I recently met a woman who is a self-described “stress eater.” She told me she has changed her ways and taken off 30 pounds. I asked what she does to avoid stress eating, and she said, “I take the dog for a walk. And the great thing is that she (the dog) never says no!” What a great way to handle stress and avoid stress eating.
But not everyone has a dog. So here are some other ideas: instead of eating treats at work, walk up and down the staircase. Walk laps around the mall or parking lot instead of visiting the food court. Bring a jump rope on road trips and do some jumping after buying gas – rather than buying some junk food in the convenience store. Start a conversation with friends at a party – choose the ones who are standing farthest away from the food table. Better yet – make a pact with yourself to talk to every person in the room before you leave (you won’t have time to eat!).
Here’s an interesting article on stress eating. One thing they mention is that walnuts are a healthy snack. I actually bought a walnut-dried cranberry-dark chocolate soy bean snack mix and I eat some of that if I need a little something. It’s healthy, satisfying, and I don’t need (or want) a lot.
What do you do to avoid stress-eating?