
Trying to lose weight? Beware of False Hunger
Normal, healthy eating is instigated primarily by your experience of stomach contractions and the release of hunger hormones signaling to your brain that you’re hungry. Most importantly, these feelings are independent of any compelling emotional influences (stress, boredom, depression, etc.) or mindless behavioral habits. In order to stop sabotaging weight loss, you need to neutralize the faulty hunger perceptions caused by these influences. To accomplish this, you must learn to differentiate between hunger that is driven out of true, physiological need versus hunger that is driven by your enemies (circumstances, emotions, or habits). More than likely, you already know the difference, but you haven’t been paying much attention to these cues. That’s why it’s important for you to ask the question before any meal or snack, “Who am I feeding right now? My body or my mind? This simple distinction may not stop a compulsive urge, but at least you wouldn’t be deluding yourself into thinking that destructive eating is hunger-driven. In time mindful awareness will become your foundation for the self-discipline that will follow.
#weightloss #anxiety #depression