In order to learn how to manage our eating habits, first of all, we need to learn to recognize emotional hunger when we simply “seize” a situation associated with any negative emotions (eg, anger, resentment, boredom, loneliness).
Together with BODYART / FITNESS trainer Olga Kadatskaya, we figure out how to stop seizing stress.
By “eating” stress, we try to relieve the psychological storm with a portion of delicious food.
If, after stress, the hand reaches for food, try pause (for example, stop any activity for a short period of time). Remember the emotion that made you reach for food, and what actions, besides food, can cause it. In this case, it is better to have a pre-thought out list of “joys” that are not related to meals, among which can be both viewing your favorite magazine and various techniques for relaxing the body.
Emotional stress is closely related to the tension of the body: when the muscles are relaxed, the psyche will not be tense.
This is why yoga and gentle stretching techniques are a good way to combat stress seizing.
Stretching exercises help relieve direct tension in the muscles of the body, while yoga practitioners teach mindful relaxation, where the mind develops the skill of distracting from emotionally charged thoughts and the ability to restore a calm or neutral state.
The easiest way to train the mind in yoga is to observe the breath and focus on various parts of the body both during the session itself and in the final part – in the Shavasana relaxation position.
It’s simple: we cannot immerse ourselves in a continuous cycle of thoughts if our attention is concentrated on, for example, the big toe. The same happens in “Shavasana” when we consistently relax the muscles of the whole body. In addition, with deep practice of Shavasana, the muscles cease to be used, disabling sensory nerves that transmit signals from muscles to the brain, and motor nerves that transmit impulses from the brain to muscles. Such moments of relaxation have a much greater effect of restoring the nervous system than a few hours of sleep.
