As a coach and emotional eating expert, the majority of my clients are binge eaters, and when people come to me, they are certain that their bingeing is the problem. It’s not. Bingeing is a response and a symptom.
Many things can trigger a binge: uncomfortable feelings such as anger, anxiety, or exhaustion. Feelings of loneliness, boredom, inadequacy, or sadness can trigger binges. Or bingeing can be a response to breaking a strict food rule or from being too restricting when dieting. You may say something like, “Oh, I shouldn’t have eaten that cookie. That’s not on my diet. I’ve blown it. I might as well eat the whole box. I’ll start again
tomorrow.”
Bingeing can be a response to anticipation of future deprivation (a diet). Even lab rats binge after being put on a restricted diet and then given back their normal food. They stock up on food because they don’t know when the next cycle of deprivation is coming. Sound familiar?
Telling yourself you can’t have certain things and being overly restrictive sets you up to binge.
7 Ways to Move Beyond Binge Eating
1. Don’t Cut Out Food Groups
Foods aren’t good or bad. There is a place for all types of foods in a healthy diet. Some foods are great every day, some at every meal, some once or twice a week, and some are good once in a while for a special treat.
It’s best not to try to cut out foods or entire food groups completely out of your diet, unless you have a medical condition or an allergy. Making food forbidden makes you want it more and sets you up to feel guilt and shame when you eat these foods, which often leads to bingeing on them and then even stricter dieting to undo the damage of the binge. This cycle can go on for years and cause great emotional and physical
damage.
2. Practice the 80/20 Principle.
If you eat healthy most of the time (80%) then you can allow room (20%) for treats, birthdays, holidays, and other indulgences. This philosophy helped me to move away from the strict black and white diet thinking that helped cause my own binge eating problem many decades ago. I still practice this today.
3. Know Your Triggers.
If you’re prone to bingeing, the first step is to become aware of what is triggering your binges.
You need to keep a mood journal to track your emotions and responses. If you binge, you need to reflect on the thoughts, feelings, and events that led up to the binge.
