When you are upset, it’s easy to consume hundreds of calories worth of comfort foods before you even realize it. These extra calories can sabotage the hard work you are doing to lose weight after lap band surgery. Try the tips below to overcome emotional eating:
- Identify the stressors that cause you to overeat. For instance, if you find that you reach for comfort foods after a hard day at work, then it is likely that this situation is one of your triggers. Being aware of what situations cause you to resort to emotional eating can help you avoid it in the future. Be prepared for your after work snack cravings and have fresh fruit or a refreshing smoothie instead of the fattening chips and cookies so many of us reach for too quickly.
- Do not fall into the trap of guilt. Too often, we overeat, feel guilty about slipping up, and then overeat even more. When you slip up on the meal plan that you are prescribed after weight loss surgery, forgive yourself and move on. Start each new day with a commitment to eat a healthy diet and lose the excess weight.
- Make time to take care for yourself. Do you spend too much of your time taking care of everybody else? You need to maintain your own health and well-being, as well. Taking time to exercise, eat healthy meals, relax and enjoy your favorite activities can help increase your personal well-being and help you avoid emotional eating.
- Find alternate ways to relieve stress. One alternative to investigate is yoga or tai chi classes. Many are available in the Denton area. These activities help you become more fit, and reduce your stress levels at the same time. Other people describe daily walks or dance-oriented fitness classes as great stress relievers.
