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Last Friday I was listening to the radio – yes I still do that in the era of streaming technology! And a particular segment on ‘Quitter’s Day’ caught my attention – the 9th of January being the day most people give up on new years resolutions and go back to old habits.
Given the number of people who make resolutions around making healthy food and drink choices, I thought it might be a good time to think about some of the psychology that sits behind our actions. Before I go on I want to be clear that you should never make drastic changes to your eating or drinking habits without consulting a medical professional. I am not a nutritionist, dietician or medical doctor and if you feel you have an eating disorder, or a serious problem with food or drink please consider speaking to your doctor.
When it comes to what we eat and why there many factors in play – psychologically, emotionally, and physically. In this post am focusing in on one in particular when it comes to food choices – Wanting vs Liking. Think about these 2 questions.
- Have you ever bought something on impulse because it looked or smelled delicious, only to be a bit disappointed in the experience of actually eating or drinking it?
- How often do you eat or drink something automatically, out of a habitual expectation of enjoying it – when you do this, do you actually savour it, or do you just go on with other actions and not really pay attention to the actual taste?
I’m guessing the answers in most instances will be ‘fairly frequently’, and ‘quite often, and I just carry on with what I’m doing.’
Psychologically speaking this makes perfect sense – our brains are hardwired to automate as much as possible, so that it can pay attention to other things. Great when you don’t want to be overwhelmed with irrelevant detail, not so good when you are trying to change your eating, drinking (or other) habits.
Research has shown one of the systems responsible for this is the dopamine system. Without getting too technical, we learn over time that a particular food produces a particular response. There is a lot more going on here, but as an extremely simplified example for a lot of people the sweetness of chocolate, sweets and cakes as a child produces dopamine and makes us feel good. Our brain goes ‘remember this food – it feels good and gives me an uplift in mood’. Therefore, when we see or smell similar foods the brain goes ‘I want that – it will make me feel good’, irrespective of whether we actually like the experience of eating it. This difference between wanting and liking is an ongoing area of research, but understanding it can be used to help break some of those habits. By eating intentionally you can determine if you want something as an automatic response rather than from genuine liking, allowing you to retrain your brain to avoid those things you don’t actually enjoy.
So over the next week rather than giving in to those tempting food or drink choices, why not try one of these techniques?
- If you are tempted by something you are trying to moderate, don’t just eat it without thinking. Take the time to really focus on the sensations – the taste, the texture, and how it makes you feel, in the moment, and on reflection. Then ask yourself ‘was it worth it?’ If the answer is yes, think about adding that choice to the occasional treat list. If the answer is no, make a conscious note to yourself that you didn’t actually like it that much, and to think twice the next time. This is unlikely to have an effect immediately, but if you do do this every time you eat that thing, you will be surprised how quickly this can change your mindset, and make it less tempting to begin with.
- Make a conscious choice to eat mindfully for the next week. When you are eating, stop what you are doing. Put down your phone, turn off the tv, and focus on what you are eating. Savour the taste and how satisfied you feel. Stop when you feel full. After each meal or snack, make a note of how much you enjoyed it, and how you feel after eating it.
- Avoid using food as a reward. Give yourself permission to eat something tasty because you actually like it and feel like a treat – not because you ‘deserve’ it. Make a list of other ways you can reward yourself after a hard day and stick it on the fridge or somewhere noticeable. It could be taking half an hour to read that book you’ve been meaning to, having a hot bath, or booking that show you want to see, going to that drawing class you’ve been thinking about.
While these suggestions don’t address ‘emotional eating’ (that might be another post at another time) regardless of how long a day it has been, how challenging your workout session was, or what else is going on in your life, taking the time to think about whether you enjoy what you are eating, being intentional in food choices and moving away from using food as a reward can help rewire your brain to only want foods you actually like, and begin to change your relationship with food.
It’s not easy, and it’s very easy to slip back into those old ways of being, especially around times of celebration when people are sharing chocolates and saying ‘oh just one slice won’t hurt’. In fact, writing this post has been a timely reminder for me to put some of these things back into practice in my own health journey, and get back into healthy eating habits after the holidays!
Have you given up on your resolutions already? What are your top tips for sustaining healthy food habits? I would love to hear about your experiences in the comments, or over in the Thursday Thoughts chat.
Find out more about the research into Liking and Wanting and our understanding of addictive behaviours in this interview with Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of Michigan – Dr Kent Berridge – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZIUCuTTEjs
Vibrantly Revive 