As you may notice, the time on this blog entry is kind of early...why is the good Doctor not sleeping you may ask? Answer: two issues: one reason I will not provide until the end of this entry. Here is the second reason: We are writing a book now about weight loss, and there will be a substantial amount of attention to the concept of "stress eating". When you hear the word "Stress" immediately a negative image appears of feeling ovewhelmed, anxious, heart pounding, gut-wrenching, panic-type of senastions. Stress is usually brought on by external forces...being given too much work with a deadline, having a family member go through a difficult time medically or physically, financial pressures, etc. The usual response of a person to stress is negative both from a physical and psycholgical standpoint. One of the most prominent responses to stress is reaching for "comfort foods", which almost always are high-caloric leading to weight gain. The subsequent weight gain produces its own stress and the vicious cycle is set in motion.
Why i am awake thinking about this is because over the weekend , I saw some incredible performances of star athletes: Venus Williams and Rafael Najar in the Wimbleton finals. Under the stress of being physically pushed to the limit and having millions of people worldwide watching them, these people THRIVED under the stress and rose their levels to an incredible height. They didn't reach for donuts (well, after the match they may have had a snickers bar, I just don't know that) but they did reach inside themselves to bring out their very best.
How can we as normal human beings, not being paid millions of dollars to perform, react to stress in a way that allows us to gather our positive forces and translate the stress to a positive outcome? This is what I am awake thinking about because if we can somehow learn /train ourselves to react to stress in a positive manner, or convert negative stress to positive stress, then our weight will not suffer. More about this tomorrow!
Oh, the second reason Dr. Bob is not sleeping...The New York Mets were winning 10-1 over the Phillies (sorry Philadelphia fans, you truly are much more barbaric than New York fans, and least you doubt that, remember booing Santa Claus at an Eagles football game one December?) and wound up almost blowing the lead and winning by the narrowest of margins, 10-9. Why can't I become a Nationals fan?
By the way, somehow I think the comments to this blog entry will be more about my diss of Philadelphia fans than the medical issue of stress eating!
Showing posts with label weight gain. Show all posts
Showing posts with label weight gain. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Stress Eating Part Deux
Okay, before I begin my second day thoughts on stress eating, let's discuss sequels of movies that were pretty good. Sorry for the flight of ideas, but I am hoping that today's discussion of stress eating will be on par with yesterdays...kind of a sequel thing. Now of course, if you thought yesterday's blog was boring and not worthwhile then I guess I don't need to worry about Part 2.
Most often, when a blockbuster movie comes out the sequel usually is horrible...some examples of the horrible ones: The Exorcist Part 2, The Omen Part 2, Major League 2, Analyze That, Basic Instinct 2. Good ones: City Slickers Part 2, The Godfather Part 2, Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom. Feel free to post your thoughts.
Okay, back to stress eating: Almost instinctually, when we get under stress, we feel compelled to reach for high caloric food sources as a way of somehow mitigating the stress. Such foods tend to be repetitive sources, such as popcorn, chips, nuts etc. Chemically, it may be the case that under stressful periods, we deplete some neurochemicals, including serotonin, and our brain is making us seek the food sources that contain the building blocks of some of the neurotransmitters. In the case of serotonin, the amino acid tryptophan, which is present in high amounts in sweets and carbs, is the building block.
The recognition of stress eating is not enough to block the almost reflex-like response of reaching for high caloric food sources. A few hints: 1- ensure that around your office or home there are NOT these food sources that you would tend to reach for when you feel stressed. 2-Try to convert "negative" stress to "positive" stress. What I mean by this is that there are certain "stresses" that are positive, such as lifting weights, which "stress" the muscles but yet do not stress our psyches. During times of mental stress, it would be beneficial to try to convert this to perhaps a physical activity that allows you to dissipate the stress. In this scenario, not only are you not consuming the calories from the "comfort food" source, but you are also burning up calories with your activity of choice.
This is not easy because the compunction to eat under periods of stress is often very strong. Try to figure out how you can place some type of "delay" mechanism into this behavior pattern, because when you can put off the immediate eating activity, your brain will have more time to think it out and realize that eating in response to stress only INCREASES your overall stress levels because now you will have to deal with the weight gain sequelae.
Most often, when a blockbuster movie comes out the sequel usually is horrible...some examples of the horrible ones: The Exorcist Part 2, The Omen Part 2, Major League 2, Analyze That, Basic Instinct 2. Good ones: City Slickers Part 2, The Godfather Part 2, Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom. Feel free to post your thoughts.
Okay, back to stress eating: Almost instinctually, when we get under stress, we feel compelled to reach for high caloric food sources as a way of somehow mitigating the stress. Such foods tend to be repetitive sources, such as popcorn, chips, nuts etc. Chemically, it may be the case that under stressful periods, we deplete some neurochemicals, including serotonin, and our brain is making us seek the food sources that contain the building blocks of some of the neurotransmitters. In the case of serotonin, the amino acid tryptophan, which is present in high amounts in sweets and carbs, is the building block.
The recognition of stress eating is not enough to block the almost reflex-like response of reaching for high caloric food sources. A few hints: 1- ensure that around your office or home there are NOT these food sources that you would tend to reach for when you feel stressed. 2-Try to convert "negative" stress to "positive" stress. What I mean by this is that there are certain "stresses" that are positive, such as lifting weights, which "stress" the muscles but yet do not stress our psyches. During times of mental stress, it would be beneficial to try to convert this to perhaps a physical activity that allows you to dissipate the stress. In this scenario, not only are you not consuming the calories from the "comfort food" source, but you are also burning up calories with your activity of choice.
