Dr Gemma Sampson · 26. HALT! Food rules and emotional eating

Have you ever thought about how many food rules and thoughts influence your nutrition, what you do and don't eat?

For example, were you told as a kid that you couldn't leave the table until you had finished eating?

I know I was!

As adults we have been programmed by so many different rules about what we should and shouldn't eat and often don't recognise just how much our environment, thoughts, feelings and emotions influence our food choices.

Today I am going to be sharing one tool that can help you to HALT and pause next time you find yourself eating on autopilot, avoiding food when. you are hungry or eating emotionally.

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What food rules are playing autopilot on your food choices?

Have you ever thought about how many rules and thoughts you when it comes to your nutrition, what you do and don't eat?

Were you told as a kid that you couldn't leave the table until you had finished eating?

I know I was!

As adults we have been programmed by so many different rules about what we should and shouldn't eat and often don't recognise just how much our environment, thoughts, feelings and emotions influence our food choices.

I like getting my clients to write them down when we work through the cycling nutrition framework together. Thoughts often pop up like:

Have to finish everything on your plate - even if you are full
Eating a certain food at a specific time because thats when you're supposed to
Finishing something - even if you don't like that food?
Not allowing yourself to eat a snack even though you are hungry
I can't eat food x because it's bad
I'm eating food x because I'm treating myself or I deserved it?

A lot of the time we eat on auto pilot, without thinking about what we are eating, when and why and these behaviours can sometimes be undermining our progress or goals.

I want you to think HALT. Stop. Pause! in these moments when you are eating or avoiding eating on autopilot and starting to question.

You want to HALT before eating (on autopilot) if you are excessively:

HUNGRY
ANGRY
LONELY or
TIRED.

It's easy to eat on autopilot if we are in these scenarios. I encourage all of my athletes to be more mindful of what they eat, when, why and the factors that influence the choices that aren't optimal. This isn't about perfection, but about consistency.

If you note that your eating habits and behaviours are influenced when you are excessively hungry, angry, lonely or tired, what can you do to minimise these scenarios from happening?

What does HALT stand for?

HUNGRY

Are you actually hungry and need a meal?
Did you eat enough carbs or protein at the previous meal?
Do you need to add an extra snack in the morning or afternoon - especially on heavy training days?
Are you drinking enough water? Sometimes
Reflect on the Hunger and Fullness Scale, where you rate on the scale of 1-10 before, during and after eating.

ANGRY

Find alternatives to eating to help you calm down and alleviate stress.
Meditation, deep breathing, getting outside for a walk can help minimise eating your anger

LONELY (or BORED)

Think about activities that make you happy, that you enjoy that you can use as a distraction rather than defaulting to food
For example, listening or playing to music, taking 10-20 minutes for a 'one-day-when i have time' activity such as reading books or learning a language

TIRED

Sleep plays a key role in recovery and weight. Are you going to bed early enough and getting enough sleep?
What does your sleep routine look like?
Where could you improve your sleep habits, environment and bed-time routine to feel less tired during the day.
Consider your post-training recovery nutrition - as this could be adding additional and unnecessary fatigue.

Practice HALT

Next time you find yourself eating on autopilot, avoiding eating something even though you are hungry, or finding yourself craving a certain food, I want you to remember to HALT.

Pause, take a moment to reflect on what you are eating, when and why. This pause can be enough to help jumpstart you into making a more nutritious choice or recognising that you are truly hungry and need to eat to fuel and nourish your body - even if it isn't a designated meal time.

That's all for today.

Until next time - fuel your ride!

Gemma