Do you ever feel like you can’t seem to get enough food? It could be a sign of emotional eating. Emotional eating occurs when we eat for reasons other than physical hunger, such as to cope with stress, boredom, or anxiety. It can lead to eating too much, feeling guilty afterward, and difficulty losing weight. Therefore, knowing the difference between physical and emotional hunger is essential for maintaining a healthy lifestyle. In this article, we’ll discuss three ways you can identify the difference between emotional hunger and physical hunger so that you can make healthier choices.
1. Identifying the Triggers
The first step to identifying emotional hunger is to determine what triggers it. This way, you can be more mindful when an emotion strikes and decide whether to address it with food or with another coping mechanism. The common triggers for emotional hunger include feeling angry, lonely, anxious, or bored. Keep a journal to track the emotions that you feel before and after eating. This can help you gain awareness of your emotional eating triggers and find healthier ways to cope with them.
2. Picking the Right Foods
By paying attention to the types of foods that you are choosing, you can learn to distinguish between physical and emotional hunger. When you are feeling physically hungry, it is important to eat foods that will fill you up and provide your body with the necessary nutrients. If you are emotionally eating, you may end up eating unhealthy foods such as chips or candy.
The key is to listen to your body! If you feel like you are reaching for unhealthy foods, take a moment to pause and ask yourself if you are truly physically hungry. I suggest keeping healthy snacks like fruits and nuts around to help curb your cravings. By knowing the top tips to prevent overeating, you can make healthier choices and recognize when your body is asking for nourishment.
3. Understanding the Feelings
Finally, differentiating emotional hunger from physical hunger can be as simple as understanding how each of them feels. Physical hunger will start off as a small growl in your stomach and steadily increase until you eat something. On the other hand, emotional hunger can feel like an urgent craving for a particular food. It may also manifest as irritability or feeling overwhelmed.
The other way you can differentiate between physical and emotional hunger is the degree of fullness you feel afterward. If you were truly physically hungry, then eating should make you feel satisfied. However, if you have been emotionally eating, then the feeling of fullness may not come until after you have already overeaten.
To Conclude
By understanding physical hunger vs. emotional hunger, you can make better decisions when it comes to your food choices. For some women, the gut-brain axis is not working right, so it’s important to be assessed by a trained weight loss (Obesity Medicine) provider. Plus, I am here to help you with women’s weight loss in Spokane and get you to where you want to be. With the right knowledge and tools, you can take control of your eating habits and create a healthy, balanced lifestyle for yourself. Thanks for reading!
