During a client’s initial session, I asked what she thought she needed to stop doing. She admitted to late-night eating, and suspected that’s a big reason why she was struggling with being overweight. But she didn’t expect what came next.
There’s something about becoming aware. About making changes. About tuning into our habits. We start to notice other things.
During our second session she said, “Heather, I eat for all the reasons!”
It hadn’t occurred to her before.
But I see it all the time. I used to do it a lot. And here’s what I know for sure: if you can stop overeating, you can lose weight and actually keep it off.
So, here are three common reasons my clients and I have experienced for eating too much:
- “Everyone else is doing it.” What?! That excuse didn’t work with our mothers, but we use it freely. From our office breakroom to our living room sofa, if other people are eating it’s easy to eat along. Practice letting other people eat without joining in. It’s okay to feel a bit awkward or “left out” at first. Once you get used to it, it feels normal.
- “It’s a healthy snack.” Ever notice that this claim miraculously makes a food okay to eat? Are you hungry? Doesn’t matter. As long as it’s healthy, have at it. But extra food is overeating. Period. Substituting root vegetable chips for potato chips isn’t going to tip the scale in our favor.
- “I deserve a treat.” Yes, you do. And you can do it without food. Seriously. Cookies and wine are not required at the end of a long day. Mostly because, like Pringles, you can’t stop at just one. Search for new ways to treat yourself well. Really well. Once you figure it out, cookies and wine are suddenly laughable substitutes for what you really want. 😉
There you have it, three common reasons for overeating.
Have first-hand experience with any of these? Or maybe the conversation spurs an “ah ha” for another reason you notice? Noticing is the first step. Like my client, once she noticed the first one, then she saw “all the reasons.” And then she could go to work on them.