Craving potato chips or chocolate?
Your job may be to blame for why you’re not losing weight… seriously. If you’re
doing work that you aren’t passionate about and are feeling uninspired and
bored at work, there may be a science-backed reason you reach into the candy jar or hit the vending
machine for cookies or potato chips mid-afternoon.
One study found that people
are more likely to eat fatty, sugary foods if they are bored. One of the
study’s authors suggests that we experience low levels of dopamine, a brain
chemical, when we’re bored, and this could drive us to compensate by eating fat
and sugar.
Yep, I can’t wait to share this little nugget with my husband, who might actually turn into a tortilla chip one of these days, especially during football season. Thanks alma mater for your boring season that’s obviously contributing to our junk food cravings.
So, if you find yourself mowing through a bag of chips or
noshing on sugary snacks on the regular, consider your mood. Are you antsy? If
so, here are some practical tips to help you avoid shoveling food in your mouth when you’re bored.
Not
Losing Weight? 4 Things to Try When You’re Bored (That Don’t Include
Eating)
1.Sip some seltzer.
Sugar- and alcohol-free, of course.
If I had a glass of water for every time I was told to drink more water… I’d
probably be down a few dress sizes by now. But really, this strategy does work. Next time you’re tempted to
snack when you’re not really hungry, drink a fizzy glass of seltzer (or plain water if that’s your thang).
The fluid will fill you up enough so you will (hopefully) pause long enough to
think before you reach for that pint of ice cream.
2. Keep your hands busy.
If you’re tempted to snack when
you’re watching Netflix, do something to keep your hands engaged… and we aren’t talking about putting hand to mouth
here, people. Try adulating with a coloring book, playing crossword puzzles,
knitting, or even catching up on emails to keep your hands occupied and out of
the chip bag.
3. Set physical boundaries.
My hunch is you know the circumstances in which you engage
in bored eating. It usually goes down when standing in the kitchen, sitting at
your desk in front of the computer, or cozied up on the sofa. Rarely does it
happen when you’re sitting at the table, eating
intentionally with a fork.
Set physical boundaries around
food; it can work wonders to keep
emotional eating at bay. For example, if you tend to snack on the couch while
you watch Netflix at night, make it a rule that you don’t eat on the couch. Portion your food, put it on a plate, and eat it at the dining or
kitchen table. Then, you can leave the table and watch your show. Not only will
you break the pattern of snacking mindlessly in front of the television, but you’ll
also learn that making eating a more formal affair can help you focus more on
what you eat, why you’re eating it, and how much you consume.
4. Get some fresh air and do
something active.
Get away from your desk and take an afternoon walk to keep
your mind off snacking. Not only will this serve as a distraction from
boredom eating, but sun exposure and being active may also help with boosting “feel good hormones” like
serotonin. That’s a triple whammy for combating mood swings.
The key to managing eating when you’re bored is to
understand how compulsive it can be. It’s a sneaky habit that can keep you from
losing weight. You may not even realize that you snag a thin mint each
time you walk by the kitchen area at work to take a break. But, those cookie
calories can really add up over the course of the day. Keep these strategies
top of mind to fight the compulsive habit to snack when you’re bored.
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