There have been countless instances where I’ve found myself shoveling nachos, ice cream or third helpings of dessert into my mouth. Realizing my own utter gluttony, I’ll drop the spoon or the cheesey chip and think, “What in god’s name am I doing?” Because the truth is I’m not even hungry. I’m bored or annoyed or just craving something that has nothing to do with food.
It took me years to identify any of this as emotional eating. I think because almost all of my girlfriends experienced the exact same thing. We’d even declare Sunday as the “Day of Eating” which made it OK to binge on the “bad stuff,” i.e. s’mores, pizza, bagels with cream cheese, to list a few. And the next day, of course, we’d all be at the gym, furiously working off the excess calories.
Looking back, I see how incredibly unhealthy and unbalanced this was. Yet, so many people turn to food to comfort themselves. In order to forget feelings from sadness, anxiety, loneliness or boredom, they reach for high-calorie, sweet, salty and fatty foods. And usually, they wind up eating way too much, which of course contributes to weight gain and guilt.
The good news is, all of us can regain control of these habits and get back on the healthy path. Read More »
A bag of ranch Doritos, an everything bagel and a pint of Ben & Jerry’s Phish Food later, you’re lying immobile on the sofa with a bulging belly. Not only do you feel guilty and disgusting, but your breath plain stanks.
Oh girl, you’ve overdone it … again.
In trying times like these (cue the violin), you must ask yourself why you just shoveled those unneeded calories into your mouth. Were you actually hungry? Or were you just bored?
Probably the latter.
Somehow you’ve gotten into the habit of associating free time with eating. You’re done with class and you check the fridge. You take a study break and you pick up a Snickers bar. You go for a drive and and stop for ice cream. Quite a pattern.
Food’s a quick fix, but let’s end the regretful food overdoses for good and fight the boredom with something stimulating.
After tossing the fatty snacks (out of sight, out of mind!), sit down and make a list of all the things you need and want to accomplish in the next month. Hang it somewhere (in plain view!) in your kitchen. The next time you stumble upon a couple of Oreos, the list will be there, staring you in the face. You’ll be forced to reevaluate the situation.
Hungry?
Not really.
Do something on the list instead.
Not only will you get a lot more done on a daily basis (I spend a lot of time grazing in the evenings), but without the constant flow of food throughout the day, your body will drop excess weight quickly. More importantly, you will no longer hate yourself for eating until you empty the pantry.
Easy as pie (that you will not eat when you get bored).
Summer is almost here and, ideally, we should all be eating lots of fruits and vegetables and hitting the gym every day. But really, who wants to do all of that work? We’re too busy to focus on eating well. We don’t have enough money to buy healthier foods. Sugary cocktails are too good to pass up after a hard day. The list goes on and on.
The point is, in most situations, we will come up with any excuse possible for eating badly. I’ve seen it happen too many times to count, and I also definitely admit to coming up with some pretty lame excuses myself. So, I’ve compiled a list of the most commonly heard excuses. Maybe the next time you’re about to say one, you’ll think about this and make a healthier choice.
1. “Finals are coming up. I’m stressed. Chocolate makes me feel better.”Yes, finals and the end of the semester do cause a ridic amount of stress, and eating chocolate might ease the pain, but while you’re scarfing down that king-sized Snickers bar, consider this: you could possibly be causing yourself more stress. When finals are over, and you look in the mirror and see that you’ve gained about 10 pounds, you will definitely start stressing about wearing that cute new bikini. Don’t let the stress get to you – chew some gum instead. Read More »
I remember those naive high school days when puking during a rager meant that a) you couldn’t control your liquor and b) the party was over, for you. That’s why I was shocked one night during my freshman year of college, when my friend came back from the bathroom and proudly announced, “Oh, man, I just puked my brains out!”
I immediately switched to babysitter-mode. “Are you okay? Do we need to leave?” I asked, fully concerned.
“Nope!” My friend replied. “Got more room for beer now!”
