Do you remember my ‘7 days no industrial sugar experiment‘ earlier this year?
There, you can read about my strategies for reducing sugar consumption, things that could concretely be implemented.
However, there are often much stronger mechanisms behind our eating habits than we think, so that the implementation is often not as easy as we want it to be…
Before you continue reading, you are welcome to take a pen and a piece of paper. There is a little exercise at the end 🙂
Apart from the habit of eating sweets, I’ve realized that I always fall back on them when I “need” something. That means something from the outside (e.g. sweets) that satisfies me inside.
If you think you need something, you try to fill something inside with external means.
Of course, not everyone falls back on sweets. Everyone has developed their own strategy.
We’ve never really learned to give our feelings proper space or tried to understand them.
On the contrary, we are experts in suppressing and compensating. Today’s society doesn’t make it any easier for us and even presents more temptations.
Whether it’s food, candy, cigarettes, sex, drugs or alcohol, even sports. They all can harm us to an excessive (!) extent and distract us from the essential.
Have you ever noticed that easy access you have to (industrial) sugar in particular?
Not even 50 years ago, sugar was still a rare and valued commodity that was only used on special occasions. With the development of the industries, it became almost a “daily necessity“.
Always within reach and quickly accessible to everyone.
Your eating behavior says a lot about your current lifestyle and how you feel about yourself. Especially when you notice that you have lapsed into immoderation.
I know this may not be what you expected, but it simply doesn’t work to try with discipline to eat “just less” (sweets). You have to take an honest and courageous look inside yourself.
Take a paper and a pen and ask yourself now, not later, but NOW:
In which area of life aren’t things going as well as you would like them to?
Is it loneliness or inner emptiness? Dissatisfaction? Frustration or stress in any area of your life?
What are you trying to compensate with your diet?
In order to be able to examine this more closely, I have compiled a circle of life for you below, which you are welcome to print out.
Rate the different areas of life from 1-10.
The higher the number, the more satisfied you are in that area of life. That means, for example, if you don’t have a partner but you’re happy with that, you’ll give a high score.
If you’re struggling with this, then I recommend that you observe your eating behaviour for a week or two. When you’re craving sweets, question whether there was a particular trigger. Did you have a fight? Stress at work?
More importantly to question:
How do you think this will make you feel?
Is it security, a sense of community, feelings of happiness or perhaps relaxation?
That’s essentially what it’s all about. Discovering your dependencies will help you strategize, because what you’ll need, especially for the first few weeks, are healthier alternatives that give you the same feeling, whether it’s mental, emotional or physical.
Healthier alternatives will be the topic of my next blog entry!
Until then, you might want to observe yourself first, if you like. Especially if you already realize that your desire for food is not caused by hunger.
Take care!
Tara