Why does a broken routine lead to binge eating?

I’ve spent the last few weeks visiting family and celebrating some special occasions with friends. It’s been such a lovely time but in the back of my mind I’m constantly beating myself up over not being able to stay in control of my eating when I’m away.

It means so much to me to to lose the excess weight I’m carrying, yet the sight of cake, ice cream, home cooked pies and prosecco makes me forget all of that instantly!

Breaking bad
I have a habit of either being really ‘good’ when it comes to my diet or ‘really bad’. I try to plan treats into my day, but if I go off course I tend to think – “Oh i’ve ruined it now, so I might as well go crazy and eat everything in sight!”. If I just stopped after a few squares of chocolate for example, it really wouldn’t be the end of the world – or the end of my diet – but do I do that? On this occasion the answer is a big no! I eventually got back on track and had two healthy days before my Weight Watchers weigh-in and I exercised on both days. Amazingly I lost 1lb!

With the new Weight Watchers plan there’s a lot of literature on positive thinking. My personal favourite is the 80/20 rule – the idea being that you make healthy choices for 80% of the time – after all no one is perfect! In hindsight I think this is something I obviously need to remember a little more often, and not let one slip up lead to binge eating on foods that could sabotage my weight loss efforts.

My goal for the next few weeks is to be a little kinder to myself, allow for treats in moderation; and have a go at saying no when I’m offered a tempting and high-calorie food that I know will just leave me feeling gross and too full.