At the time, this was an unprecedented occurrence to me. I’d never considered the theory of “puke and rally.”
A few years later, I’ve totally become acquainted with this practice. One summer, after a coworker tried unsuccessfully to light three consecutive shots of Sambuca on fire in mouth, I knew that that much booze so quickly was not going to be good. After the third shot went down, I booked it for the bathroom and barfed. A friend was worriedly knocking on the bathroom door, concerned as I had once been for my own friend. I opened the door, and she asked if I was okay. My response?
So maybe you’ve never gone more than 24 hours without food. Maybe you’ve never taken a laxative or made yourself throw up after eating too much. You don’t have an Eating Disorder. But how much of your day is spent thinking about food?
When you are out with friends, are you comparing what everyone else is eating to what you are eating, figuring out the calories instead of enjoying their company? Have you ever doubled your workouts to compensate for splurging on a slice of pizza? Can you barely even remember a time when you weren’t trying out the latest diet?
You don’t have to have an eating disorder to have an unhealthy relationship with food. It’s called Disordered Eating and it can be emotionally draining, physically exhausting or even lead to a full blown Eating Disorder.
Disordered Eating starts with a mentality rather than a behavior. If you are lucky to eat one real meal a day during finals week because you are so crazed trying to cram everything in, it’s not good for you, but it’s not a symptom of Disordered Eating. If you only eat one meal a day during finals week so you can at least be in control of your diet since everything else is so hectic, that’s Disordered Eating. It can present itself in many ways, but here are a few of the most common. Read More »
“Is it supposed to be this hard?” I whined to my mom in an email on Tuesday night. I remember in years gone by that seniors generally didn’t seem like they were having problems until the second semester, when the crunch really hits. But sure enough, Tuesday afternoon saw me sitting on the floor, looking despondently at the mess in my room while scarfing down Lucky Charms like my life depended on it.
Taking 20 credits, working two jobs, and writing your thesis doesn’t leave for a whole lot of free time, and that’s a pretty hard thing to adjust to. I usually like to procrastinate – I work better with a gun to my head, it seems. But now I have to work in advance, because I don’t have time to do things the way I normally do.
This weekend, I don’t even have time to drink. What is my world coming to?
As for lessons learned these past two weeks or so, I realized the value of backing your sh*t up like your life depends on it. My thesis chapter was due on Monday. I didn’t finish it until Tuesday. Now, because I have an older version of OpenOffice (a free version of Microsoft Office, essentially), when my computer decided to spazz out, I lost 11 out of 12 pages.
The next time you want to drown your boy problems in a half gallon of Ben and Jerry’s, you might want to read the nutritional info.
Newsweek recently uncovered the six most fattening ice cream flavors (Personal note: there wasn’t any real news to cover, Newsweek? Like the upcoming elections, the crumbling economy, or the War on Iraq?). Here are the results of the study, with my personal opinions on whether 6 hours at the gym is worth a scoop or two.
This should really come as no surprise. Chocolate+Peanut Butter= guaranteed muffin top. But it’s sooo good! Still, 360 calories will take about half an hour of vigorous cardio on a CrossTrainer, and can you really trust yourself to stop at the teensy half-cup serving?
Fight this craving with: two frozen peanut butter cups.
2.Ben and Jerry’s Chubby Hubby: 330 calories, 20 grams of fat
Umm, did anyone EXPECT fudge-covered, peanut-butter-filled pretzels, swirled in vanilla malt ice cream and rippled with even more fudge and peanut butter to be healthy??? Sure, Ben and Jerry might be a perfect rebound after you spied your ex at the bar with the dorm sleaze, but you won’t be able to fit into your skinny jeans after more than a bite or two.
Fight this craving with: a 100 calorie pack of Mr. Salty chocolate-covered pretzels. Read More »
Those of you attempting to keep track with me and my diet – or those who just notice the blogs as they work their way down the page – might have noticed that I haven’t been updating recently. Nothing has gone wrong, really. In fact, nothing has gone on at all, and to say that I’m disappointed and put out is an understatement.
