What you wear is a key part of your Indianapolis Women’s Styling, but don’t overlook how you power your body with what you eat. Feel better inside and out with tips on mastering hunger and healthy eating from one of my clients, Susan St. Angelo.
Susan St. Angelo on Mastering Hunger
When I started working with my health coach a few years ago, she asked me to document what I ate, when, and how I felt during and after eating. The experience certainly opened my eyes. I realized some of my hunger was a reaction to feeling certain emotions. Even though my body didn’t show signs of hunger like a growling stomach or lightheadedness, I ate because I needed to address my emotions. And what I ate was never enough because I was trying to address emotional hunger with physical food.
Let’s explore the difference between physical hunger and emotional hunger.
Physical hunger comes on gradually and is felt in the stomach. When we feel physical hunger, we’re often open to a variety of foods. We’ll also cease eating when we’re full and feel satisfied.
Emotional hunger comes on suddenly and can feel overwhelming. It can lead to specific food cravings and we might not stop eating once we are physically full. This can lead to feelings of guilt or shame.
If you are struggling with emotional eating, here are some strategies you can try.
- Question your hunger to identify the root cause. Is it stress, boredom, depression, or anger?
- Keep a food diary on your phone where you can jot down what emotions you feel, what you want to eat in response, and when this happens. Upon reviewing the data, you may notice trends in what shows up.
- Next time you reach for something to eat, evaluate how you feel and ask yourself: Am I physically hungry or am I reacting to something? The answer might surprise you. If you aren’t sure you want it, drink some water and wait 30 minutes or go on a short walk to distract yourself. Then, have it if you still want it.
- Add healthy snacks to your repertoire.
- turkey breast rolled with a slice of avocado or cheese
- veggie chips
- popcorn
- hummus and vegetables
- Greek yogurt and blueberries
- peanut butter and banana or celery
- trail mix—dark chocolate chips, almonds, and pumpkin seeds
- salt and vinegar roasted chickpeas
- Practice mindful eating. Take a deep breath and notice the color, texture, taste, and smell.
Have some of these tools ready in your personal toolbox for when life happens and feelings of stress, boredom, or anger hit. You’ve got this, and I am happy to support you on your wellness journey just as my health coach supported me on mine.
Hope this helps. Take care.
Susan St. Angelo
Integrative Health Coach @ Susan St Angelo Coaching LLC
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Keep it sassy, Indy.
Beth Divine, MA, AICI-CIC
Personal Image Consultant
