Feeling Guilty about Overeating? Don’t!

photo © 2007 su neko | more info (via: Wylio)Guilt and overeating go hand in hand, if you are one to fall victim to bad feelings after going off your diet or eating something you “shouldn’t” have eaten then you are actually contributing to your overeating problem by layering guilt on top of it. That’s right, contributing to the problem.

Many people think that if they feel guilty about overeating that it will somehow prevent them from repeating the bad behavior. If you tend to think this way ask yourself if it has actually worked? Do you notice that once you feel guilty that you are less likely to repeat the unwanted habit or more likely? Generally speaking, you will repeat the behavior again. Interesting, no?

Research shows that you are more likely to repeat a bad habit if you add guilt to the mix. The reason is simple, when you get locked in the “shoulda, coulda, woulda” mentality you produce an uncomfortable feeling inside. This uncomfortable feeling can sit inside you and build the more you focus on it.

The problem with uncomfortable feelings is that they become emotional eating triggers. Have you ever noticed you feel a sense of calmness or relief after eating something, especially a carbohydrate? Well, this is because these types of food can have a calming effect on the brain.

So, let’s put this all together…You overeat, then you feel guilty for overeating, and while you try to push the feeling down it then becomes uncomfortable and you want to relieve the uncomfortable feeling.  Annnnd, you turn to your old friend food to calm this bad feeling. Before you know it you have reentered the same overeating cycle.

So break the cycle by releasing the guilty feeling when it comes into your awareness. If you overeat and you have a moment of guilt, tell yourself that what you did was not what you wanted to do but it doesn’t mean you blew it. Then move on and look for opportunities to continue on your healthy path.

Guilt and overeating do not have to go together, you have a choice of which feelings to hold on to and which ones to release. You are in control!!

Originally published: http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/guilt-and-overeating-how-guilty-feelings-are-making-your-weight-go-up-1519367.html#ixzz16EcOVKcM
Read more: http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/guilt-and-overeating-how-guilty-feelings-are-making-your-weight-go-up-1519367.html#ixzz16EcOVKcM Under Creative Commons License: Attribution