Exercising and Overeating

by Stacey
(Washington DC)

I'm 26 years old and obsessed with exercise. I do 30 to 60 minutes every day. I feel really good about myself for my hard work but then I ruin it by overeating.

I eat healthy foods for the most part but I don't stop after I've eaten a sizable serving. I keep going back to the kitchen for something else and then something else..

I know I shouldn't be doing it and that I'm essentially sabotaging myself and making null all the exercise I did. It kills me that I keep doing this and, despite all my working out, I'm gaining fat. I am dealing with depression in a big way (have been for years) and right now I pretty much exist only for food and exercise, exercise and food. Nothing else. I'm on anti depressants and am currently looking to change to a different therapist who is better suited to my issues. In the meantime, any advice?

Thanks.


ANSWER

I understand the cycle you're in. For me it had an opposite beginning...I would eat too much and then compensate with exercise; I guess that was my form of bulimia.

But no matter where the cycle begins... it's there and I feel the pain you're going through.

We all tend to work on our behaviors instead of the real problem. We think that the solution lies in our nutrition choices and our exercise habits... but the real solution is targeting what drives all our behaviors.

We cannot change behaviors at the level of behavior... at least not for long.

When true change occurs in our actions it is because we have changed something deeper than behavior. We have changed the way we think or feel about something. We have changed a belief or perception about ourselves and/or the world.

What I suggest is that you take a deeper look. Stop focusing on the food and exercise; and focus instead on how you handle stress and other emotions. Notice the situations you struggle with and make a proactive action plan to handle it in a healthy way.


All my Best,

Stefanie