How To Deal With Eating Triggers

April Schum
Aug 24, 2017
7 min read

How often have you started a new healthy eating plan, then five days into it you get invited out to dinner with friends which caused you to derail from your plan? Then before you know it, one night of cheating turns into a whole week of returning back to your old bad habits. There are so many triggers that could lead you off plan. Such as the smell of movie popcorn, or the sweet smell of walking through a bakery or ice cream shop. Or maybe you told yourself that tonight at dinner you're going to have just one serving of pasta instead of your typical two servings, but that ONE bowl of pasta never fails to trigger your taste buds to wanting MORE. We all have eating triggers, MYSELF INCLUDED, some are more apparent than others, and there may be some that you didn't even know you had! It is possible to beat these triggers, you just have to become aware of them and learn how to out smart them. Keep reading to learn how to deal with eating triggers. I will also share my personal eating triggers and how I have dealt with them.

FOOD TRIGGERS: 1. Sweet and Salty Foods! Sweet and salty foods are BIG contributors to setting off a craving and making it hard to stop eating. This includes sweets, refined carbs, fried foods and salty foods. Examples: - 1 piece of bread may lead to 3 pieces of bread; and all of a sudden 100 calories turned into 300 extra calories! - A serving of M&M's leads to a handful of chips, which leads to eating the whole bag of chips and possibly MORE M&M's?! It's a vicious cycle that I'm all too familiar with.

How to handle it: *Avoid buying and eating that food all together because you know it leads to worse. Personally, I don't keep proceed foods or sweets in my house--- because I know my triggers! The most processed carb you'll find are gluten free tortilla chips (mostly for the hubby), and the sweetest thing you'll find is a Lara Bar! *If you're out to eat and bread is served to you at a restaurant, then have 1 small serving. Eat it slowly and enjoy it, then be done with it. If you're starving and know you won't have control over the bread before it's even placed in front of you ask the server to not bring bread to your table. *Now, if your husband keeps your trigger foods in the house (shame on him ;) ), like donuts, cookies, chips. Then ask him to store it in a place that you won't see it. 2. The Site and Smell of Food: This is a common one, especially if you have an office job where co-workers are constantly bringing in unhealthy snack foods. If you didn't see it or smell it, then those snack foods would have never crossed your mind, and you wouldn't have craved it. But every time you walk by the tray of cookies or box of donuts it stares you in the eye... ok ok... just 1 bite. Guess what? That 1 bite just lead to MANY more bites every time you passed the snack table. If only it was acceptable to walk around with blinders and nose plugs, we wouldn't cave into situations like these. Examples: - Candy bowl on your co-workers desk. - Walking through the mall and smelling Annie's Pretzels. - Scrolling pinterest or instagram and seeing mouth watering food pics.

How to handle it: *Buy healthy treats for the office to share, or make less trips back to where the food is. Out of site, out of mind. Keep a stash of your own healthy foods in your desk drawer so you can fill up on good foods to diminish cravings. * If you can, avoid walking past the place in the mall with the food you'll cave into. And never go to the mall hungry, you have shopping to do, there's no time for food right now! * If looking at pics is giving you that big of a craving, then you really need to get off the internet and find something better to do! Stop scrolling and go do something active, your poor thumb needs a break! 3. Social Situations: Things like Family gatherings or parties can play a big part in food triggers. Most are likely to eat and drink more when in a social setting. But we can't live in a bubble, because after all, food is everywhere and it brings people together! Other Examples: - Movie Theaters - A movie or date night - Eating out at restaurants

How to handle it: * Instead of over paying for food at the theater that's ranges from 500 to 1,500 calories, how about sneaking in homemade popcorn that's only 100 calories? But if you get caught, you didn't read that on my blog! * Eating late at night isn't a habit you want to get into. But I get it if it's a special night and you want to eat a little something on your fun night. Instead of downing a pint of ice cream on movie night or date night with the family, serve other things like sliced apples with peanut butter, homemade popcorn, or an ice cream bar that's closer to 50 calories and not 300-500 calories extra. * When going out to eat don't go into it with the all or nothing mentality. You don't need to indulge in the appetizer, wine, main dish, AND dessert to enjoy yourself. In fact, you'll feel better if you limit yourself to only some of those things and not all. Look at the menu ahead of time so you can choose a healthier dish and know what you're getting before sitting down. Enjoy a glass of wine or 2 too. But skip the appetizer and dessert...trust me, it'll save you a belly ache. 4. A less structured Schedule and being bored: I find that many people have an easier time sticking to an eating plan and workout routine when they have a set schedule. Once the weekend hits, the structure is gone and all of a sudden it's a free for all. Examples: - Weekends - Vacations - Working from home

How to handle it: *Plan structure into your day on the weekends. For example, sign up for an exercise class. Make a list of things you want to accomplish over the weekend as well. *Plan the meals you're going to eat over the weekend just like you would for the week day. *Give yourself permission to relax WITHOUT food being involved. Watch your favorite show, go get a message or go get your nails done. Do something, other than eating! :) Believe it or not. EVEN I (a personal trainer and nutrition coach) HAVE FOOD TRIGGERS!

My Triggers: 1. Going out with friends or family Everything at restaurants always looks and smells SO much better than what we cook at home, because #1 it's fancy, and #2 you didn't have to do the cooking! Plus we're surrounded with family and friends (you know there will be that one friend who orders the fried cheese curds). what I do about it: If I'm really hungry and it has been a while since my last meal I eat a pre-dinner snack that consists of protein and veggies. I set myself up for more will power to skip the appetizer and dessert (If I give in, it might be just 1 bite!). I also limit myself to a couple of drinks and have my healthier meal option picked out before I go. 2. Waiting too long to eat. Waiting over 4 or 5 hours is my limit. This tends to happen during a busy time of training clients, or when I'm out and about. When I wait too long to eat, my body goes into starvation mode, my blood sugar drops and I get the urge to eat a bigger meal than normal and sometimes add in extra food that I normally wouldn't eat at that time. what I do about it: I never leave the house without some kind of snack in my bag, usually it's a serving of nuts. Healthy fats always curb my appetite and hold me over until I can sit down and eat a real meal. 3. Not eating enough vegetables and protein throughout the day. This happens when we are traveling and veggies and protein aren't as available as carbs and fruits are. When I have a carb heavy day without as many veggies and proteins, I get cravings for junk foods and to eat more often. My body is missing out on a nutrient (clearly it's the vegetables and protein) that it's used to getting. what I do about it: When I know it's going to be a long day on the road I pack raw vegetables (carrots, broccoli, sliced cucumbers), healthy fats (raw cashews, almonds, brazil nuts), and proteins (protein shakes, epic bars) to snack on in the car. When we stop to eat I always hunt down a meal that includes a non starchy vegetable. I'll be less likely to cave for travel junk food, and if I do I'll be able to control myself and have just a small serving. I realize I didn't cover ALL the food triggers, but these are some biggies. To really discover what triggers you have is to keep a food journal. I know it sounds silly, and just ONE more thing to add to your 'to-do' list, but if you really want to identify your triggers, I highly suggest you do this for at least a week. Use the notes app on your phone to quickly log what you're eating, how you're feeling before you ate it, if you ate that meal with friends, family, co-workers etc. Also take note on how hungry you are and any emotions you're feeling. Hope this is helpful in helping you deal with your next eating triggers! Be Unstoppable,