One of the major obstacles in your journey to lose weight and stay thin is stress eating. We, as people, have a tendency to overeat whenever we feel tension or other negative emotions. Some of us eat out of boredom, other out of loneliness, and some out of stress. This is all emotional eating and you need to overcome it to have any chance to really get or stay thin.

So what are some possible stress eating solutions that you can put into practice today?

1. You need to write down your stress triggers, the situations in which you become stressful and turn to eating. Unless you know your weaknesses, you will never overcome them.

2. You have to eliminate all possible stress triggers. Naturally, if you get stressed out at work, you can't quit your job, but there might be other situations which are easy to eliminate from your life.

3. Practice the breathing method before eating. Once you begin stress eating, you will not stop until you've stuffed yourself silly. To give yourself a chance to not overeat, you must pause before turning to food. You do that by counting to 30 and breathing deeply in the process.

4. Each of us has his or her comfort foods which make us feel good and calm. The problem is that these foods are usually very fat and unhealthy. To make sure you don't succumb to temptation, eliminate the foods you eat the most, or cut them down drastically. If it's not in the fridge or cupboard, it's much harder to overeat.

5. Practice yoga, meditation, and workout regularly to reduce overall stress and tension. This is a process which will take time but will have tremendous results.

If you do the 5 tips I've written above, you will gradually overcome your stress eating and never be controlled by food again.

To get a Free course on how to deal with Compulsive Eating, visit this web page:
Overcome Stress Overeating Disorder.


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=John_Davenport

Chocolate is an addiction many people suffer with, especially women. I once too had a crazy chocolate addiction where I was eating a large bar daily and would go out especially to get chocolate, even late at night. I always wonder how to stop chocolate cravings so I could leave a more balanced life, because chocolate was making me grumpy, tired and carrying excess weight.

Chocolate addiction or any food addiction isn't taken very seriously in my mind. We use the term craving, as though food can not really be an addiction like drugs or alcohol can. But it can and IS.

Chocolate is an addictive drug and targets the same spot on your brain as heroin and morphine. Although its effect isn't as strong as heroin, it still affects your brain and you still become addicted, as you may very well know.

On top of having opiate properties, chocolate also contains caffeine, theobromine (a stimulant similar to caffeine), phenylethylamine (an amphetamine-like substance) and also traces of compounds similar to THC (the active ingredient in Marijuana).

So as you can see chocolate is full of addictive properties - on top of this is usually is mixed with milk and dairy products which also have highly addictive properties.

Not only is chocolate physically addictive but it also can be emotionally addictive too. Many of us use chocolate for comfort in times of depression, stress and boredom. Emotional addiction tied in with physical addiction seems like an almost impossible task to overcome but it can be done and you can quite easily overcome the physical addiction straight away.

How to stop chocolate cravings is quite simple. You need to first learn how to nourish your body properly. When you eat the right foods you can overcome any physical addiction almost instantly. Also ensuring that you have a proper breakfast can also help with cravings later on in the day.

Second you must overcome the emotional addiction you have to chocolate, if you have it. To see and acknowledge whether you use chocolate to comfort yourself, observe your eating habits over a few days. See what triggers your cravings for chocolate - is it hunger? Is it an emotion? Once you know whether you do use chocolate as an emotional comfort, you can then start to address the issues surrounding it.

For more information on how to stop chocolate cravings click here



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kelly_Aziz

Do you feel utterly helpless around food and just don't know how to stop yourself from eating or even buying your favorite junk foods? Do you eat too much or simply overindulge in the evenings and are desperate to get your overeating resolved?

It is possible to overcome overeating. You do not have to suffer constantly with food addiction. You can gain back control with the right nutrition and emotional healing.

There is a 2-step cure for overeating:

The first step to stop over eating is to eat the right foods. When you know what to eat to supply your body with all the nutrients you need, any physical cravings will disappear. Most people do not know how to supply this nutrition though.

The second step is to overcome emotional eating. To do this you have to observe yourself through the day and see if you eat when you are stressed, bored or on the brink of an emotional problem. Emotional eating is a tough cookie to crack but it can be done if you can become aware of your triggers, what emotion you are running from and what needs are going unmet and that you are trying to meet with the food.

To help you get started here are 3 tips on how to stop yourself from eating junk food and overeating on food.

1. Eat fruit before eating your meal. If you want to stop yourself from overeating or reaching for junk food, eat a large portion of fruit before each meal. Eat as much as you desire and then a little more. Fruits will supple yourself with the nutrients it needs and also quick fuel. Usually the sweet part of your meal is dessert and comes last (it's the extra something your body needs to feel satiated, but here you are giving your body exactly what it needs at the beginning of the meal ,but nutritious sugar as opposed to refined).

2. Keep a journal. Note down how you feel before, during and after any binges or meals. Note down whether they were triggered by emotions or not. You can also use the journal as a way to let yourself feel the emotion. If you feel stressed or angry, simply write how you feel down and hopefully this will help diminish the feelings and help you avoid reaching for food as a comforter/number.

3. Don't diet. When we hear the word diet, most of us think of restriction. If you are going to choose to eat healthier foods, choose that. Do not refer to it as a diet or that you are dieting. This gives you the mentality that you are depriving yourself of things you like. Ease yourself into a healthier way of eating to and whenever you choose not to eat a junk food don't say its because you are on a diet or because you aren't allowed, instead say you are CHOOSING not to eat it. Give yourself the power and you will find resisting temptations to be a lot easier and more rewarding.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kelly_Aziz