspects of addictive/compulsive behavior with food that you could experiment with, such as:

-Waiting until you are physically hungry to eat (a good quote to reference: “Being hungry is like being in love: If you don’t know, you’re probably not.” -Geneen Roth)

-Eating until you’re satisfied but not stuffed (eating until you’re 80% full is recommended)

-Not eating or drinking anything other than water or tea within 3+ hours of bedtime

-Eating healthy, unprocessed plant-based foods instead of processed and heavy foods

These are behaviors most everyone is trying to change. We rarely reflect on how we feel about changing these behaviors when we actually try to change them.

Ask yourself,

“How do I feel emotionally about waiting until I’m hungry to eat?”

“How do I feel emotionally about eating only until I’m satisfied and not until I’m stuffed?”

For example, you might find that waiting until you’re hungry makes you feel unloved.

You might find that not eating until you’re really full makes you feel disappointed.

You might find that not eating within a few hours of bedtime makes you realize how lonely you feel and how much you want to avoid that feeling.

You might find that eating healthy, plant-based foods doesn’t suppress your frustration about your life as successfully as heavy or sweet foods do.

It’s denied and repressed feelings that drive our behaviors, not “mindset”, willpower, convenience or habit. So reflect on how you’d feel emotionally if you consistently adopted these healthy habits.

Photo by Markus Spiske via Unsplash