What causes people to overindulge? Why do bright and smart people continue to overindulge and become fat and flabby? There really is no answer to these questions. Most of the time however, overindulgence has less to do with actual physical hunger and more to do with the individual’s emotional state of mind.
Again, the reason why most people find it difficult to stick to a diet has more to do with emotions than physical reasons. Isn’t it high time that you thought about why you have been failing in your diet programs? Now is the point that you should bring to an end the huge control emotions have over your diet!
There are chemicals in our central nervous system that trigger a variety of emotions like joy, elation, worry, depression and so on. There are certain feel-good secretions which, when coursing through our system, make the world seem a rosy place. When there are less of these, they immediately make us feel low and the direct consequence is a longing for food.
The food our system desires at such times is rather unhealthy. The body craves starchy, fatty food, full of sugar or salt. Such negative feelings therefore control your diet and derail it by attempting to attain the emotional high you would get otherwise from the chemicals in the brain.
So what are these emotions that mess up your diet schedule by overindulgence? Are you tormented by uncontrollable longings for ice cream when depressed? Do you perhaps find yourself automatically picking up the cookie jar when you feel forlorn and friendless? Whatever it may be, it is up to you to understand that you long for these food props when you feel edgy or unhappy. It is clear that your negative emotions are ruling your diet and thus your life.
You may find it hard to believe, but journal or diary writing is being used more and more as a tool for emotional therapy. These journals can help in stemming the failure of your diet. Make it a daily routine to note down your feelings. If it has been an exceptionally emotional day, make sure that you describe it well in detail.
Try to pinpoint just what precisely caused you to indulge in those chips or cookies, knowing perfectly well they had no place in your diet schedule. Knowing the answer, can help you deal with such destructive emotions and consequently prevail over them.
Granted, life is full of forbidden attractions and distractions and it is all too easy to fall prey to the many inducements to neglect our diets. We tend to follow our emotions blindly and as a result overeat shamelessly. Nevertheless, in the interests of our own health, it is vital that we take control of our emotions and not let them control us.
