Struggling with comfort eating while you’re at work? Deep down, you probably know that you’re not genuinely hungry, but you snack anyway. Ready to start breaking the cycle? Here are some tips for beating stress eating at work.
Are hidden beliefs playing a part?
Comfort eating is linked to your emotions. If you’re bored at work, feel unappreciated or are having too much pressure piled on you, you may be turning to food to deal with the emotions.
It can go a lot deeper than this too, and hidden beliefs can also play a big part. Maybe you’re lacking confidence in your abilities and the anxiety that this creates pushes you towards comfort eating. Or maybe you believe that you must go above and beyond in your job role and are on the fast track to burnout as a result.
Whatever the situation, dealing with these underlying factors is super important for helping you to stop comfort eating at work. Without this, you’re likely to carry on comfort eating.
Don’t eat lunch at your desk
Always tend to eat while you’re still at your desk? Multitasking means you’re not going to be paying much attention to your food and it’s gone before you know it. You’re also a lot less likely to get the message that you’re full and will carry on eating.
Make a point of getting up and going elsewhere for your lunch break. Ideally, this will be somewhere that won’t offer distractions so you can concentrate on what you’re eating and being mindful with your approach.
What you eat for lunch can be important. Filling up on protein and vegetables can help to stop you snacking.
Whatever you do, don’t work through lunch altogether. Skipping meals is a surefire way to encourage unhealthy snacking in the afternoon.
Don’t take unhealthy snacks into work
On a practical note, it’s a lot more effort to comfort eat if you don’t have unhealthy snacks to hand at your desk. If they’re there, you’re probably going to eat them! Not taking unhealthy snacks into work is one of the easiest ways to avoid mindless snacking. If you do feel like snacking in between meals, swap unhealthy choices for more nutritious options.
Think carrot or pepper sticks, rollups filled with healthy choices, vegetable muffins (zucchini and carrot work well here), rather than cookies, potato chips and other fat and sugar heavy snacks.
Drink herbal tea
Staying hydrated can be important for curbing cravings because thirst can often be mistaken for hunger. Water is a great choice, but herbal tea can also help. There’s a lot of varieties to pick from so you’re sure to find one that helps to fight cravings, even for sweet ones. Plus, the physical act of holding the cup in your hands can distract from them too.
Keep everything unhealthy focused in one place
In the typical workplace, there isn’t a designated place for unhealthy treats and snacks and that can make it hard to stay away from them. If you don’t want to risk being tempted, see if you can persuade the powers-that-be to keep one area allocated for this so you can avoid it. You can do something similar if you work from home by keeping all your guilty foods in one specific place… preferably one that isn’t within easy reach.
Get an accountability buddy
Feel like you need a helping hand to beat emotional eating at work? See if you can get a co-worker involved – preferably one that wants to stop comfort eating as well. Commit to eating a healthy, nutritious lunch together and have each other’s backs when you’re struggling. If you work from home, get a like-minded friend to check in with you regularly for the same effect.
Use visualization techniques
Walk yourself through your ideal workday from a visual point-of-view and imagine yourself avoiding comfort eating. “See” yourself as a healthy, energetic person who is completely in control of their eating patterns. Use visualization techniques first thing in the morning and whenever you feel your willpower starting to wane.
Use affirmations
Affirmations are another tactic you can use to curb stress eating at work. When you feel the urge to reach for comfort food, repeat positive affirmations to yourself. This can be as simple as saying “I only eat when I’m hungry” or “I have the power to control my cravings.”
Bring fear into the equation
You can also use visualization techniques to shock your mind into ditching comfort eating. Think about one of the major downsides that could happen as a result of your eating habits. For example, obesity and serious health conditions such as diabetes or heart disease could be your trigger. Whatever you choose as the shock factor, let your imagination run wild as you visualize what this would mean. If you bring enough fear into your visualization and make it seem as though it will be all too real if you go ahead and comfort eat, it should make snacking seem much less appealing!
Walk yourself through your ideal workday from a visual point-of-view and imagine yourself avoiding comfort eating. “See” yourself as a healthy, energetic person who is completely in control of their eating patterns. Use visualization techniques first thing in the morning and whenever you feel your willpower starting to wane.