3 Practical Tips for Bringing Joy Back Into Eating

It drives you crazy

So the loop.

Maybe it's the steady, addictive ruminating over food. Perhaps it happens most noticeably after eating dessert or carbohydrates. (The guilt can be either subtle or foreboding.) It might happen when you know you are eating stress but don't know how to stop.

The loop: I just ate x. Should I have eaten x? I want to stop thinking about x. I can't stop thinking about x. (Am I crazy?) I just ate x. To repeat.

Frustrating? An understatement.

Here's the reality: As a culture, we collectively hunger for a way to live healthily without fear, stress, shame, or other Gd diets. In some ways we know we can: we know that living health should not come at the expense of mental health or self-love at the expense of physical health.

In a word, we have to learn to feed ourselves. To nourish us with kindness from within – with devotion, love, joy and ease of being.

The payoff is great.

It's not just that we stop feeling guilty about eating. It's not just that the loop is slowly sliding off and dissolving. Instead, in this work, we free up the brain space to think about stronger, perhaps more expansive things: our passions, how we serve our communities, how we can be a boss, to name a few.

For this reason, I am pleased to give you three practical, simple tips today on how to feed yourself and enjoy eating again.

Tip 1: Home cooking a healthy version of your favorite childhood dish. My favorite way to find healthy settings for a dish is to search for “Paleo (insert dish name)”. While I'm not here to preach diet, using the term "paleo" limits your search to recipes that contain mostly whole, unprocessed foods. Eating foods you've always loved will help you reconnect with your inner child – someone most of us could use a lot more these days!

Tip 2: Get into the habit of setting a nice table. Most of us eat in a rush – scrolling Instagram, texting, or at our desks. Take a moment to add something positive to your dining area. Candles, flowers, placemats, what do you have? It will help you connect with your food and associate it with an enjoyable experience.

Tip 3: Take a long, leisurely stroll outside. Yes, it has nothing to do with food. But a lot of our food / body problems arise from giving all of our energy to others and not taking the time to be alone, learn about ourselves and just be. Walking is so nice because you can just hang out, check in and enjoy your surroundings. I like to do 45 minutes – 1 hour.

Not that hard, is it?

Pick a tip and start implementing it today. Your new engagement? It starts now.

Photo by Gardie Design

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Valerie Bisharat is a food and body problems specialist who helps women feel great inside their bodies so they can live freely. Valerie is the creator of Nourish, the 8-week online program that will help you end your food debt, live healthy, and never diet again. Register for their email community for free food and fitness tips – including healthy eating strategies, workout guides, and mindset tricks!