Are You a Stress Eater?
Are you a stress eater? Answer these quick Y/N questions:
- Do you find yourself snacking when it isn’t a scheduled mealtime?
- Do you gravitate towards comfort food when you’re feeling down or criticized?
- Do you keep munchies at your desk to nibble on when you’re deep into a project?
- Do you notice that you’re hungriest when you’re most anxious or when you feel revved-up?
- Do you ever eat when you’re not hungry?
- Do you crave certain foods when you’re upset, or tired, or stressed-out?
- Do you skip meals throughout the day and then eat a large meal in the evening?
If you answered yes to questions 2, 4, 6, stress eating may be a fairly frequent presence in your life.
If questions 1, 3, 7 sound more like you, you may be eating mindlessly, when you’re bored or intently focused on a project.
Did you answer yes to question 5? Think about when this typically happens — is it when you’re under pressure? If so, it’s probably stress-related.
At one time or another, stress causes nearly ALL of us to eat more, to gravitate to certain types of foods, and to crave more sleep.
Hunger and fatigue are the body’s natural response to physical and psychological stress.
Instead of trying to stop your body’s natural response to stress, focus on solving the problem upstream!
Work on learning how to control your stress through techniques recommended by our health and wellness coaches, including mindfulness, simple meditation, yoga and other physical activity, and strategies for improving your sleep hygiene.
A good place to start: free meditation apps for iOS and Android phones.
We’ve got lots more realistic, practical stress-busting ideas — give us a call and let’s figure out which ones will work best for you.