How to Combat Emotional Eating

I'm posting this, mostly for myself. It contains some tips I've gotten from Spark People. I'd love any other suggestions for this.  I am failing miserably at this.

Healthy Options to Eating When Stressed or Emotional:

• Get your trigger foods out of the house, get your crutch foods out of arms' reach
• Go for a walk or jog. Physical activity relieves stress.
• Do deep breathing and relaxation exercises
• Keep a reminder of your goal handy
• Talk to a friend
• Visit and post on the support message boards
• Surround yourself with positive reinforcers, like pictures and people
• Keep a journal that includes your best personal accomplishments
• Track your eating patterns, including when and why you pick up food. 

Healthy Snack Alternatives

• Apple or orange slices
• Carrot sticks
• Banana
• Broccoli
• Whole wheat toast
• Bran muffin
• Fruit smoothie
• Applesauce

Walking in the House

Today I have a cold and don't feel well and it is cold outside, so I decided to walk around the house and up and down my stairs for 15 min. while I made my hot tea. It worked beautifully. If I do it once more today - for my afternoon tea, I will have gotten in my 30 min. aerobics goal today. Why did I never try this before? Definitely!!!

Link to my Spark People blog entry:
Walking in the House

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Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.

Proverbs 4:23

My Weight Loss Journey

I have recently lost 45 lbs and am trying to maintain the loss. Ideally, I would love to lose at least another 10 lbs. We'll see what the new year brings.

I used the Isagenix plan. I still do 2 shakes a day and one healthy (&sometimes not so healthy) meal and do a nutritional cleanse once a week. I didn't lose over the holidays and maybe gained a little. It was all those fruitcake cookies my husband makes! Ha! But now I want to try to get back in line with the program. One thing I have learned now that I am over 50 is that if I ever want to eat anything extra I MUST exercise. We have been x-country skiing when the weather co-operates and I have been doing a Pilates class once a week and trying to walk at the mall a few times a week. Now that school has started back up for me (I homeschool), it is harder to find the time to work in the exercise. So I hope being a part of the Yo-Yo Sisterhood Diet Rehab Twitter group http://www.twittermoms.com/group/yoyosisterhooddietrehab will help me stay motivated.

As far as my weight loss goes, it is and has always been, a struggle for me. My biggest "downfall" really was multiple injuries that kept me from exercising and also depression. It took a major devastating event to get me on my journey to weight loss and to get me to start putting myself on the list (like Oprah said the other night - ha!) I had spent so much of my life caring for others and giving and giving that I never took care of myself.

So the devastating event (which I won't go into) helped me to decide to take care of myself. (That - at least - was a positive outcome.) I guess there is that turning point for each of us - and it is different for each of us. But once I started healing - I was able to start moving toward health. And it is still not easy. But I would encourage each of you to consider putting yourself back on your list. I have to daily recommit to eating healthy and I do fall off the plan sometimes. I just keep trying to pick myself up and get back with the program. So...I hope these comments help a little for any of you who are struggling to lose weight or keep the weight off.