Think-Feel-Eat Episode #30: Over-Hunger vs. Over-Desire Part II (of II)

Think-Feel-Eat Episode #30: Over-Hunger vs. Over-Desire Part II (of II)

by

Hi! I’m Donna Reish, IF teacher, weight loss coach, blogger, and half of “The Minus 220 Pound Pair” as my husband and I have lost over 220 pounds together (160 of that in the past couple of years through the Weight Loss Lifestyle habits and strategies I teach!).

In this episode, I present Part II (of II) of Over-Hunger vs. Over-Desire with an emphasis this week on Over-Desire then looking at solutions for BOTH.

I’m so excited to bring you more OVER info! I dig in this week with a review of the two OVERS—starting with Over-Hunger (true stomach hunger, ghrelin, regulating hunger during the fast, affects satiation or “satedness” (fullness).

Then I review Over-Desire (desiring a certain food or food type oftentimes without hunger, desiring certain foods even when we are full, created by giving in to cravings frequently, also influenced by food memories).

Next. I move into dopamine spikes (See also TFE 7, 8, and 9 for teaching, charts, and Urge Map!). I teach dopamine as a motivation/habit chemical and use a helpful chart to teach dopamine from OVER behaviors and foods vs. dopamine release from simple pleasures. Of course, I help you see how to change your dopamine spikes from high calorie, seductive foods too!

Lastly, I bring Over-Hunger and Over-Desire together, showing the behaviors and tricks that can actually influence both at the same time! (More self-improvement bang for your effort-buck!) These include the 3 F’s, intermittent fasting, sleep, higher protein, reducing highly-palatable foods, and watching for vanishing calorie density foods.

Find all of my episodes, outlines, and articles for my two weekly broadcasts:

(1)  Weight Loss Lifestyle broadcast (formerly Donna’s Intermittent Fasting Broadcast)

(2)  Think-Feel-Eat broadcast 

Sign up for my free webinar: https://intermittentfastingwebinar.com

Think Feel Eat 30: Over-Hunger vs. Over-Desire (Part II of II)

A. Over-Hunger vs. Over-Desire Review

1. Over-hunger is when we have true stomach hunger—the “growling ghrelin gremlins” are telling us our food is low. (See later.)

a. At end of our fast

b. When we eat a small amount when we open our eating window and then have hunger soon after.

c. When we haven’t regulated hunger during the fast yet.

d. When we haven’t figured out our best fasting time and we can’t sleep at night because of hunger.

2. Over-desire is when we desire food, often without hunger and usually certain types of food.

a. Has nothing to do with hunger.

b. Can eat these desired foods even if we are full.

c. Usually created by giving in to cravings so frequently or by not controlling seductive foods.

d. Not as affected by fasting as hunger is.

3. Each one affects a different part

a. Over-hunger is affected by satiation—when we are not sated or satiated (i.e. full), we can have more hunger

b. Over-desire is affected by satisfaction—when we are not satisfied with our food choices, we have more desire for certain foods

4. Similarities

a. They both cause the same final outcome: over-eating resulting in weight gain.

b. They can both be controlled quite a bit through strategic actions. (See The Perfect Storm of Weight Loss!)

 B. Over-Desire

1. General “tricks”

a. While some tricks work for both over-hunger and over-desire, over-desire is based on food tastes, memories, hyper-palatability, dopamine spikes, etc.—not stomach space.

b. Over-hunger tricks like filling stomach with 3 F’s, drinking water, fasting so you don’t have to contend with hunger very long each day, etc., do not affect over-desire so much.

c. You know it’s over-desire and not over-hunger when it is food or food-type specific—just filling your stomach with anything won’t work.

2. Dopamine spikes

a. Craving teaching explains a lot (TFE 7, TFE 8, and TFE 9—charts and free Urge Map included!!)

b. Associated with hyper-palatable, seductive foods

1. Different foods and food types for different people (six main ones—sugar, flour, fat, salt, protein, meaty flavors like soy/bone broth, etc.)

2. Can also be textures

3. Can also be memories

3. Understand how dopamine works (dopamine spike chart)

a. Not a reward as much as a motivation/habit

b. Can happen before you ever take the first bite—just the thought of that food, that memory, that result, that situation—this is what makes it motivating/habitual

c. Hyper-addictive foods and activities release high amounts of dopamine

d. Lower, simple pleasures release low amounts of dopamine

e. Nutrition from food releases dopamine in the stomach—but later than the spikes from the brain that are more intense

f. Simple pleasures equal simple rewards

4. Tips to change your dopamine spikes from high calorie, seductive foods

a. Spread out the instances of them

b. Reduce the number of seductive elements in your treats—animal crackers instead of Oreos; sugar free frozen yogurt instead of full fat, sugary ice cream, simple nacho at home instead of loaded from restaurant—these will save calories but they will also decrease the dopamine spikes since fewer of the six elements will be combined

c. Watch for yours!!! Dove milk chocolate, sugared cereal in milk, homemade baked goods, cream filled donuts, pastries….I know mine!

d. Plan your simple pleasures! (Delights of the Day)—research shows that looking forward to something can bring the same or nearly the same reward as the action itself; you will have that simple pleasure to turn to.

