Alegra Loewenstein
  • Writing Education
  • Books
  • Contact

Breaking the rules - taking a trip

4/19/2017

0 Comments

 
Picture
Greetings from France!

I've been abroad in Italy and France the past 10 days! 

My husband won a trip for two to Rome, and since one of my besties lives in Southern France, we took the opportunity to go meet her babies. She's had TWO since the last time I saw her! 

And I just wanted to share with you some musings I had while on this trip. 


I remember a trip I took in college. I was traveling by myself, with some vague idea that of course I'd meet some kind of dream man on the trip. It was Maui, after all, seemed romantic, full of travelers. And some guy I knew had moved there. 

Okay, so that part is kind of embarassing. I was totally silly. 

But then comes the even worse part. I ate an entire pineapple and an entire bag of prunes. One might argue that these are healthy, but my consumption of them was NOT. And I felt SICK from it. Not only that, but I beat myself up. 

Know how I know? I wrote it all down in my journal. All about how SICK I felt, how disgusting it was to eat that much of those foods, how my stomach hurt, how I chastised myself for having done it, how I couldn't STOP myself while I was doing it...

That is a binge if I ever had one. I was not just eating the pineapple and enjoying it, I was compulsively eating it and feeling sick while I did. As I wrote in detail in my journal about how I just kept eating it, even though I was already too full. 

Looking back at that now, I actually am not embarassed by it. I feel a lot of compassion for that younger self. I didn't know WHY I kept eating that food, and I didn't know HOW to stop. 

I was doing it even as I wished I was not. 

And yet now, with all my experience about it, I can tell you a few things.

First, that silly (and, yes, that part is embarrassing) hunt for true love was part of it. I had such an EXTERNAL focus on what would make me happy that I was not focusing on ME nor focusing on that Moment! Ask  my college friends... I was ALWAYS looking for some idea of a boyfriend that I now realize did not exist!

I don't think it was the "love" search per se... but it was the external focus on a future point in time bringing me some level of happiness. 

Second, overeating was trigger for me. It still is, but I recognize now. When I get TOO FULL I want to DO SOMETHING...and my brain actually just thinks "DO SOMETHING!" and my body responds by doing what it's already doing - eating! I still feel that impulse, but I'm trained to recognize it now, and find another "something" to do. 

Finally, I've stopped obsessing over whether I am or am not eating sugar. Sure, I eat it. And when I eat too much, I correct my course. But I don't beat myself up or make promises to "quit" or eliminate it. My relationship with sugar is normal. It's not full of drama and broken promises. It's just not a big deal anymore.

And THAT is golden. 

With a relationship like that I can eat gelato every day on vacation and it doesn't matter. I'm not even worried about it. I know I'll go back to normal when I get home. I can just relax, have fun, go a little crazy, and call it a vacation. No promises, no need to "make up for it" when I get home. Just enjoy it. And be normal again when I get back. 

Which I'm also looking forward to. Because my normal makes me feel great, too. 

Do you want to have this kind of relationship with sugar (or soda or junk food or ____)?
Discover my 5 secrets to end emotional eating by clicking here.
​
Picture
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Picture

    Alegra

    #1 Selling Author & Creator of Small Steps, Big Magic: Crafting a Life That Sparkles 

    Categories

    All
    Anxiety
    Audio / Podcast
    Body Wisdom
    Control
    Cooking
    Emotional Eating
    Environment
    Exercise
    Food
    Giveaway
    Guest Post
    Herbs
    Meal Planning
    Media
    My Books
    My Favorites
    My Story
    Plant Spirit Magic
    Recipes
    Reviews
    Seasons
    Self Care
    Shop
    Simple Actions
    Stress
    Sugar
    Support
    Video
    Weight Loss
    Wheel Of The Year
    Will Power
    Woo
    Writing Services

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    May 2024
    July 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    September 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    October 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. These are primarily links to my books. They do not affect the price you pay for any product purchases.



  • Writing Education
  • Books
  • Contact