Hunger Scale vs. the Bathroom Scale
I have written before about not being a slave to the numbers, be that the size clothing you are, or more common—being a slave to the weight you see on the scale. Now while I still don’t want you to be a slave to these numbers, there is one scale you can pay attention to when you are being intuitive. That is your hunger scale.
There are many things that can make you reach for food that do not involve actually being hungry. You might be stressed, tired, sad or lonely. But if you take the time to think about hunger prior to reaching for a snack or pulling through the nearest drive-thru, you might find that you are not biologically hungry, but you are experiencing emotional hunger.
Think of your hunger on a scale of zero to ten. At zero you are beyond starving, at 10 you are sick from overeating. Do not wait until you are completely starving to go and get something to eat. If you do that, you’ll likely find the nearest food to eat, which is not always the best option, and you will shoot yourself up the scale to a ten (sick from overeating). Part of being healthy and in control of your body is feeding yourself before you get to a zero, and knowing when to stop when you are satisfied. Staying in the middle of the scale throughout the day by eating at regular intervals will keep you feeling good all day.
So feel free to hop on to the habit of using this scale rather than the other one! It’s one number that will help you rather than hurt you on your journey!
Your turn to take action: Use the hunger scale this week prior to eating to discover how in tune you are to your signals! How is it working for you?
I love this! It is so true that if you are at zero you may eat anything that is there……such a good point.
Yes Amber, when we start to pay attention, it’s amazing what we realize about our hunger and responses. Glad this is helpful to you!
Guess I better go get something to eat. My hunger jumped up a notch just to drive your point home.
Guess I better go get something to eat. My hunger just jumped up a notch to prove your point.
If it’s true hunger, then absolutely…get some food to honor that hunger!
Great tips. Thanks for sharing. I tend to eat when I am stressed I am going to try and stay in the middle of the scale
Sharron, it’s important to always ask yourself “am I hungry” when you are about to eat? If the answer is no, then ask yourself what you are feeling. Likely you’ll realize its stress, and then turn to another activity that’s in your toolbox rather than food. Example – do you like to read, journal, clean, or maybe just step outside and take a few breaths of fresh air. Thanks for commenting.
Great way to stop monitoring numbers and start monitoring our bodies. I love the hunger scale vs weight scale because it matters so much more. Our bodies are wise and will tell us when they are hungry. If we can tune into that signal, then we can feed ourselves healthy and work on the other emotions or issues that were triggering us to eat. Nicely written!
Thanks Jen. I’m trying to get this message out to my clients!
I recently realised that I hadn’t been hungry for months and that was a bad thing. Working from home with 2 kids meant I was always eating when they ate and never giving myself the chance to get hungry
Interesting Lianne-Carla. It’s so important to begin to re-familiarize yourself with what gentle hunger feels like and honor that hunger when you first feel it. I’m happy to hear that you started to pay attention to this. Keep me posted on how it’s going.