Really, I have no reason to be complaining. I’ve noticed a definite increase in my energy level, and while I can still quite happily sleep until noon, I don’t find myself passing out during the day as much as I used to. And while my allergies are still being a pain, even my asthma seems to be less aggressive. I’ve gotten to the point where I like and even look forward to going to the gym; I’ve perfected my iPod routine and work out for the entirety of an album (double albums don’t count) before I hit the showers.
But I’ve barely lost any weight. My endocrinologist swears I don’t have anything wrong with my metabolism, but I can’t help the sinking feeling that I’m not going to reach my goal weight when I wanted to. I’m not expecting anything ridiculous, but I would like to see a little progress, you know? Read More »
Anklets are the new black. In fact they are black, bulky and high tech enough to monitor your alcohol intake while strolling down Hollywood Blvd. Lindsay Lohan has chosen to sport hers with cut off jean shorts while prior trendsetters Michelle Rodriguez, Tracy Morgan and Eve have all worn a variety of red carpet ensembles framed around ankle bracelet chic.
After Lohan got into a drunken strung out car crash just a little over a month ago a gram of cocaine was found in her glove compartment finally affirming what everyone already knew: Lindsay Lohan does drugs. How convenient that an alcohol monitoring bracelet can in fact only detect alcohol
go figure.
But on the plus side for Lindz, it has no way to trace cocaine binges, ecstasy filled weekends or some top of the line gangah. Although not drinking keeps a belligerent Lindsay off the long and winding Hollywood roads she has now been let loose on the club scene once again but this time she really is holding a red bull.
Now 21 the former child star can’t seem to rid herself of scandal and intrigue. Read More »
According to TMZ.com, this attention-starved media whore “has decided that he’s going to binge eat until Sanjaya wins the crown.”
Now, now, I know what your saying. This story is as tired as my grandmother nudging her tennisball-footed walker to the little girl’s room.
I hear you loud and clear and mad props back at’cha. But you gotta give it to Mr. Johnson. He claims his motive to be nothing more than a quest for fame. He lays it out on the level, and is pretty funny to look at while stuffing his face.
And unlike “J’ (aka Fat Ghandi) his video is proof that he not only talks the talk, but walks the walk as well.
A bag of ranch Doritos, an everything bagel and a pint of Ben & Jerry’s Phish Food later, you’re lying immobile on the sofa with a bulging belly. Not only do you feel guilty and disgusting, but your breath plain stanks.
Summer is almost here and, ideally, we should all be eating lots of fruits and vegetables and hitting the gym every day. But really, who wants to do all of that work? We’re too busy to focus on eating well. We don’t have enough money to buy healthier foods. Sugary cocktails are too good to pass up after a hard day. The list goes on and on.
So maybe you’ve never gone more than 24 hours without food. Maybe you’ve never taken a laxative or made yourself throw up after eating too much. You don’t have an Eating Disorder. But how much of your day is spent thinking about food?
“Is it supposed to be this hard?” I whined to my mom in an email on Tuesday night. I remember in years gone by that seniors generally didn’t seem like they were having problems until the second semester, when the crunch really hits. But sure enough, Tuesday afternoon saw me sitting on the floor, looking despondently at the mess in my room while scarfing down Lucky Charms like my life depended on it.
The next time you want to drown your boy problems in a half gallon of Ben and Jerry’s, you might want to read the nutritional info.
Those of you attempting to keep track with me and my diet – or those who just notice the blogs as they work their way down the page – might have noticed that I haven’t been updating recently. Nothing has gone wrong, really. In fact, nothing has gone on at all, and to say that I’m disappointed and put out is an understatement.
Anklets are the new black. In fact they are black, bulky and high tech enough to monitor your alcohol intake while strolling down Hollywood Blvd. 
It was only a matter of time. 
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