Did you know that in medical terms, binge eating is actually categorized as an eating disorder? It means that if are you a binge eater , you are at serious risk of health issues and need to give the condition proper attention and time.

As the new year revelries are just a week away, or maybe started already, it’s the perfect time for people to get into the binge eating mode. Which is why it is also the perfect time to try these effective methods to stop yourself from binge eating! Most of the methods mentioned below have really worked for me, and if not all, then some of these will definitely work for you too. So have a look and see which one(s) suits you best.

7 Ways To Stop Yourself From Binge Eating

1. Cut Out On Those Restrictions

One of the biggest hurdles people on a diet fear is that fact that they will have to follow a host of eating restrictions, which means they cannot have a huge variety of foods they love and otherwise would have had. When you start an eating plan with the thought that you can no longer have your favorite foods, it will trigger more cravings and make you binge eat. Remove all restrictions but make sure that when you eat your favorite foods that may not be the best eating choices, you do so in moderation. As long as your body gets it in small doses, the cravings will not return.

2. Keep Yourself Distracted

Often we end up binge eating because we don’t have anything else to keep ourselves occupied with. For instance, you may be bored at home, and suddenly raid the fridge, opening the ice cream carton and eating a few spoons, which could very soon turn into almost half the ice cream. Instead of giving in to such sudden and unwanted eating sessions, look for other ways to stay busy. Plan a get together with friends, have a board game session at home, go out and break into a run or watch some interesting shows.

3. Create a ‘If This Then That’ Diet Plan

The ‘If This Then That’ plan is a simple trick that most people on any sort of program follow in order to control their cravings and stick to the routine. The concept follows the rule of giving you various options that will help you avoid cravings and triggers and instead let you do something positive. Keep a small notebook to jot down your main triggers. For instance, if you love eating a roadside snack while heading out of office, create a plan to walk out of office and take a new route instead. Write down something such as If this: I see the snack stall and really want to eat it. Then: I will take the new route and walk at least 3 to 4 kilometers and have a glass of fresh juice from a stall.

4. Avoid Weighing Yourself All The Time

This is a personal experience point that has really worked to beat binge eating and keep the weight in check, as well as stay healthy and fit. When you weigh yourself constantly, you build up your stress levels and end up looking for comfort food. Your body weight is meant to fluctuate by a kilo here and there each day, so what you see on the scale right now may not be the exact picture of how you are doing overall. Instead of getting on the scale all the time, wait for your body to respond. When you stay away from binge eating, your body will feel the difference and you will feel lighter, more energetic and fresh.

5. Forget About The Cheat Day Concept (At Least For Some Time)

Don’t give yourself the hope that you can binge eat on so-and-so cheat days of the week. Most people who end up binge eating say they do so only on cheat days and that cheat days are part of a healthy eating plan. No, it is not. A cheat day is called so because it means you are doing something you are not really meant to do. The best way to avoid cheat days as well as control craving and trigger is to eat everything in moderation, instead of heaping yourself with unhealthy food at once.

6. Take Cues From Your Body

As you start getting better at controlling your binge eating, your body will give you cues that you can learn from. For me, my clothes were the first indicator of my weight staying stable. The second cue was the fact that I could feel a noticeable shift in my energy levels. Also, my stamina seemed to have gone up, where earlier I would do 5 km walks, I was now easily completing 10 km walks on a daily basis. Avoiding binge eating also helps you sleep better and wake up feeling refreshed.

7. Stop Hoarding Junk

The first foods that you almost always end up reaching out for when you binge eat are those that look easy to make and have, and are definitely not healthy. Binge eating happens when you are feeling lazy or low, and these are times when you are not up to cooking an elaborate meal from scratch. So instead of giving yourself the chance to binge eat junk, stop hoarding junk in the first place. If you don’t have bags of chips, sausages, cartons of ice cream and packets of instant noodles in the kitchen, chances are you won’t step out to go and buy them right then. Instead, keep fruits and nuts in your fridge, so that even if you do binge eat, it’s still healthy.