Emotional State and Weight Loss

It is amazing how much your emotional state can affect your ability to lose weight. Although losing weight may simply be a matter of eating less and exercising more, so that you create a calorie deficit, this does not take into account the relationship you have with food. If you're the type of person who turns to food when you're feeling depressed or stressed, of course the battle to lose weight is going to be harder. For some people, it is the other way around - they feel down and no longer have the desire to eat. Either way, it is evident that everyone has a relationship with food and that this relationship can change depending on how you feel about yourself and about life in general.

An emotional eater is usually someone who eats for comfort. You don't necessarily have to be hungry or choosing to eat for the purpose of refuelling your body; the desire to eat is just there and you give into it. Quite often, it will be calorific and fatty foods that you reach for, as they seem to hit the spot and release endorphins that give you a temporary emotional boost. The trouble is, you're usually left feeling worse about yourself, especially if you're trying to lose weight, because you did not have the willpower to resist temptation and you may well have undone all your good work. That is when you can feel like giving up and so instead of trying to get back on track, you end up eating whatever you feel like, thus exacerbating the problem.

There are plenty of other emotions and feelings which can affect an individual, including boredom, loneliness, contentment, joy, and excitement. Not all emotions are negative and some people find that it's when they're happy that they end up eating more at meal times and not bothering to count calories. Indeed, it seems to be the case that when couples are content the pounds start to creep on. Everyone is different, though, and so although your emotional state may lead you to eat more, in some cases you may find that your appetite actually diminishes and that you lose weight without even really trying to. This can be as worrying as when you gain weight, because you can feel as though you have no control.

Everyone has to eat to provide fuel for their body, but it is clear that over time you develop a relationship with food and your eating habits can be affected by your emotional state. This can lead to weight gain and make losing weight harder or lead to unintentional weight loss. Sometimes, you can feel as though you're not in control of what is going on around you and what is happening in your life, and it may be the case that food provides you with a comforting distraction or that you simply don't feel the need to eat. Clearly, if this is a problem for you, it is important to find other strategies to cope with your emotional ups and downs, as ending up in such a state can have a negative impact on your overall well-being.