Do you ever struggle with feeling out-of-control around food? Do you find that you have patterns of days where you restrict your food intake and consciously try to eat “healthy,” followed by days of feeling chaotic around food and like you’ve “blown it” when it comes to eating and nutrition? If so, you are not alone. Experiences of binge eating, overeating, and/or feeling out-of-control around food in general can lead to feelings of guilt and shame that are difficult to manage and can lead to a spiral of even more chaotic eating in the future.

First things first, let’s define binge eating. Binge eating is characterized by the following: (1) eating an amount of food in a given period of time (for example, within an hour) that is objectively and considerably more than most people would eat during a similar timeframe and under similar circumstances; AND (2) a sense that you are out-of-control in regards to the eating episode. Binge eating episodes often involve eating much more quickly than usual, eating past a comfortable level of fullness, eating large quantities of food even though you aren’t physically hungry, eating alone due to shame/embarrassment regarding what and how much you are eating, and feeling guilty/disgusted with oneself afterwards.

Maybe you do struggle with actual clinical-level binge eating as described above. OR if not, maybe you struggle from time to time with feeling out-of-control around food, or chaotic and mindless in your eating. Either way, feeling this way is tough and worthy of getting help.

Whether you experience aspects of binge eating disorder or any degree of chaotic/out-of-control feelings around food, there are strategies you can begin to incorporate TODAY to help normalize feelings + thoughts around food, helping you to be more present and engaged in your everyday life. Let’s learn more!

5 Strategies to Help Prevent Binge Eating:

1.  Eat regularly + eat enough:

Quite possibly my number one tip for minimizing binge eating is to EAT REGULARLY AND EAT ENOUGH. For most people, this looks something like 3 meals and ~3 snacks per day, ~3 hours apart. The longer we go without eating, the greater the chances of overeating and feeling out-of-control when we finally do eat. We all likely know this from experience. If you are famished, whether from intentional food restriction or unintentional “life happens” sort of situations (e.g, out and about and forgot to pack a snack, waiting for an hour to finally get a table at a restaurant, etc.), it is going to be a lot harder to be mindful while eating and to stop eating at a comfortable level of fullness, as our bodies are like INEEDFOODNOW. Furthermore, biologically speaking, when our blood sugar drops too low, our bodies are going to be craving more sugary-type foods as these foods will provide the quickest way for our blood sugar to get back to normal.

Eating “enough” looks different for every person, but in general, if you are eating ~ 3 meals/3 snacks per day, eating to a comfortable level of fullness most of the time, and not going too long without responding to hunger signals, it is likely your body is getting adequate amounts of food. To prevent binge eating (and for healthy/normal eating patterns more generally), it is important to incorporate sources of all three macronutrients at each meal – fat, protein, AND carb. All three provide different satiating qualities, both physically and psychologically speaking. We are setting ourselves up for greater binge eating likelihood and chaos around food later in the day if we leave out any of the macronutrients at our meals. YES we are talking a carb source at breakfast, lunch, AND dinner.

If you do end up binge eating or experiencing out-of-control eating, the most helpful thing you can do is to return to your next regular meal/snack. I repeat: RETURN TO YOUR NEXT MEAL OR SNACK AND DO NOT RESTRICT. Restricting will only set you up for more overeating and chaos – you can read more on the cycle of restriction here.

2. Regularly incorporate dessert/”fun foods”: 

My next strategy to help prevent binge eating is to regularly incorporate dessert or “fun foods,” preferably on a daily basis. Eating dessert/treats daily can help “inoculate” you against overeating and feeling out-of-control around sweets in the future. Regularly enjoying dessert/fun foods, whether that is a piece of cake, a couple of squares of dark chocolate, or some French fries, helps take these foods “off their pedestals,” thus normalizing them and preventing us from obsessing over them because we aren’t allowing ourselves to have them (which then typically/inevitably leads to chaotic/urgent consumption of them).

3. Give yourself unconditional permission to eat ALL foods:

This brings me to my next (and related) point, which is to give yourself unconditional permission to eat ALL foods. We cannot incorporate “nutrition knowledge” in a healthy and life-giving way until we have truly legalized all foods for ourselves.

Do you consider certain foods (or even food groups) off-limits? For many people, these are the high carb/high sugar foods like desserts, bread, pasta, etc. OR, if you don’t feel like you have specific foods that you consider off-limits, are there any “eating situations” where the foods become conditional or off-limits? For example: eating a brownie after lunch –> now you can’t have a brownie after dinner. Eating a piece of cake today –> now no cake tomorrow. Didn’t workout today –> now no snack this afternoon even though you’re hungry.

Any time we create “conditions” surrounding our eating, we are going to feel chaotic and obsessive thinking about these foods, setting ourselves up for an increased likelihood of binge/out-of-control/chaotic eating. If you TRULY KNOW AND BELIEVE AND ACCEPT that you can have another brownie after dinner even though you just had a brownie with lunch, it is easier to stop eating the brownie(s) when you are adequately and comfortably satisfied **because you know you can have more anytime you decide to**. If you tell yourself that now you can’t have one with dinner, you will likely either (a) end up eating more brownies than feels good because you “can’t” have any later (so better eat them now!), or (b) end up obsessively thinking about the brownies (until you do have more).  Somewhat paradoxically, it is unconditional permission to eat all foods that allows us to feel in greater control of our eating choices and experiences.

4. Practice mindful eating:

While this (like all the strategies here) is certainly a continual work in progress, practicing being present with the actual act of eating as much as possible is going to aid in stopping eating at a comfortable level of fullness. The hunger/fullness guide below can be a helpful mindfulness tool for checking in with your hunger levels before eating and fullness levels after.

Ideally you want to start eating meals at around a 3-4 most of the time and stop eating around a 7. Fullness signals are generally less clear than hunger signals, so it can be helpful to pause for a bit if you aren’t sure if you want more food or not, and then go for more if you still aren’t satisfied after waiting a little bit for the fullness to settle in.

Other ideas for engaging in mindful eating include deep breaths before eating, eating without distractions, setting your utensil down occasionally to help slow down a bit, and focusing on the different sensory qualities of whatever it is you are eating.

5. Consider food journaling (for a limited time): 

While I don’t always recommend food journaling as it can temporarily contribute to some increased obsession with eating, it is a validated tool to help with binge eating and a tool that I sometimes use with clients if they are interested. For a few days, weeks, or months, consider writing down what it is you ate after each meal or snack, along with things like your hunger/fullness level, emotions, any binge or purge events, timing of meals/snacks, etc. Reflecting and looking back at food journal data (ideally with the help of a professional) can provide insight into what may be triggering or contributing to your binges/chaotic eating episodes. Insight like: did you have enough to eat throughout the day? Did you have protein/fat/carb at each meal? Were you feeling unusually stressed? Were you truly giving yourself unconditional permission to eat all foods?

If you have been struggling with the cycles of food restriction/overeating or endless battles with binge eating, I hope you find these ideas helpful and encouraging. If you are looking for more individualized support in experiencing food in a more life-giving way, I would love to work with you! Check out the “work with me” page to learn more. The holidays are an ideal time to get more support + encouragement in the areas of food, exercise, and body image.

Enjoy the rest of your week!