Gaining Weight Without Eating!

There are many ways we eat and gain weight, but do not count our eating as eating. Which of the following are true for you?
1. "Edging a cake"
2. Rearranging broken cookies
3. If it is frozen and it is not meant to be
4. Driving in the car
5. When someone else is paying
6. Cleaning off the kids' plate
7. Anything with diet soda
8. When cooking
9. Any food you do not like
10. When it is for medicinal purposes
11. Before Exercise
12. After Exercise
13. While standing
14. When company comes to visit
What would you add to this list??

Why do we mindlessly eat? One major reason is because we feel the need to sneak. This feeling comes from years of dieting and learning certain foods are "bad" and we "shouldn't" eat them. In addition, sometimes our parents forbid us to eat certain foods and so we again sneak what we are not allowed.
Also, we may have been taught to be polite: "Eat only a little." And so in front of others we eat just a little, but at home alone we eat until uncomfortably full.

Another reason we mindlessly eat is to soothe our feelings. It is too hard to tolerate the loneliness, the boredom, the anger, the sadness and so we unconciously eat to numb ourselves.

Still another reason for mindless eating is the issue of "Not being enough!" In trying to be more, to have more...there is a chronic feeling of emptiness and so we eat.

How can we eliminate mindless eating? If we can give ourselves permission to be present, to eat openly with awareness and enjoyment, to acknowledge what we feel and what we truly need, to decide when enough is enough, then our weight and eating will normalize and we can be at peace. Not an easy task! Support, education and insight is necessary. Please call me at 207 846-9053 if I can help you.