How to Dump Your Artificial Lover

Do you know what’s best about a salty bowl of chips, queso and a yummy margarita? They never tell you no, they won’t leave you and, honestly, they don’t care if you’re fat.

But what do THEY do for YOU?  If you want to love yourself more than you love your next French fry, start treating your physical self the way you would treat a Ferrari.  Your body is a gift, no matter how big or how small, and it’s yours to have for as long as you take care of it. No matter what you do, please stop the dieting.  It’s madness.  If you want to look like the models in the magazines, Photoshop yourself thin and buy a skinny mirror!  If you want to get real and stop emotionally eating now, try a stop, drop and roll technique to break up with your imaginary lover…permanently!

Stop Being Afraid Of Being Hungry. Did you know most people don’t let themselves get hungry?  A dietitian once told me she believed people eat because they are afraid of being hungry. When people feel fear, they naturally turn toward comfort to feel better.  Experts call this “emotional eating” or finding “comfort food.”  Instead of focusing on the lack of food, why don’t you tell yourself it’s awesome being hungry, and look hunger in the eye and say, “Bring it on!” And, if that doesn’t work?  Keep it simple. By eating every two or three hours, you avoid hunger hitting you over the head with a snack attack, with lies lack-of-energy lies scaring you straight to Chipsville for a comfort fix. Cut up tons of vegetables and fruit before you get hungry, put them in individual bags and place them in your refrigerator. Simply having healthy snacks handy will immediately reduce food’s control over your mood.

Drop Your Focus on Feelings During Meals or Snacks. To challenge your cravings, focus on what you truly feel.  Do you eat when you are happy or sad?  Or both?  Do you grab a bag of chips when boredom strikes?

Once you identify the feeling, look for it to reappear.  When it does, you must choose something else to satisfy it, even if for only 5 minutes. Call a friend or set up a buddy system.  Listen to music or read a magazine.  Under no circumstances should you eat your way through your mood ever again. Yes, I understand this is going to be hard.  A big bowl of ice cream topped with hot fudge, or a gooey piece of cheese pizza is hard not to love. And, it’s a lot sexier than a bowl of broccoli, right?  But, isn’t that the point?  Gas isn’t sexy.  It stinks, and it’s a pain filling your gas tank with, but you wouldn’t grab a glass of coke, pour it in the tank and expect to get very far would you?

Roll With It. You had a tough day at work, your mom stopped by, or you saw your ex last night on an Eharmony TV ad. You ran to the store grabbed cheese, crackers, wine, Salami, Oreos, Twinkies and any other childhood friends you can muster. It happens—roll with it! 

The first step to successfully dumping your artificial lover permanently is to be aware. Even if you can’t help yourself in that moment, being aware of what happened instead of feeling as if you have no control over the situation means you are moving in the right direction.  Whatever you do, don’t let your good buddies Guilt and Regret get to chatting.

Fight hard and focus to find your long-lost lover Gratitude so he can tell you how magnificent you are.  Listen as he tells you how proud he is of you for starting the process of learning to love yourself more than you love living for your next bowl of popcorn.

Most of all, remember living a purposeful life is about living day to day, setting your goals to do a little better than you did yesterday, and accepting yourself in every moment of life.  You might not always like your choices, but accept them and tell your artificial lover to hit the road!