Let me help you to take back control.

What is more important than knowing what's in the food you eat? The answer is simple. Know how and why you eat.

It is during our weakest point emotionally when the strongest food cravings hit us. We turn to food for comfort.

As an emotional eater myself, I can totally relate. I eat when I am happy. I eat when I am down. I really look forward to eating my favorite foods that bring me comfort.

The sad part is that after overeating or eating something that is not good for us, we get buyer's remorse and then feel terrible. This leads us to eating more and the cycle just keeps getting worse.

Emotional eating sabotages our effort to lose weight.

If you are susceptible to emotional eating, do not fret. With a proper mindset, you can take control of your eating habits. Get back on track and get that ideal weight that you always wanted.

It's all about your mindset.

Today is the right time for you to get your best life back.

How Emotional Eaters Can Lose Weight

1. Find something more enjoyable than food

2. Take your time

3. Know your triggers

4. Accept your feelings

5. Practice awareness

6. Love your body

7. Choose healthy

8. Sleep well

Follow these easy steps.

1. Look for something more enjoyable than food

As an emotional eater, we find that food makes us feel good. At least, that’s how we think and feel.

Appetizing foods that are high in sugar, fat and salt content, trigger a brain chemical called dopamine.

This is one of the reasons why some scientists consider food addictive. It gives us that jolt of energy that makes us feel better for a short period of time.

Just like anything addictive, in order to give it up, you have to find a replacement.

Find out a way that can comfort or de-stress you without eating.

It can be a chat with a good friend, having some “me” time, exercise or even dancing. 

I find dancing to be a good stress-reliever.

Find something that you enjoy.

2. Take your time

If you must eat, take your time.

Your brain sends out signals of fullness 20 minutes from the time you start eating.

This means if you are a fast eater, you will consume more food. The more you eat, the more calories you put into your body.

Practice eating slower. Enjoy the food. Savor its taste, texture and feeling.

This way, you will eat less and feel in control.

Savor the moment.

3. Know your trigger points

Understand what triggers your craving.

This will help you a lot in dealing with your eating habits.

Determine the situations that make you think about food. Have a strategy that will make you stay ahead with your urges.

Have a low calorie, healthy snack always available.

If a depressing situation makes you want to eat, try walking to get some fresh air instead.

Plan in advance.

4. Accept your feelings

Have you heard of the quote, “It’s OK not to be OK.”?

People think that we need to always be happy.

Our common problem is emotional avoidance. We do not want the inconvenience, the discomfort or the stress.

The truth is that all of these are unavoidable.

We just need to have the proper mindset to approach things and see things in a more positive manner.

Avoidance is a short term solution. Dealing with your discomfort is a long term solution.

Accept your emotions.

5. Awareness

It is advisable that when you eat, do nothing else but eat.

Yes, you can have a good conversation with friends while eating a good meal.

One of the things that you need to avoid is distracted eating.

You are eating because you are sad and you sit in front of the TV.  Before you realized it, you had finished the whole box of pizza, a bag of chips and tons of sodas.

Eat only when you are hungry.

Distractions take your control away.

6. Love your body

Loving your body is not being a narcissist. It is a normal, natural thing to do.

When you love something or even someone, you are going to do everything and anything to protect it, improve it and care for it.

Your body can do so many amazing things. Love it!

It starts with self-image.

7. Go healthy

Pack up on healthy foods to eat.

If you practice eating healthy then you do not have to worry about gaining weight as much.

Most of healthy food like fruit and vegetables are mostly water. The fiber contributes to fullness and healthy digestion. The vitamins and minerals will heal you from the inside out. Unprocessed proteins take more calories to digest than processed food.

Keep yourself full with healthy foods. Avoid salty, fatty and even sweet foods. These are the ones that contribute to food addiction. Drink lots of water.

Healthy equals happy.

8. Sleep well

Adults need to have at least 7-9 hours of sleep per night.

When we do not meet this need, we tend to feel tired and restless. This can affect our moods and willpower.

Eating is a response to lack of strength or energy.

Getting enough sleep is an effective way to boost our mood and gives us the energy that we need to last throughout the day.

You need sleep to succeed.

Summary

There are so many reasons why people eat.

The reality is that there should only be one reason.

How emotional eaters can lose weight is by eating only when we are hungry.

We need to discern real hunger from the cravings that our brain is creating.

Drink plenty of water. If you feel like eating, distract yourself for 15 minutes and you will notice that it goes away because cravings are just a wave of emotions.

Mark Ward from LivingSimplyEasy.com

Mark Ward runs a lifestyle blog called LivingSimplyEasy.com.

This lifestyle blog helps to shape family lives through Health, Wealth and Relationships.

He is a 7-Figure Entrepreneur with over 20 years of Business experience.

Starting his first business at age 18, he started the 1st all hip hop dance studio in Western Canada.

5 years later he discovered a need in the market for an All Hip Hop Dance Competition and created Artists Emerge which is a National Dance Competition & Convention.

Along the way his mission was to spread the message of Youth Giving back to Youth while showcasing the positive impact that Hip Hop can have on the Youth of Today.

To really make an impact of this point he produced a benefit Concert that has run for 10 years called Hip Hop for Hope which raised closed to half a million dollars for various Canadian Charities.

In 2015, he created the 1st Destination Dance Experience, where dancers from all over the world would gather to party, compete and train on a 5 star resort in Cancun.

