Disrupt Your Boredom Eating with These Little Practices

OK … you may have tried some things already. But here’s some more specifically targeted to the three reasons for boredom eating that we discussed in the last article. My advice … read through all these practices and then go back and do the ones that resonate with you. Because not all practices will work for everyone. Because we’re all different and have different ways to accomplish what we want to do.

Which brings us to our first practice. FIRST … what’s your INTENTION for doing any of these practices? If you want to lose weight, ask yourself “What’s my DEEP WHY?”. Because it has to be a much better reason than getting into a size 8 dress for a wedding. Take a few moments and focus on your breathing like I suggested in the last article, then grab a pad or your journal (for these practices I’d DEFINITELY recommend that you get a journal if you don’t have one to write down these processes or, if they’re physical or mental ones, write what you learned when you’ve finished them). It might take a few minutes … or even a few hours … to come up with the REAL reason why you want to come to terms with your boredom eating.

OK … let’s go on …

Three Practices to Be with Yourself.

1. Find Your Intention. You may not have known it but the act of finding your intention is an act of being with yourself. Because, hopefully, you’re found a place in your house without distractions or noise, closed the door, sat with your journal, and kept writing the answer to “What’s my DEEP WHY about stopping boredom eating?” When you think you know the answer, put it in a statement. The statement should be positive and include the word “now”, such as “I want to stop boredom eating to start loving my body NOW.”

2. Spend Time with You. Plan a non-eating activity that you LOVE to do all by yourself, like reading a favorite book under a shady tree, listening to some soothing music, walking in a beautiful setting, or just kicking back and watching something on TV or a DVD of a favorite movie. If you live with others, tell them it’s your me-time and they need to leave you be.

3. Do Some Yoga or Tai Chi. Both of these promote inner focus and peace while providing some excellent benefits including body conditioning and better health. And they’re something you can do in a group with your family and still spend time with yourself. You can also buy great getting-started videos; I’m watching one right now.

Three Practices to Expand Spirituality.

1. Explore your REAL Hunger. I know that this doesn’t sound very spiritual but taking a moment to look at your food, eat slower, and check out your hunger on a scale of 1 to 10 every few minutes so that you stop eating when you’re satisfied (about a 7 on this scale) is really a spiritual practice that connects your Magnificent Self with your eating. It’s mindfulness in all its glory. And what could be better than that!

2. Go to Some Sort of Spiritual Meeting. There are TONS of them available, from traditional church services to groups that summon angels. If you don’t live in a highly-populated area, they’re also available on TV, online, and just about anywhere. I’ve never come away from one … and I’ve attended some where I instantly wanted to flee … where I didn’t learn something about my spirituality. I also learned what didn’t work for me too.

3. See movies like “The Secret” or “What the Bleep Do You Know” and Read Spiritual Books. I used to make at least monthly pilgrimages to The Bodhi Tree, the seminal bookstore where Shirley MacLaine said in her book, Out on a Limb, that she began her famous spiritual journey. It closed in 2010, so I miss hanging out there for hours on end drinking herbal tea and perusing thousands of books to find the ones that resonated with me. Sometimes they even fell into my hands as I stood there.

The Bodhi Tree is now back … online. So I’d suggest visiting or, better yet, perusing books that you find there on Amazon as you can “Look Inside”. It’s not as wonderful as hanging out in the bookstore itself. But the books are definitely the same.

Three Practices to Trick your Dopamine into Flowing

1. Have Fun! We forget in our busy-ness that having a good time and, especially, laughing, are crucial to balance in our lives. Many of my disordered eating clients are so caught up in their rituals that they don’t know what fun is; they need to retrain their sensibilities for mirth. So go out and do some activity that you absolutely adore. One that tickles your funny-bone.

2. Try Mindfulness or Meditation. Most people like one or the other. Because meditation is very internal and it takes some time to quiet your psycho-babble. Mindfulness, however, connects you with everything around you, including food. It enables you to discover satisfaction, both with what you’re eating and what you’re doing. All you have to doing is take some time to notice everything around you … not only what you see but also what you hear, smell, touch, and possibly taste. Easy-peasy.

3. Rise above the Pleasure Trap. Everything doesn’t need to be hunky-dory 100% of the time even though we humans do have a tendency to seek pleasure and avoid pain. So surrendering to the idea that you may be sad or depressed at times … and that it’s OK … can short-circuit your dopamine-doldrums.

You can turn on that tricky neurotransmitter by doing meditation, mindfulness, Yoga, Tai Chi, martial arts, finding the humor in things, or any other positive daily practice. In other words, awareness of any type … be it spending time with yourself, searching for your spiritual center, or understanding the ins-and-outs of dopamine-deprivation, ultimately puts the kebosh on boredom eating.

So, after reading all this, what are you willing to try? If you do, at least you won’t be BORED!

Leave Your Comments About I Eat Because I’m Bored TOO … What to Do? Below

What have you tried to counteract boredom eating? Has it worked? What are you willing to do after reading this article?