C. Things That Affect Over-Hunger AND Over-Desire

1. 3 F’s—fluffy, fibrous, fluidy

a. Fill up stomach for hunger

b. Usually real, less dopamine spiking

2. Fasting

a. Only have hunger 5-8 hours a day

b. Lowers insulin/hear leptin better so fewer cravings

3. Sleep

a. Lowers hunger

b. Keeps cravings lower/you don’t have so many inhibitions/giving in to hyper-palatable foods

4. Eating higher protein (.8 to 1 gram per pound of body weight)

a. Stays in stomach/most satiating macros

b. Pushes out other foods when you try to get the right amount of protein

c. Real food for both hunger and cravings/over-desire

5. Vanishing Calorie Density

a. Food scientists create foods to melt in your mouth and essentially signal the brain that you’re not eating as much as you really are

b. These food disappear in your mouth and you often feel like you didn’t eat anything at all

c. Takes soooo much of these foods to satiate/sate you; takes more and more to get the reward from the food

d. Evaluate which foods are vanishing calorie density foods for you

D. Next Steps

1. Intermittent Fasting Course—first Monday of each month; use code SAVE20 to get $20 off—see you in September!

2. Private online coaching

3. Perfect Storm of Weight Loss

 

 

Think-Feel-Eat Episode #9: 10 Ways to Sit With/Process Food Urges

Think-Feel-Eat Episode #9: 10 Ways to Sit With/Process Food Urges

by

Hi! I’m Donna Reish, IF teacher, weight loss coach, blogger, and half of “The Minus 220 Pound Pair” as my husband and I have lost over 200 pounds together (160 of that in the past couple of years through the Weight Loss Lifestyle habits and strategies I teach!).

In this episode, I present Part I of two parts about Urges and Feeling Feelings—really good stuff!
This episode digs into sitting with or processing food urges.

Earlier (Episodes 7 and 8), I taught that we have three main choices with urges. The first two choices aren’t ideal and both have net negative consequences. We can give in to food urges (obviously many net negative consequences!). We can white knuckle our way through them—try to use willpower. (Find out tons of deets about willpower in Weight Loss Lifestyle 60 and 61!) That also gives a net negative consequence because it isn’t sustainable, and we don’t learn to deal with our feelings/urges.

Of course to begin with, we must remember that food urges are any of those times that we want to eat something that is:

(1) a type that isn’t on our plan for that day;

(2) an amount that isn’t on our plan that day;

(3) a time that isn’t on our plan that day.

If we believe that a food urge is a desire to eat off of one of those—a desire to buffer with food rather than feeling our feelings in that moment—we can look at food urges for what they are—feelings/urges/unctions/desires to do something other than what we planned or truly wanted to do.
This episode details ten ways we can sit with/process those urges rather than fighting against them. They all work at various times—and they can also work for other urges that we don’t want to give in to!

I hope this is a help and a blessing to you as it has been to me. I am gradually learning to do this—and the control and peace I feel around it is utterly amazing!
Find all of my episodes, outlines, and articles for my two weekly broadcasts:

(1) Weight Loss Lifestyle broadcast (formerly Donna’s Intermittent Fasting Broadcast) and

(2) Think-Feel-Eat broadcast at donnareish.com

Sign up for my free webinar: intermittentfastingwebinar.com

 

I want so many good things for you!

Think Feel Eat #9:  Learning to Sit With Food Urges (Not “Resist” or “White Knuckle”)

A. Review of Episodes 7 and 8

1. Urge is eating off protocol food
2. Urge is eating off protocol amount
3. Urge is eating off protocol time

B. Buffer Review

1. The reason we buffer is because we don’t want to feel the feelings of the unmet urge
2. Buffering is when we do something to avoid a feeling—like the pads we put on dining room chairs to keep them from scratching against the flooring
3. Buffering isn’t always because of a deep emotional need
4. Sometimes we buffer/give in to urges not because we have feelings from something horrible in our past—sometimes we just don’t want the feelings we would have from saying no to the urge—the restlessness, boredom, deprivation, etc.
5. We have to get to the point where we believe that a feeling is just a feeling—and we can feel any feeling….they won’t hurt us long or for a long time.
6. When we are afraid to feel our feelings, we will continually look for buffers between us and those feelings—including giving in to urges for foods that are off our protocol, time, or amount.

