How to Stop Boredom Eating
Do you ever catch yourself going back and forth from the refrigerator to the pantry when you’re feeling bored? Even if you don’t feel hungry? Boredom eating is a form of emotional eating and it’s a very common behavior to struggle with. In this blog, I’m going to share what boredom eating is and how to cope with this emotion without food.
If you’re new here, hello and welcome! My name is Hannah and I am a non-diet dietitian here to help you improve your relationship with your food and finally find food freedom.
In this blog we will cover:
What is boredom eating?
What causes boredom eating?
How to stop boredom eating
What is boredom eating?
@dietitianhannah Replying to @ohkay456 boredom eating isn’t inherently bad. But it shouldn’t be your ONLY way to cope with biredom - that wouldn’t feel very good! #dietitianhannah #dietitiansoftiktok #boredomeating #intuitiveeating #foodfreedom #gentlenutrition #selfcare #selfcaretoolbox #antidietdietitian #nondietdietitian #boredomeatingtips #emotionaleating #emotionaleatingtiktok ♬ original sound - Hannah, RDN, LD, CPT
Boredom eating is a form of emotional eating, similar to stress eating or eating when we feel sad or lonely. It’s not inherently a bad thing to do! Food can help us to feel better when we are experiencing an uncomfortable feeling or if we are under stimulated.
Emotional eating gets a bad rap, but it is totally normal to enjoy some ice cream after a crummy day. This behavior becomes problematic when we expect the ice cream to fix our problems (because unfortunately, it won’t) or if eating the ice cream is our only way to cope with uncomfortable emotions.
Boredom eating may also become a problem if it makes you feel worse or if it interferes with your ability to feed yourself well during other parts of the day. An example of this could be if you experience mindless boredom eating after work and this leads to you frequently being too full for dinner.
What causes boredom eating?
One reason why you may find yourself eating out of boredom is because you are not eating enough throughout the day. Being underfed, compounded by feelings of boredom, can lead to you mindlessly rummaging through the pantry.
Another cause of boredom eating is the need for stimulation. While we all have felt bored before, some people find it to be an excessively uncomfortable feeling and crave constant stimulation. Those who feel this way may tend to boredom eat more often.
How to stop boredom eating
Make sure you are eating enough throughout the day
Remember, being hungry will increase the likelihood of an emotional trigger leading to mindless eating. As a general guide, try to eat every 3-4 hours or so and include protein, fat, and carbs at each of your meals and snacks.
Honor your physical hunger
Try to differentiate between boredom hunger and physical hunger. If you are physically hungry, of course the best thing to do will be to eat! Eat foods that are satisfying, not just “filler foods” (like celery or rice cakes). Eating foods like this may physically fill you up, but they won’t be satisfying and you will likely find yourself mindlessly munching shortly after.
Identify patterns
Are there certain times that you tend to eat out of boredom? A few common examples may be:
After work or school
When your partner or roommate is out of town
At night before bed
When studying or doing other tasks that may not feel super thrilling
Once you have identified when you tend to boredom eat, you can make a game plan.
Create a self-care toolbox
Boredom eating is a type of emotional eating. Check out this post about emotional eating to learn more about how to navigate it.
It might help to make a list of things to do when you feel bored. Eating can be on this list, but it is important to have multiple coping skills in your toolbox to choose from. You wouldn’t expect to have just a hammer in your actual toolbox to fix everything in your house, right?
Call a friend
Go for a walk or do some stretching
Have a running list of household tasks that you can cross off the list when you experience boredom
Watch your favorite TV show.
I’m currently rewatching Gossip Girl and I’ve started the game of thrones spin-off
Paint your nails
Play a board game, a crossword puzzle, some cards.
Take a bath
Organize your closet
Do yard work
Read a book
Journal your feelings
Bake
Brush your dog
Refer to this list whenever you feel bored, especially if it is a time that you may subconsciously gravitate towards boredom eating.
Practice mindful eating
Boredom eating can lead to eating past fullness and feeling uncomfortable, especially if we aren’t mindful while we eat. Try to practice mindful eating at all meals to help you be more natural at it.
It can be tough to be aware that we aren’t being mindful when it’s actually happening. But as you start to get better at mindful eating, you might be able to notice when boredom eating happens and put a stop to it.
Cope with kindness
Once again, we have likely all found ourselves boredom eating before. Feelings of guilt are unwarranted for this normal behavior!
If you are working to address how frequently you eat out of boredom, it’s important to treat yourself with kindness and self-compassion if you boredom eat when you didn’t want to. Approach it with curiosity rather than judgment.
Bottom line
The goal isn’t to stop boredom eating forever! Sometimes food can be a healthy way to cope with emotions. The goal, rather, is to stop using food as the ONLY coping mechanism.
Be sure to feed yourself regularly, eat foods that you truly enjoy, and make a game plan to help you tackle boredom eating if you feel as though it is a problematic area for you.
