How healthy people get back on track after stressful events make them binge

Have you ever been working towards a weight loss goal and you finally dialed in your nutrition and exercise and everything seemed to be going amazing, but then life threw you a curveball? You have a family emergency, or you experience a job loss, you sell or buy a house, the list could go on and on. Life always seems to interrupt our goals, especially when things are going well. In the past, a stressful situation would lead you right back to your old, not-so-healthy, habits, but that doesn’t always have to be the case.

Healthy people run into these same obstacles. Life throws them curveballs too. The key to staying healthy when life gets in your way is getting back to healthy habits as soon as possible!

I know it sounds so stupidly obvious, but when unhealthy people fall off the wagon, they stay off of it until they have to get back on. When healthy people fall off the wagon, they get back on it as soon as they can. 

A few weeks ago, I had a client message me asking for help and resources that would get her back on track after going through a stressful situation that messed with her momentum and progress.

She said, “We had a family crisis and I ran to carbs hard even though I’m in my biggest cut numbers. (At least I know that about myself now). My stress level is high and I’m having a very hard time getting back on track.”

First, let’s applaud this mama for not beating herself up after she went outside of her boundaries! She recognized that it was a learning experience and is ready to move on. That’s amazing!

Unhealthy people don’t do this. Unhealthy people give up and give in to food cravings. Then, beat themselves up about it.

Healthy people, do exactly what my Macros Made Easy Mama did. They recognize that life got crazy and they work to jump back in.

Healthy people also realize that the crazy life even that took them off track, didn’t really have much to do with food. And realizing that it’s a mental block, not a physical one, helps them get back on track quickly!

Stress eating is about the food, but it’s not really about the food

We’ve been fed an unfortunate lie in our lives: that we’re unhealthy because of food. Food gets such a bad rep! We always hear how unhealthy foods are and how we should avoid them. Carbs and fats have it the worst. They are the villains in almost every diet. But when we get down to it, we need carbs, fat and protein to survive. So, if we need food for survival, then can it really be the culprit of all our health problems?  

The truth is that the thoughts and feelings we attach to food are what get us in trouble.

When you’re sad and you want a pick-me-up you don’t reach for a chicken breast. You reach for cookies, cakes, mashed potatoes. And when you eat for comfort you aren’t eating nutritionally, you’re eating emotionally.

Instead of obsessing about what you ate and swearing that you’ll never eat those foods again, look at the feelings behind the food. Were you looking for comfort? Safety? Love? What were you trying to create more of in your life?

As you start to uncover the emotions that are 1. Pushing you toward certain foods and 2. What emotions you’re trying to create you’ll be able to identify your triggers. 

My son was born with some serious health problems and I spent the first year of his life in and out of hospitals. I ate all of my feelings. Looking back at the situation, I was stressed. I was worried about the health of my baby and felt like things were out of my control. When I ate cookies and chips in the pantry, I was looking for comfort. I needed to know things were going to be ok.

If I had known then what I know now, I could have found healthier ways to deal with my stress and worry. I could have taken time to journal out all my fears and realize that some of my fears were kind of made up. I could have found someone to talk to about everything that was going on. I could have focused on moving my body to help reduce stress.

You need to create awareness of why you’re emotionally eating if you want to overcome it.

Now that you understand that it’s not really about the food, it’s time to focus on your mental health so that you can get back into your physical goals. 

Step 1: Practice understanding & grace

The first thing to do is to give yourself some grace. Acknowledge that something big just happened and that you dealt with it. If it took you outside of your normal eating boundaries, it’s ok. 

Think about if you were talking to a friend, would you berate them for turning to food? No way! You would tell them that they were under a lot of pressure and that they survived it! You deserve that same pep talk!

Giving yourself some understanding and grace isn’t a show of weakness; it’s empowering! It gives you the strength to get back up and try again. 

Step 2: Get back into a morning routine

A morning routine is an incredibly powerful tool to prepare you for whatever the world is going to throw at you. 

The purpose of your morning routine is to focus on your mental needs before you have to focus on anyone else’s needs, which means that you need to fill your routine with the things you need.

I always include journaling, a devotional and a gratitude practice as part of my morning routine. If I do those three things (at a minimum) I know that I’ll be able to handle everything else because those things fill me with joy and purpose.

Step 3: Plan your meals for the day

Remember, healthy living is 80% mindset and 20% nutrition. After you’ve worked on your mindset, then you can dive back into your nutrition.

The first thing I teach in Macros Made Easy is to plan out your meals ahead of time. It’s basic for a reason: it works. When you make the decision ahead of time as to what you’re going to eat when something crazy comes your way you have a plan to fall back on!

Plus, meal planning can hold you accountable to your goals. If your spouse comes home after a crazy day at work and wants to eat out, but you already planned dinner, it will keep you committed to your plan. (If you’ve already prepped the food it makes it even easier to stick to!)

Step 4: Remember your highest self

Mama, if you fell off the healthy bandwagon and you still desire to get back on, realize that, that in and of itself is a huge milestone. 

I love this quote by James Clear,

“Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you want to be.”

Don’t stop taking the actions that will lead you to your highest self. Every time you choose the healthy option, you’re becoming the healthy mama you’ve always wanted to be! Celebrate that! Celebrate every small step you take and soon you’ll see that it adds up. 

It took me a long time to realize that life isn’t going to be 90% good and 10% bad. It’s more of a 50/50 ratio. Sometimes things are going to go our way. It’s going to be amazing and everything will go according to plan. But other times it’s not going to work out as we want it to. It’s going to be hard. 

Obstacles are going to get in our way, but it’s how we get back up when we’re knocked down that determines if we’re healthy or unhealthy. Mama, you are a healthy woman! You know what you need to do to get back to the healthiest, happiest version of yourself, so let’s do it!

If you need a guide while you’re making your way back to healthy living, then let’s talk! Helping mamas realign their mental and physical health is my purpose and I can help you! Schedule a free discovery call and take the first step to become the healthy person you know you are!