NUTRITION TIPS

Featuring Cristina Sutter, SportMedBC’s RunWalk Dietitian

As I watched my children enjoy their Easter chocolates with delight and guilt-free bliss, I reflected that we are all born knowing when we are hungry, when we are full, and we ate until we were satisfied. Growing up, we were told to eat our vegetables because they help us grow and not to eat cookies because they are bad for us. We may have been offered ice cream to cheer us up on a sad day. Our parents may have asked us to finish our plate, so as not to waste food. If we felt pressure to be thinner, we may have felt guilty eating our favourite treats. All of these things distort our relationship with food and cloud our innate ability to eat until we are satisfied. We start to think of food as, ‘good for you’ and ‘bad for you,’ and we may feel guilty about enjoying our favourite foods. When we fall into this emotional eating cycle, we often struggle with shame and either give up on our diet altogether, or feel the need to restrict ourselves to make up for our indulgence. This cycle reinforces negative feelings. Ask yourself a few questions before deciding whether to eat: Am I hungry? Do I want that? Am I sad or upset and do I really just need to talk and de-stress? How will I feel after I eat it? The answers are simple: Eat if you are hungry, stop if you are full. If you are craving a specific treat, check your emotions first. Look after your stress and emotions without food. If your craving persists, allow yourself to enjoy a treat and don’t feel guilty. You are better off eating the treat or you may end up overeating a bunch of other foods that just don’t satisfy the craving.