“If no one saw me eat it, it didn’t happen.” My weight loss coach helped me realize this was the thought I was having during late night junk food binges. I was shocked and a bit embarrassed to realize I had been thinking it. Intellectually I knew it wasn’t true, but mentally my subconscious was loving the idea of getting away with eating anything I wanted.
If you’re an emotional eater, there may be some unwanted and even illogical thoughts driving your eating, too. To figure out what they are, ask yourself “What was I thinking?” after your next binge. Jot down every thought that comes to mind. Then ask yourself the following questions about each thought:
• Is it true?
• Is it serving me?
• Is it a thought I want to keep thinking?
• Would someone who loves me say it to me?
For my “it didn’t happen” thought, my answer to all of these questions was no! Just realizing that helped neutralize it so it had much less power over me in the moment. Instead of continuing to think it, I decided on a new thought – “I care about my body and I don’t give it junk”, which has been serving me well ever since.
If you’d like help identifying thoughts that may be sabotaging your weight loss, please contact me for a free mini coaching session.
