Jumpstart Your Fitness: Why you eat the way you do

Recognizing true hunger signals is difficult for many people. I don't know about you, but if I only ate when I was truly hungry I think I'd drop weight without hardly trying. I'm horribly prone to cravings, and I also just really love to eat. It's good times! But good times aren't always good times in terms of being healthy for you, so it's important not to indulge every time you feel like it. But sometimes it's so hard to resist, and you can bet more than just hunger pains are contributing. The way you think about food and how you feel about eating play a huge part in your failure or success at getting to (and maintaining) a healthy weight. Figuring out just what part they're playing can really help you figure out why you eat the way you do, and help you start to control it.

These steps will help you get started:

Learn your own habits. Keep track of what, when, and why you eat. Don't just make mental notes, actually write it down and ask yourself what kinds of emotions you're usually feeling when you reach for the food. Are you bored? Stressed? Tired? Depressed?

Don't try to change overnight. When you've identified some negative patterns you'd like to change, pick one and go at it slowly with a very specific plan on how you're going to change it. Gradual changes stick better than drastic ones.

Don't let old habits sneak back in. Habits are formed over time, especially eating habits. This means that they're probably pretty solidly ingrained into your subconscious, which means you'll have to be diligent not to let them "sneak back" the minute you stop paying attention. Mental rehearsals of tempting situations can be helpful for a lot of people.

Focus on the positive. It's obvious what you're giving up, but not always immediately clear what you're gaining. Keeping your goals fresh in your mind and making a big deal out of the positives (like how much better you're feeling and that your jeans are just a little looser) will help make the fact that you miss having a donut for breakfast less of a big deal.

Besides the health benefits that will become more and more obvious as you go, having healthier habits can actually end up being enjoyable, and feeling successful is always a good thing.