It’s a known fact that junk food will never make you feel as fit, healthy, energetic and positive as nutritious food. This means that you’ll eventually be left with the same stress levels and problems, but will feel even WORSE after eating bad food. Choose to eat quality food in order to help you cope and make you feel better. Junk food will only end up making you feel fat and depressed.

Become aware of everything you are eating

Successful weight maintainers pay attention to their food quality, their portion sizes and what they eat on a daily basis. Emotional eaters, on the other hand, rarely pay attention to the quality of their food and how much they are consuming.

The next time you find yourself reaching for a doughnut because you’re feeling down, become AWARE of your food choices. Emotional eaters dismiss the consequences of poor eating choices. Focus on the fat content, calorie count and quantity. An average doughnut has 450 calories and 27 grams of sugar. When you stop to reflect on what you’re putting inside your body you’ll be more inclined to think twice.

Choose alternative coping methods

One of the main reasons why people overeat when they’re stressed is because they don’t have the means to cope with their problems. Emotional eaters use food as a temporary escape from their problems or simply to alleviate a bad mood. Maintainers, on the other hand, use alternative methods to cope with stress, such as seeking professional help, exercising, talking to friends, relaxing, or focusing their energy on their work, thereby becoming more productive.

Teach yourself to find alternate strategies for dealing with stress. Talking to close friends and family is a powerful tool when it comes to problem solving. Exercise reduces stress levels and releases the anti-stress hormone endorphins, which will make you feel better instantly. Keeping busy and distracting yourself with work will not only make you more productive, but will also help you to forget about whatever is bothering you. Eating for comfort is the worst coping mechanism, as it does nothing but backfire.

Reverse the effects

A treat here or there won’t affect your weight, but if you regularly eat junk food (unless you have superior genes), you will eventually gain weight. Where will this leave you? You’ll end up having to cope with the same stress and problems, but you’ll be fatter than before. Reverse the scenario and think of it this way: fight your problems with STRENGTH and keep on taking care of your body. Eat healthy and go to the gym. You will eventually be left with less stress and a much leaner body.

Focus on creating the best possible version of yourself

You will never grow or improve if you don’t face problems and challenges. It is during times of difficulty and stress that leaders are born and miracles are performed. Focus on growing to become a better version of yourself during tough times. Tell yourself that the challenges you face are going to make you a much stronger person, who has willpower and inner strength.

Destroy the habit

If you constantly allow yourself to indulge whenever you are feeling low, it will become a subconscious habit. Focus on doing other things when you are feeling poorly and you will eventually discover other ways to make yourself feel better, such as exercise. Work hard to train yourself to undo a habit of emotional eating and feed your emotions in more rewarding ways. The best revenge is success!