Written by Jenn Hand, Holistic Nutritionist, Board Certified Health Coach, NBC-HWC
“How can I stop obsessing over food and weight!?”
In the throes of my battle with bingeing and dieting, there is one thing I desperately wanted: learn how to stop obsessing over food and weight.
I thought about what I was eating, not eating or should be eating 24/7. Thoughts of my body, shame of weight gain, self-consciousness around how I looked in clothes consumed my waking hours. Over time, as my obsessive thoughts eased and my feeling of space expanded, I felt more and more free. Below are the tips that helped me most!
Here are a few tips to help stop focusing on weight:
1. Measure yourself by more than your size
If we only see our physical reflection as who we are, we fixate more on weight. Can you go beyond the scale and your size? What else makes you YOU? It can be helpful to explore journaling, affirmations, meditation and other ways to go deeper into who you are as a person.
2. Focus on health rather than weight.
You can cultivate healthy lifestyle choices without it being directly focused on weight. The more we obsess over “results” or trying to “fix” our bodies, the more we feel out of balance around food. Instead, can you make health the main theme? Rather than choosing exercise or food to achieve a certain weight, can you choose based on how nourishing it feels to your body?
3. Ditch the scale
I mean this in a literal sense! Throw it out, hide it under a heap of clothes in the closet or lock it away some place where you don’t see it. Giving up the scale was life changing for me and helped me immensely to shift my focus off of weight and the roller coaster of emotions around weighing and into living.
Here are a few tips to help you stop obsessing over food:
1. Aim for balance, not a diet
When we go on something, we inevitably go off. And each and every diet we start, we “fail,” and then we get caught in a cycle where we become even more obsessed with controlling our food. Whatever you do, resist the temptation to diet! Aim for balance and nourishment instead.
2. Explore satisfaction in how you eat
The more satisfied we are, the less we think about food later. What contributes to feeling satisfied after a meal? Ensuring you’re having enough protein, eating foods you genuinely like, and listening to what your body needs fuel wise.
3. Look at taking care of yourself vs controlling your food
When we can shift into a mindset of “care” it feels very different than “control.” Control feels rigid, harsh and filled with rules. Learning to take care of the body feels nourishing, curious, and gentle. You can still eat healthful foods, it’s just about learning to care for yourself rather than control yourself!
Read More
🌷 How to Have Willpower with Food
🌷 What to Do After a Binge Relapse
Work with a Binge Eating & Holistic Nutrition Coach
Overcome Bingeing and Emotional Eating, and Break Up with Yo-yo Dieting
Working with a binge eating coach and holistic nutritionist can help you get free from the frustrating binge and restrict cycle and stop yo-yo dieting.
You don’t have to be obsessed with food or have a million rules around eating to find your natural weight and learn to love your body. Ready to actually see a lasting change and experience true freedom?
Learn about Binge Eating CoachingAbout the Author:
Jenn Hand has been helping women like you become normal eaters since 2015.
She’s worked with thousands of women, helping them to balance their bodies, end bingeing, stop obsessing over food, and start feeling amazing again. As a board-certified health coach and holistic nutritionist, Jenn knows how to support you in making real positive changes that last.
Her articles have been published on Mind Body Green, Tiny Buddha, Thrive Global and other local and global media platforms. She’s the author of How to Be a Normal Eater and the creator of The Normal Eater’s Club program. Listen to Jenn’s advice and tips on the Cake Doesn’t Count Podcast, or read more of her articles for free on the Food Freedom Blog.
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