This post is part of a super important series on Emotional Eating. Not sure what that means? Emotional eating can be much more subtle than you realize, and if you’re having trouble figuring out your food issues, it may be at the root of them. If you’re a wellness professional (or are just trying to live your healthiest life!), you’ve GOT to understand emotional eating, as it’s likely at the root of many of your clients’ issues. Get informed—join us for a free LIVE workshop “Conquer Emotional Eating: Learn the Number One Tool You Need to Implement Now” on Wednesday, December 11, 2024 at 1PM ET/10AM ET!

Jamie is a rockstar advertising executive. She is hard working in her job, hits the gym four days a week, and has come leaps and bounds since we started working together on her eating. She’s energetic and quick-witted at 5’5” and 135 lbs.

When we first started her nutrition work it was because she was newly diagnosed with hypothyroidism.

I asked her at intake if she thinks she eats emotionally, and she gave an emphatic, “No! I’m so not that person.”

I listened to her tell me how controlled she is with food, but when she mentioned eating through a box of gluten-free crackers when she decompresses with her laptop binging Nobody Wants This or another Netflix show,  I knew I would soon be teaching her how to manage emotional eating.

See, emotional eating isn’t just eating out of sadness or the broke-up-with-your-boyfriend kind of eating.

It’s also not limited to shoving chips in your mouth when you’re stressed, or overdoing the Baked by Melissa cupcakes when you get a promotion, or diving into the Nutella jar to undo a day of disappointments.

It can also be super subtle and entirely nuanced.

Do you ever find yourself eating all of the pretzels without even realizing you were doing it? That may be emotional (and not the result of a lack of self-control). Ever finish your third slice of pizza even though you were full? Emotions, baby. Emotions.

Yes, food works. Eating actually soothes rough emotional edges thanks to the role of serotonin, our “happy hormone.”

Serotonin, a neurotransmitter that helps regulate mood and promote calm, can increase after eating certain foods. The yum sensation from a chocolate chip cookie, however, is more about dopamine, which activates the brain’s reward system. Eating carbs, like those in cookies, can boost serotonin levels, providing temporary relief from stress and anxiety—but the effects are subtle and short-lived.

As life would have it, carb-rich sweets (think cookies and chocolate) trigger serotonin release more effectively than kale and chia seeds, which is why they’re our go-to comfort foods. Unfortunately, this can sabotage our health when it turns into emotional eating. The good news? You can take a step back, assess where emotional eating shows up in your life, and put strategies in place to manage it—or at least rein it in.

Here’s how to stop emotional eating

1. Identify your triggers.

What are the things that you solve with food? Are you a distressed victim when the office throws a party and leftover cake calls your name? Will your give-up instincts kick in and force you to quit before you even try to resist the french fries that come to the table when you’re out for the night with girlfriends? If you’re looking for a great way to identify your triggers, keep a food journal for two weeks. Take note of not just what you eat, but also where you are and how you are feeling when you do.

This will help you deduce what triggers you to eat. If you can look at the foods, the environment, and the feelings you were having when eating, you’ll be more easily able to create a plan for these triggers. You can’t overcome emotional eating, unless you take this first step. Once established, move on to number two and three.

2. Create controls.

If you can figure out your triggers, you can empower yourself by controlling them.  Emotional eating can be addressed with non-food controls and food controls. If you’re a night time eater, like Jamie, or find there is a situation or time you feel especially weak with your diet, pick a couple of activities that empower you. Write in a journal, do five minutes of planks, moisturize your hands, or take a walk—whatever works for you, write them down!

It may sound trite, but the power of these little things is amazing. You’ll pull this list out soon and be happy you have it.  You also want to have a couple of food controls. Better to make a positive food choice that is planned and healthful than to say “screw it” and regret it by fueling an emotion.  A couple of my personal fave food controls are: air-popped popcorn with sea salt and pepper or for a sweet food control a date filled with pb and dash of sea salt.

3. Learn the Triple D strategy.

No matter what your trigger, here’s a technique that works for just about everyone. It’s the three D approach:  Delay, distract, and disarm your way out of emotional eating.

Make the conscious decision to delay action before eating. It gives you a chance to change your course. During the delay, distract yourself. Get your mind off of the food and focus on a task, like meditating, making a to-do list, or whitening your teeth.  Finally, disarm yourself by getting rid of the trigger-related foods like chips and ice cream in the house.  If you really want an ice cream, rather than an emotional spiral, make it a conscious indulgence.  Plan to walk out to the ice cream shop for a treat you can feel good about versus diving into a pint while sitting on the couch.

If you’re interested in learning more about emotional eating, join our LIVE workshop on Wednesday, December 11, at 1 PM ET / 10 AM PT and learn how to conquer emotional eating with practical strategies directly from Keri herself.