I love the fall season and all the things that are going to happen in the next couple of months.  However as the holidays near, there can be situations that are just down right stressful and overwhelming.  You’re handling family, tons of upcoming holiday events, work and how will you balance it all?  Often times we push down these emotions and feelings or we get into a habit of eating out of stress.

Over the last year I have really tried to manage my eating habits and create a routine that revolves around mindful eating.  I want to know exactly what I’m putting in my body.  This is something we can control completely.  Here are some helpful ways that I’ve learned to deal with stress eating over the last year.

10 ways to Handle Stress Eating

1.  Change up your routine and habits.  The only way to make a difference in your eating is to change what you do on a daily basis.  A lot of things we do are out of habit.   This is often hard to do because we are creatures of habit and we get comfortable in our daily routines.  But you will never change your weight if you don’t do something different.
2. Don’t continue to buy the foods that are your “problem foods.”  I think it is very hard to resist things that include cinnamon.  Things like churros, cinnamon toast, and cereals with cinnamon included.  So I just don’t buy these things.  I know I can’t resist these so I don’t even bring them in the house.
3. Plan out everything.  When it comes to organization, I’m your girl.  I am constantly making lists to keep myself ready for the week.   Keeping your business on track, your personal goals, and your weight loss goals are all very similar.  Write down what you want to accomplish and plan your attack to accomplish your goals.
4. Keep yourself distracted.  If you have a craving get involved in an activity that will distract you and keep your hands and mind busy.  You can do a load of dishes or laundry.  Go for a walk.  Clean out a closet or something you enjoy doing.
5. Plan something to look forward to.  Sometimes we work harder if we have something we are working toward.  Maybe you want to wear a bikini at the beginning of the summer. Maybe you want to wear a hot looking dress to your 20th high school reunion.  Plan something to work toward to give you a reason to stay motivated.
6. Deal with chaos in your life. If you have a ton of clutter in your home it really does affect other areas in your life.  If you can clean up the mess and get organized you tend to feel super accomplished and motivated.  You want to continue on with getting organized in other areas.  This is a great time to take on a weight loss journey.
7. Learn a new skill or get a hobby.  Learning something new or practicing something you love can make you really happy.  It also takes time out of your schedule that you’re not sitting around thinking about food.
8. Write out a “to do list.”  Putting everything in your calendar and then writing a schedule of your exercise, meal planning, and menus really helps when you are feeling like throwing in the towel.
9. Exercise helps in so many ways.  Exercise has become more to me than just a weight loss tool.  I really crave my exercise time as “me time.”  I need that to clear my head and feel good, calm and grounded for the day.  I am a morning exerciser so I think it really sets the tone for the day.
10. Remember why you started.  Don’t give up!!!  You will thank yourself several months from now when you handled that stressful moment and didn’t give in.  Use a coping strategy and keep going instead of giving in.  I have always liked that saying “Something you’ve craved for an hour or the body you’ve craved your whole life.”

I hope some of these tips were helpful and maybe as you are in the thick of the holiday season this post will be helpful in some way.   Thanks for taking the time to stop by.