C. Three Choices With Urges

1. Give in
2. White knuckle—try to use willpower
3. Sit with/process them

D. Ten Ways to Sit With/Process Urges

1. Make our WHY stronger. Our why can be whatever will motivate us the most at the time. It doesn’t have to be lofty or noble—it can be what will actually lead us to learn to sit with/process urges.
2. Set a timer for ten minutes every single time. Tell yourself at the end of the ten minutes if you still want it, you can have it. This period of time gives us enough time to look at our thoughts and feelings more closely.
3. Set timer for 90 seconds—count backwards from 90. I like to walk and count.
4. Write about urges—journal, sticky note, white board, index card.
5. Have an Urge Chat with accountability partners or partner. Write to each other when Urges are very strong. Talk through the Thoughts and Feelings leading to the Urges and what better Thoughts you can develop.
6. Talk to YOURSELF about the feelings of urges. “This is nothing more than a feeling. I can sit here with this feeling. Nothing bad is happening if I don’t eat. Feelings don’t hurt.” (I like to sit in an empty room or put my head in my arms on my desk.)
7. Talk to the URGE itself. Like my granddaughter does when she is afraid of her uncle acting like a tiger. “Hi there, Tiger! You’re not going to hurt me, Tiger!” Here are some scripts:

a. “Hi there, urge. I knew you would be here soon. Have a seat with me. It’s going to be a while until I eat again…so just make yourself at home.”
b. “Hello, Urge. I can feel any feeling you bring with you. An urge is a feeling that can’t hurt me. You can’t hurt me.”
c. “Hi, Urge. I see you’re back. I’m not eating that right now, but you’re welcome to stay if you’d like.”
d. “Welcome, urge. You here to try to get me to eat something not on my plan again? I’m really finished, but make yourself at home if you’d like!”

8. Three deep breaths. Equal inhale and exhale.
9. When you have sat with/allowed/processed an urge, use an Urge Jar to put beads in. When you have allowed 100 urges, see how much weight you have lost and how much better you are at allowing urges.
10. When you have sat with/allowed/processed an urge, use Urge Rings to move from one hand to another (if you aren’t at home to put beads in; put beads in when you get back home).

E. Closing

1. Every time we sit with/allow/process an urge instead of white knuckling or giving in, we build our urge muscle on a thought/psychological level.
2. Every time we sit with/allow/process an urge instead of white knuckling or giving in, we stretch out the time between hyper palatable foods—and our dopamine spikes are decreased, so we have fewer urges eventually.
3. Win-Win-Win!
4. Watch or listen to the two pre-quels to this one: Episode #7: What is an Urge/Introducing the Urge Map; Episode #8: The Urge Map/Three Responses to Urges.
5. And….Weight Loss Lifestyle Willpower episodes 60 and 61.
6. Free Intermittent Fasting Webinar sessions available now for April!!! Intermittentfastingwebinar.com

Are You an All or Nothing Person (Or Making Tiny Changes Works Best!)

Are You an All or Nothing Person (Or Making Tiny Changes Works Best!)

by

“Do it right or don’t do it at all.”

“Anything worth doing is worth doing right.”

 

We’ve heard these sayings forever. And there’s some validity to them.

 

I mean, we teach our kids to be thorough in their homework and chores.

 

We know from our college days that the harder we study, the better our test score.

 

We are rewarded at work for a job well done.

 

And all of those are true!

  (more…)

Seductive Six—Food Concentrations That Make Us Crave and Overeat

Seductive Six—Food Concentrations That Make Us Crave and Overeat

by

I’ve been having such a great response to April’s “More Real Food” Challenge in my free private FB group. (We are almost done–but all of the previous videos are still there…we would love to have you join us!)

Basically, we have been learning about real foods vs. not real foods and their…

+Insulin responses
+Effect on leptin release and hearing leptin
+Impact on ghrelin taming
+Increase or decrease of dopamine spikes
+Influence on creating positive food habits
+fiber, water, and fluffiness contents
+Impact on over desiring, overeating, overweight, and control
+Much much more!

As we get better and better at Intermittent Fasting, we will keep insulin low 16-20 hours a day; we will tame ghrelin; we will hear leptin better…(Check out my free upcoming workshop for fasting help!)

And we will get really good at other skills as well.

(more…)

First Five Days of “More Real Food Challenge” (Videos and Outlines!)

First Five Days of “More Real Food Challenge” (Videos and Outlines!)

by

Not real food…..do we call it processed food, packaged foods, sugary foods, calorie dense foods, nutrient lacking food, junk food, or something else?

And then what do we call Real Food—I mean, it can be in a package, right (frozen veggies, canned fruit, jars of nuts)? It can be calorie dense (butter, coconut oil, avocado, egg yolk, chicken skin….the list goes on). It can be in a package or not.

This month we are having a “More Real Food” Challenge in my free private FB group.

And I’m teaching live every. single. day. (Think lots of hats before I go work out! ha ha)

But I want us to learn and grow together–and change our eating habits in such a way that we have an impact on our overeating, overhunger, over craving, and over desire.

So…we are first of all PLANNING and determining a way to MEASURE (not like weighing our food or anything!).

(more…)

Pin It on Pinterest