This is not easy because the compunction to eat under periods of stress is often very strong. Try to figure out how you can place some type of "delay" mechanism into this behavior pattern, because when you can put off the immediate eating activity, your brain will have more time to think it out and realize that eating in response to stress only INCREASES your overall stress levels because now you will have to deal with the weight gain sequelae.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Stress Eating
When we think of the word "stress", most often we envision the emotional/physical response to untoward life events. The emotional components may include anxiety, a sense of panic, depression and a global sense of worry and doom. Physically, our "fight or flight" hormone response may cause us to feel palpitations, headaches, chest pains and poor sleep patterns.
Frequently, when we are under stress, we find ourselves reaching for food as a "treatment". Unfortunately, the food sources we seek during periods of stress are termed "comfort foods" and they tend to be very high in calories. Chips, cookies and other sweets are the most commonly sought out foods. Alcohol consumption may also be a response to stress for a number of people. A few beers or glasses of wine may seem to temporarily make the stress seem more bearable. But once again, the calories we consume with the alcohol will make weight problems even worse.
Linda and I have developed a quiz to allow someone to see just how much stress plays a role in his/her eating behavior. Check out: www.stresseaterquiz.com Invite your friends and family to go that site as well to perform an assessment as to whether stress is contributing to any weight issues they may have and to what extent.
Tomorrow I will discuss more about the chemical responses to stress as that relates to eating behaviors and what solutions we may have for you.
On a non-medicine note: I was at Wolf Trap Saturday night to see the musical "Rent". One stethoscope up for me...my daughter loved the show. Must be a generational thing...if I took her to see the old classic Guys and Dolls, I think she would have demanded to leave at intermission.
Frequently, when we are under stress, we find ourselves reaching for food as a "treatment". Unfortunately, the food sources we seek during periods of stress are termed "comfort foods" and they tend to be very high in calories. Chips, cookies and other sweets are the most commonly sought out foods. Alcohol consumption may also be a response to stress for a number of people. A few beers or glasses of wine may seem to temporarily make the stress seem more bearable. But once again, the calories we consume with the alcohol will make weight problems even worse.
Linda and I have developed a quiz to allow someone to see just how much stress plays a role in his/her eating behavior. Check out: www.stresseaterquiz.com Invite your friends and family to go that site as well to perform an assessment as to whether stress is contributing to any weight issues they may have and to what extent.
Tomorrow I will discuss more about the chemical responses to stress as that relates to eating behaviors and what solutions we may have for you.
On a non-medicine note: I was at Wolf Trap Saturday night to see the musical "Rent". One stethoscope up for me...my daughter loved the show. Must be a generational thing...if I took her to see the old classic Guys and Dolls, I think she would have demanded to leave at intermission.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Vacation weight gain..the Doctor is Baaack!
Good morning and I am glad to be back. Scale told me 2.3 pounds of weight gain...i ran 5 miles every day while away but still gained weight? Why? Wasn't alcohol...I am a complete lightweigth with alcohol..one drink I am laughing...2 i am asleep. It was more carbs and portion issues...
Posner's plans to get those pounds off this week? Extra vigilance for watching portion control and not allowing any of the little things that I will sometimes allow myself such as a saoft pretzel at night, a small piece of cake that sometimes gets through.
Point is that there must be a plan..when you return from a vacation....face the music: weight yourself, see what gain may have occurred and formulate your strategy to get it down to the level you want. When you get in trouble is when you either do not weight yourself or do not have a plan.
Thanks to Linda Hlivka for writing some great helpful stuff the last few days.
Another point: sometimes there are some comments at the end of this blog pushing a website for commercial purposes. We are trying to rid these but I wanted all to understand that we are NOT supporting/recommending any of these companies that are trying to leach on our blog for their own purposes.
Posner's plans to get those pounds off this week? Extra vigilance for watching portion control and not allowing any of the little things that I will sometimes allow myself such as a saoft pretzel at night, a small piece of cake that sometimes gets through.
Point is that there must be a plan..when you return from a vacation....face the music: weight yourself, see what gain may have occurred and formulate your strategy to get it down to the level you want. When you get in trouble is when you either do not weight yourself or do not have a plan.
Thanks to Linda Hlivka for writing some great helpful stuff the last few days.
Another point: sometimes there are some comments at the end of this blog pushing a website for commercial purposes. We are trying to rid these but I wanted all to understand that we are NOT supporting/recommending any of these companies that are trying to leach on our blog for their own purposes.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
45% of Workers are Heavier than Last Year
A recent survey of 7,688
Other findings include:
- Twenty-six percent of employees report they have gained more than ten pounds and 12 percent say they gained more than 20 pounds while in their present positions.
- Women are more likely (50 percent) than men (42 percent) to say they have gained weight at their current jobs.
- Nearly two-in-five (38 percent) percent of employees surveyed eat out for lunch twice or more per week, making it difficult to control portions and calorie intake.
- Snacking can also be a slippery slope for those trying to cut back on calories, as two-thirds (66 percent) of employees surveyed snack at least once a day, while nearly 25 percent snack at least twice a day.
If these trends continue, workers will continue to gain weight year after year. It might be a good idea to learn more about what you can do now by clicking here to make sure that next year you are not part of the group of works that pack on more pounds.
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