It’s incredibly common for those on a fat loss journey to initially experience pangs of food guilt.
Maybe you made a last-minute decision & ordered a takeaway which wasn’t what you’d planned for the week?
Perhaps you went out for dinner with friends and you weren’t able to *resist* a pudding?
Or you baked delicious cookies with your kid and they were just so good you ate more than you set out to eat?
It happens.
And by that, I don’t mean it’s happened once it won’t happen again.
No, I mean, it’s always going to happen.
You’re always going to go through life & occasionally eat a little more than planned and that’s going to happen whether you are on fat loss journey or not.
So what do you do, when you over-eat? Or ate something un-planned?
Speak to yourself like you would a friend – “One meal isn’t going to undo all of your hard work, don’t be so hard on yourself”
Ask yourself “am I being too restrictive?” – Are you repeating the all or nothing mentality? If yes, maybe it’s time to include some of the foods you love into your daily food intake.
Remind yourself that you are only human! These social or un-social eating experiences bring us pleasure, food is pleasurable, allow for pleasure!
If your heads in a downward spiral take a few mindful breaths & practice repeating a helpful affirmation, “I honoured my cravings/hunger and it felt good” “I made an un-planned choice today, I forgive myself and choose to move on”
If it helps you could do some mindful movement, go for a walk, get out in nature, move your body in a joyful way. However, if this becomes a habitual way to “burn off” the un-planned food please notice that this type of behaviour isn’t helpful for your mental wellness.
If tracking your calories or being mindful of your food intake you could slightly reduce your overall food consumption for the week by skipping breakfast (fasting), or perhaps reduce your food intake slightly by not snacking the next day. Again just be aware that doing this isn’t coming from a harmful place, you don’t need to go hungry just because you had a pizza with your partner on a Saturday night.
If you are on a fat loss journey right please remember that food is pleasurable and you should include some of the foods that bring you joy into your dietary intake. Repeating the same “perfect” action that you have tried to live up to for many years will only bring you more desire to self-sabotage.
Being kind to yourself is the only way you will move on from this cycle, for good
Angi xxx
