Do You Struggle with Your Relationship to Food? Try These Proven Strategies
- Author: Teresa Boehm
- Posted: 2024-08-28
An unhealthy relationship with food can manifest itself in a number of ways, including the development of eating disorders, a reliance on yo-yo dieting, and more. Cultivating a healthy relationship with food will spill over into other areas of your life in positive ways. Here are five proven ways that you can maintain and support a healthy relationship with food for a happier life.
Keep a Food Journal
One of the best ways to discover how what you eat and crave is linked to your emotions is to keep a food journal. Writing down everything that you eat and how you are feeling at the time that you eat can help you to find patterns in your eating habits. For instance, you might determine that you eat unhealthy food when you are sad or stressed. If you recognize these feelings coming on, you will then be able to proactively avoid your biggest diet pitfalls by replacing them with healthier activities such as going for a walk.
Avoid Labeling Foods as Good or Bad
It is not unusual to automatically label foods as either good or bad in your head. Putting food into these black and white categories gives what you eat too much power over you. Just because you indulge in a basket of fries, it does not mean that you are a bad person for eating unhealthy food. Likewise, eating a stalk of celery does not make you morally superior. Labeling foods as good and bad only takes the power away from you and gives it to the actual food.
Consider What You Can Support and Maintain
Before you look to make changes to your diet, it is important that you recognize what you can support and maintain in the long term. You need to consider what you can stick with indefinitely in order for it to be a success. If the plan is not something that you are in for the long haul, you will inevitably develop an unhealthy relationship with this diet plan.
Lean on the Professionals
If you know that you do not have a healthy relationship with food, do not feel hesitant to seek out support from professionals. A good resource is to consult with a registered dietician. This type of professional can help you to devise a diet plan that will work for you and encourage a positive relationship with food. If you suspect that it is not just food that is causing you issues, you may also need to look into some type of mental health support.
Do Not Be Overly Restrictive
Being overly restrictive about what you eat is only going to set you up for failure later down the road. Instead of cutting particular foods out of your diet completely, you are better off giving yourself one day each week to enjoy a small portion of your favorite indulgences. Not ever eating one of your favorite foods is an approach that will simply backfire eventually, possibly leading to binge eating. Incorporation of your favorite foods into your diet in small amounts is a best practice.
Build Success at the Grocery Store
Your chances of building a successful relationship with food begin at the grocery store. Before setting off for your shopping, make a list of healthy foods that you plan to buy. You can also plan your grocery store walking route to avoid the aisles that include the biggest temptations. Generally, the perimeter of the store is home to the healthiest food items, such as produce, lean meats, and low-fat dairy items. Avoiding the aisles that contain processed food will ensure that you do not come home with food that will only tempt you.
Minimize Temptations
In addition to being smart about your grocery shopping, you can also minimize the temptations to fall into traps of unhealthy eating. For you, this may mean that you need to have a plan to eat in moderation when going out with friends? Or perhaps you want to choose social activities with friends that do not revolve around food and drink?
These seven strategies will help you to maintain a healthy relationship with food, encouraging better eating habits and a more positive outlook on life.
