The December holidays have passed, your New Year’s resolutions have faded, and Super Bowl parties are over. But you still find yourself perusing the pantry and refrigerator after meals and at night while you watch TV. You may or may not crave a specific item but your brain is sending you messages about food. Should you have chocolate, cookies, potato chips or finish up the remaining lasagna? What about a handful of those chocolate chips you were going to use to make cookies for your daughter? Even a huge bowl of Cheerios with honey is very appealing right now. 
We have all been overwhelmed with commercials about weight loss drugs, but if you are not a candidate for them, don’t despair. You can still use cognitive and behavioral strategies to help you gain balance and learn how to avoid stuffing yourself when you are not truly hungry. Try some of the pointers below to have a healthier relationship with food. Some of them will be about changing how you think. Others will include implementing behaviors that you may have struggled with in the past, but try them anyway.
First, avoid restrictive dieting. It only makes you feel deprived and encourages you to eat too much later. Instead, make a list of the things you love, and try to include them in your daily meals in moderation.
It is also important to set realistic goals and expectations. You will never lose ten pounds in one week and keep it off. Tell yourself that if you take it slow, the weight is more likely to stay off. If you struggle with portion control, try using smaller plates and load up on the lower-calorie items. Make your carbs the smallest portion on your plate.
Before you eat something, ask yourself if you are hungry or thirsty. We sometimes need to hydrate and mistake that for hunger. Also, try to distinguish between mouth hunger (you can just feel what that brownie will be like on your tongue) or stomach hunger, the kind you feel when you have skipped a meal or two.
Plan ahead about how you will manage your food. Don’t grocery shop hungry to keep the tempting stuff out of your house. And have a small snack before parties. Stand as far away as you can from a buffet and concentrate on socializing instead of eating at a party.
Train yourself to eat mindfully. Avoid alcohol or other drugs that lower your inhibitions and lead to overeating. Do focus on the food you are eating, instead of camping out with a tray in front of the TV or talking on the phone while you eat. Enjoy your food, both the salads and vegetables, and the pasta or desserts.
And finally, face up to emotional eating. Pay attention to whether stress, loneliness, or sadness trigger you to overeat. Take some notes about your emotional triggers and consider alternatives to deal with those feelings.
Remember that there are cognitive and behavioral techniques for managing binge eating and give me a call if you would like to get some help with it.