Do you find yourself eating all the time you are bored? You are not alone. The urge to eat whenever you are not engaged in something is a common phenomenon in many people. The good news is that there is a solution to the problem.
In this article, I’ll share practical tips and learn how to stop eating when bored for your health. Failure to control the urge to eat can lead to obesity which is a health risk.
Eating when bored is a mental-related issue; thus, to address the problem, you ought to address the control of your mind. It would help if you distracted your mind from the quest to eat whenever you are bored. It is a situation I have overcome by practicing the below tips.
- Identify your triggers
To stop eating when bored, you have first to identify what triggers you to eat at that time. It is certainly imperative impulses lead you to start eating without thinking. Something makes you get up and head to the fridge, and you are not hungry. When you identify what triggers, you will be one step away from stopping the habit of eating when bored.
Among the common trigger are watching and you see people eating. Your mind gets the idea to eat and prompts you to and to the fridge and grab a snack or something else. Another trigger is habits like you areused to getting from work, and the first thing is to get home and open the fridge.
Being conscious of your eating habit will help you manage what trigger you to eat when bored. You can make it practical by writing down all the possible triggers and start working on them.
- Drink Water
Water is life! Chances are you are not drinking enough water, and your body thus needs water demands to eat to get water. Water, more so, will make you eat less as you get your stomach to be full. Furthermore, when you feel you need to eat, it is better to grab a glass of water ratherthan an end to the fridge.
Water is essential to the body, and it is better to use it whenever you are bored to beat the habit of eating. If you feel water is not ideal for you, try tea or coffee. However, don’t add too much sugar and avoid sugary beverages.
- Chew Gum
Sometimes it is hard to stop at once the habit of eating as your gut is already used. But you can try to get your mind and gut you are eating by chewing gum whenever you feel like eating because you are bored.
The mind will think you are eating like you are used to, and that urge to eat will be satisfied. More so, chewing gum has other benefits, such it research reveals it increases your level of attention, triggers a better mood, and increases your productivity.
- use a distraction
Another way to stop eating when you are bored is to find something to distract your mind. A distraction will assist in focusing your mind on something else and forget the urge to eat. For many, when bored, it is time you feel hungry, but in a real sense, you are not hungry. It is the mind misleading you to eat.
You can adopt several distractions to take your mind somewhere, such as listen to music dance or read a book. These activities will make your mind busy and forget all about eating.
- brush your teeth
After you are done eating, it is important to brush your teeth with mouthwash or any other products you use. After washing the mouth, your mind gets the signal you are done eating. Besides, after washing the mouth with toothpaste, the food tastes bad; hence will curb the craving to eat.
- Eat enough protein and healthy fat.
Sometimes what you eat may also contribute to the habit of eating when you are bored. It is important to curb or stop eating sugar and food with high levels of carbs.
You ought to eat food with enough protein, which helps in bodybuilding. Additionally, also try to use healthy fat and without forgetting to eat enough fiber. Eating a balanced meal makes your body get all the required nutrients.
- Plan your meals
You have to go a step ahead besides eating a balanced diet, also plan your meals. You have to plan what to and when to eat. Include all the meals and also snacks you require. Through planning, you’ll control what you are eating, when and the quantity without forgetting quality. By knowing all these aspects, you can control your appetite as you are limited.
If you follow your plan for like two months, the mind will adapt and will start seeing you have no urges to eat even if you are bored. It is all about controlling your mind.
- Find happiness elsewhere
There is one disputable fact about food; it gives our body happiness and nourishment. Thus, even if you are planning to control the habit of eating when bored, your action plan should not make you starve or leave your body not satisfied.
There are other activities you can engage in to give your body the satisfaction it was drawing from eating food. These activities include exercising, reading a book, watch a favorite show or do something you love. The main focus is to give your body the same excitement when eating and trigger the endorphins.
Final thoughts
The journey to stop eating when bored is not a one-day affair. It will take time, and you need to be patient. Also, don’t go hard on yourself; comes up with an action plan and implement it. With time you’ll realize the urge will go away. Most important is that you have realized you have a problem. Now give a try the above tips and will notice a change with time.
