It has been drilled into us…

As women, we have been led to believe that if we display any lack of control around favorite foods that it’s deemed “emotional eating.”

Absolutely yes, we are emotional creatures. And yes, food is comforting.

But what if that is only a small part of the conversation when we are talking about any eating behaviors that don’t appear to be totally “normal.”

I remember so clearly a night when I was in my 20s. I was living in New York City and trying to work through the struggles that come for most of us around that quarter life crisis. I came home from work, and could not make a decision about what to eat for dinner. Instead, I opened a jar of peanut butter. Famous last words.

As I mentally unpacked the stress of my day, I found myself returning to the kitchen- over and over- for another big spoonful of peanut butter.

Before I knew it, I had eaten nearly the entire jar.

When I realized it, I felt a moment of shock. I calculated the calories and immediately said to myself…

“Wow. There must be something wrong with me. I must have some serious emotional problems because I just ate an entire jar of peanut butter. That’s insane. That’s disgusting. What is wrong with me!?”

 And for many, many years I believed all of my struggles around food were caused by my emotions. Because if I can’t control myself, it must be emotional eating, right?

I then went through yearsof traditional talk therapy. When I reached 40, I realized that I wasn’t making any progress with this approach. Talking out my emotions with counselors did help to some degree, but I would still have powerful episodes of massive cravings and lack of control around certain foods. Around the same time, I was learning more about the power of stabilizing blood sugar by eating the right amount of carbohydrates, protein, and fat throughout the day.

#GameChanger

Once I learned the very intelligent system of eating the right amount of the three macronutrients - carbohydrates, protein, and fat – my symptoms of “emotional eating” pretty much disappeared.

#Truth

After coaching women for over 25 years, I am now coming to realize there might be a very painful and powerful epidemic at hand….

Could it be that you are turning to sugar and comfort foods simply because your body doesn’t have the fuel that it needs to function properly?

Established laws of human physiology have already proven that the human body absolutely must have a balance of carbohydrates, protein, and fat throughout the day.

If any one of the three macronutrients are lacking in your diet in a given day, there will be fallout.

And that fallout means there willbe symptoms, whether you are aware of them or not.

Two of the most common symptoms for women are 1) uncontrollable hunger and 2) substantial food cravings.

In my coaching practice, I have worked with hundreds of women to teach them how to eat so that their blood sugar is stabilized and they avoid these symptoms.

And often, their episodes of emotional eating mysteriously disappear.

They were simply hungry and out of balance.

Could it be that you are simply hungry?

While this may seem like a very simple idea, the implications are profound!

So many of us are walking around believing that we are broken and disordered because we can’t control our eating. And this belief that we have a problem is a heavy burden! If anything, it’s the incorrect belief that is causing emotional issues! Feeling broken or disordered feels terrible! I know because I lived this way for most of my life.

Please note, I am not dismissing the very real consideration of eating disorders. I am suggesting that a great deal of disordered-eating can be alleviated by fueling your body more properly.

If you have been struggling with emotional eating and aren’t making progress by addressing your emotions, please, please, please, watch today’s episode.

I am fiercely passionate about helping women live more empowered lives.

And I am a truth seeker, earnestly searching to uncover the misinformation that keeps you from living your best lift.

If this message speaks to you today…

Check out this week’s new video below.

This Week’s Exclusive Content

How and Why You Can Correct Emotional Eating by Eating Differently

All of your vital organs are fueled by what and how you eat. In the simplest terms, blood glucose is the fuel that your body runs on.

When there is not enough of blood glucose (blood sugar), your body is forced to come up with other ways to keep your organs working and your brain fueled.

Again, in simplest terms, this leads to unstable blood sugar.

Also, if you are skipping meals, your body will not have the fuel it needs for all of your organs to do their job easily.

Skipping meals, and eating foods that cause your blood sugar to spike, both create havoc on your body’s ability to maintain nice, stable levels of blood sugar.

When there is not enough glucose available for your brain and organs, two things happen. First is that your adrenal glands get fatigued (due to pumping out too much cortisol) causing a heightened emotional state. In this case, you’ll feel even more emotional and on the fritz, above and beyond any existing emotional disturbance. You can see how this could exacerbate emotional eating.

The second is that on a purely biological level, if there is insufficient blood glucose to support your vital organs, your body believes – on some level – that it is starving. In a very ancient and outdated way, your body will send out signals that it NEEDS FOOD. And what better food that the ones that are your go-to favorites? Again, if your body thinks it’s starving, it’s going to encourage your emotions to push to you to eat high calorie, high fat foods (usually, your favorites).

And this is exactly why it’s SO important to…

1. Eat regular meals and snacks
2. Eat a balance of carbohydrates, protein and fat
3. Eat high quality, high nutrition foods

Want to hear even more on this topic? Join me live every Wednesday on Facebook and Instagram and I’ll be talking more in depth and answering your questions. Check out “LIVE with Holly” by clicking HERE.

Stay strong, friend!