We've all had it happen. You're sitting there minding your own business, when a voice inside your head says, "You know what sounds good right now?" And the next thing you know, you're eating something you didn't plan on eating.
Identifying who is doing the talking at any given point in your head is a powerful tool in making good food choices.
Here are some of the inner team members you might encounter:
The Saboteur
The Child
The Parent
The Rebel
The Defeatist
The Health Coach
The Accountant
The Partier
The Foodie
The Best Friend
You may even have others! We'll get more into the Inner Team concept in a later entry, but for now it's important to know that they're there, and that they all have different reasons for wanting you to eat.
So, how can you become more aware of WHY you're eating what you eat? By using "The Pause."
The Pause is the foundational skill that I teach all of my coaching clients. It goes like this:
Whenever you are about to take your first bite of food, you say to yourself, "I am going to eat this _______." (fill in the blank with what you are about to eat).
What happens is, you naturally fill in the second half of the thought with, "Because..."
"I am about to eat this sandwich... because... I saw a commercial on TV and a sandwich looked good." Hello, external trigger.
"I am about to eat these chips because I am angry at my partner and I don't want to say what I'm thinking." Hello, internal trigger.
The pause allows us the space to identify WHY we are eating so that we can make a more aware choice. This doesn't mean you don't eat the food. It just means you are AWARE of why you're eating it.
"I'm eating this cookie because I deserve it after a long day." This can eventually become, "I'm eating this cookie because I deserve it after a long day. Wait. I don't want to eat a cookie, I want to sit down and relax, actually."
My clients get so sick of me saying, "You can't change a behavior that you don't know why you're doing it." Terrible grammar, I know. But the sentiment is real. We can only change a response when we are aware of the trigger.
If you have any questions about The Pause or want to share a success story with me, e-mail me at traci@tracishoblom.com
December Gratitude Challenge, Day 1: What is something about your body you are grateful for?
“Awareness is like the sun. When it shines on things, they are transformed.”
Thich Nhat Hanh