With all the dance businesses going strong, his passion to serve as many people as possible has now led him on a path to affect more people through his lifestyle brand Living Simple Easy.

Meet Mark Ward.

Easy Ways To Turn Unhealthy Food Into Powerful Super-foods

Why does the stuff that hurts your body taste so good!? Why do you crave the unhealthy villains instead of the foods that will build you up and solidify your weight loss goals? The good news is that there are many tricks to get what you want without sacrificing your health. In fact, these hacks will turn your boring diet into a nutritional powerhouse.

Solving unhealthy cravings with healthy alternatives

Sugar

Too much sugar kills you. You've read and heard how bad it is. Did you know that sugar cravings are your body's way of keeping you healthy? Let me explain...

In a natural environment where processed foods do not exist, sugar cravings made us eat fruit and vegetables. Without these sugar cravings, we would not get a lot of the essential vitamins and minerals that only eating fresh foods can give us.

Using sugar cravings to get healthier

Don't satisfy your cravings with sweets and drinks that are artificial. This reinforces the reward response that is responsible for making more sugar cravings in the future. Dopamine, the happy hormone, is released when you eat sugar. This was meant to reward you for eating fruit and vegetables. 

Healthy sugar alternatives

1. Dates are full of sugar, but they also have a range of nutrients that your body needs. They contain dietary fiber, B vitamins (pyridoxine, niacin, pantothenic acid and riboflavin), vitamin A, vitamin K, tannin's (flavonoids and antioxidants), copper, magnesium, manganese, iron, and potassium. See how these minerals benefit your health here and here.
2. Other super foods that are high in sugar include raspberries, blue berries, mulberries, strawberries, watermelon and cranberries. Keep these nearby to satisfy your sugar cravings. They are great sources of a whole spectrum of nutrients that your body needs.
3. Honey is another great alternative to refined sugar. It does not spike your blood sugar as quickly as refined sugar, and has a few nutrients of its own. It is antiseptic, anti-fungal, antiviral and antibacterial all in one. This is why honey is often recommended for sore throats and is a common ingredient in many flu remedies. 

Milk Shake Alternatives

Here are great alternatives for those milkshake cravings that your body will thank you for:

1. Protein Shakes come in all shapes, sizes and variations. Some don't taste so good while others taste better than the real deal. Find one that is high in protein, vitamins and minerals. Avoid the ones that have testosterone boosters and creatine. These will make great (and healthy) options for the whole family - and be way better than the junk food equivalent. Almost all variants are available in chocolate, vanilla and strawberry flavors. Delicious flavors I've come across are cookies, cookies and cream, triple chocolate, birthday cake, cranberry, toffee, caramel, berry, mixed fruit and mint chocolate. Low sugar protein shakes are super healthy alternatives, instead of giving your children too much sugar.
2. Homemade smoothies are another great, tasty treat. Simply mix your favorite combination of milk, yogurt, honey, fruit (banana or strawberry perhaps?), peanut butter, coco powder or whey powder in a blender and enjoy

Ice Cream Alternatives

All of the above can be frozen for healthy ice cream alternatives! Use low-fat cream instead of milk or whip the above into a thicker mixture before freezing for best results. Another great alternative is:

1. Frozen fruit juice is a great alternative to ice lollies. Simply get yourself an ice cream mold from a baking store and pop the juice in the freezer. You lose the artificial flavors and colorants, and get nutrients along with your sugar rush!

Salty Snack Alternative Tips

If snacks are your weakness, try the following tips:

1. Himalayan salt has a similar sodium content to regular salt (slightly less), but has trace amounts of other minerals that are good for you. This might not make that much of a difference, but a little goes a long way over time!
2. Chilli pepper is a great way to add flavor to a boring meal, especially if you are trying to avoid salt. 

Salty Snack Alternatives

1. Nuts carry nutrients, essential fatty acids, protein and other nutrients that your body probably does not get enough of. Keep these handy for the times your mouth needs to chew.
2. Popcorn is a low calorie alternative for the times that you end up consuming more calories out of boredom. Bring on the series!
3. Beef jerky is a salty snack that has few carbohydrates and a lot of protein.

Burgers! Make your own and save on health.

Ever heard that burgers should be healthy because they have a balance of carbohydrates (roll), protein (patty) and fiber (lettuce)? The issues with the fast food variations make this untrue. The white rolls are refined carbs which should be avoided. The patties have less actual meat to reduce costs, and the lettuce was probably frozen to reduce transport and expiry costs. Additionally, the oil that the patty is fried in might hurt your health more than any of the other ingredients. They are high in Trans fats - the fats we need to avoid. Make your own at home using the following tips to make them healthier:

• Make the patty from lean mince. The protein content will be higher and you will be eating something closer to actual meat.
• Fry the patty in coconut oil instead. Coconut oil is not nearly as bad as the oils fast food chains use.
• Swap white rolls for whole wheat rolls. This increases the quality of the carbohydrates you are eating. Seeds on or in these rolls are a bonus. Brown rolls are also okay, although not as good as the whole wheat ones.

You should still follow a calorie controlled diet and keep a good balance between carbohydrates, proteins and fats. These meals will help to satisfy your cravings with good food that has more than just unhealthy junk in them. Think of it as cheating and winning at the same time. STAY STRONG!

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