Good Housekeeping Contributor Offers Some Valuable No-Diet, Weight-Loss Insights
Geneen Roth gets it. Truth be told, she got it before I did. So kudos to her.
Writing in Good Housekeeping, Roth specifically states that "wanting to change what we do with food means changing what we do without food. And often that means taking a risk. Breaking out of our routines. Doing something we've never done before. Questioning beliefs we've taken for granted, such as 'I am supposed to do this alone' and 'Asking for help is a sign of weakness.'"
I might add to her list: harboring a negative self image, dwelling on life's difficulties, feeling responsible for the behaviors of others, accepting responsibility for circumstances beyond our control, etc. etc.
Food is very frequently a surrogate -- a substitute -- for what we really crave. The ideas is to deconstruct WHY we eat when we do, and to search out other ways to satisfy our emotional hunger.
"There is always at least one thing could do besides eating, something that would take better care of you than food does," Roth writes. "How do I know this?" she asks. "Because food is a physical substance, and a physical substance can only fill physical hunger. It cannot -- and was never meant to -- provide the things that only other people can provide, things like love and contact and comfort."
Again, I would add to what Roth wrote by noting that there is always -- always -- one person in the world who you can count on to love and appreciate and be a best friend to you and that is yourself. Whatever life delivers -- and often it is a very harsh package -- if you don't let it rob you of your own positive companionship, you can fill most any emotional void.
Those who need outside emotional help have this site. And if we're not enough, there are many additional resources to help you get and stand happily on your own two feet. Once there, you'll be a much happier individual with or without the extra pounds.
-- Dean Rotbart
Founder & Editor
Writing in Good Housekeeping, Roth specifically states that "wanting to change what we do with food means changing what we do without food. And often that means taking a risk. Breaking out of our routines. Doing something we've never done before. Questioning beliefs we've taken for granted, such as 'I am supposed to do this alone' and 'Asking for help is a sign of weakness.'"
I might add to her list: harboring a negative self image, dwelling on life's difficulties, feeling responsible for the behaviors of others, accepting responsibility for circumstances beyond our control, etc. etc.
Food is very frequently a surrogate -- a substitute -- for what we really crave. The ideas is to deconstruct WHY we eat when we do, and to search out other ways to satisfy our emotional hunger.
"There is always at least one thing could do besides eating, something that would take better care of you than food does," Roth writes. "How do I know this?" she asks. "Because food is a physical substance, and a physical substance can only fill physical hunger. It cannot -- and was never meant to -- provide the things that only other people can provide, things like love and contact and comfort."
Again, I would add to what Roth wrote by noting that there is always -- always -- one person in the world who you can count on to love and appreciate and be a best friend to you and that is yourself. Whatever life delivers -- and often it is a very harsh package -- if you don't let it rob you of your own positive companionship, you can fill most any emotional void.
Those who need outside emotional help have this site. And if we're not enough, there are many additional resources to help you get and stand happily on your own two feet. Once there, you'll be a much happier individual with or without the extra pounds.
-- Dean Rotbart
Founder & Editor
I honestly beleive I overeat all the time because I just like to eat. I don't think I have any emotional issues. I am happy, have a wonderful DH and pets I love. We are not rich, but we don't mind being poor either. We get our bills paid,,we're happy. Could it be possible that some of us just like the taste of food and that is why we overeat. I stayed 20 lbs overweight since I quit smoking a long time ago but as I got older, I gained,,not so much because I ate more but because I stopped dancing and being active. It just comes on with age if you aren't careful. Next thing you know, you weigh a lot more than you did...
I have finally got it through my head, that if I want to eat the way I do,,I have to live a more active life,,so I bought one of those eqiliptal bicycles that excercise your whole body and am in the process of sitting up a garden. When I have fresh veggies in a garden,,,I tend to eat those a lot and the exercise is great.
I love your blog and I hope to be here for a while if you will have me.. : )
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We are delighted to have you participate in this blog. Welcome. We ALL love to eat. But in my opinion, overeating is an emotional response. Many foodies -- those who love to eat -- eat, but don't overdo it.
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I discovered that my overeating wasn't due to real physical hunger, but I also wasn't eating due to "emotional" hunger--it was actually a biochemical hunger. I was low on the chemicals in my brain that control mood (serotonin, endorphins), and eating sweets & carbs raise those levels and make you feel temporarily better. Once I found the book "Potatoes Not Prozac," I was able to use a natural food program to raise my serotonin and endorphin levels, and stopped overeating, stopped feeling depressed/anxious, and lost the weight.
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Dean,
Just surfed onto your website from Amazon. Thank you! Well, here's a question: what do you think of Overeaters Anonymous? I am familiar with it, but would like to hear your, or anyone else's, opinion on it.
Regards,
Scott in Vermont
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