Marna Thall
Here are the three different hungers –
1. There’s mouth hunger
2. There’s stomach hunger
3. There’s head hunger?
Once we understand the difference, we can regulate when, how, what and why we eat, and we can achieve ideal weight as well ideal health.
Hunger Type #1: Mouth Hunger
Mouth hunger is actually thirst but can seem like hunger, so you have to watch this one. Your mouth signals you to have liquids by getting dry and needing something in your mouth; water being the best and healthiest bet.
Hunger Type #2: Stomach Hunger
Stomach hunger is the feeling you want to make friends with and listen for in order to know which meal to eat next. It’s your energy obtaining, food needing feeling AND it’s the feeling that 98% of the naturally thin feel that signals them to eat. It’s physical in nature and it’s what you should be aiming for as the only reason to put food into your body.
Hunger Type #3: Head Hunger
Finally you have head hunger. Head Hunger is when you eat because you ‘think’ it’s time to eat or you ‘think’ some food sounds good. This little bugger is the hunger that creates the most havoc in our lives because it has nothing to do with the true nature of hunger and it attaches itself to all sorts of emotions. We’re hungry for a hug, and head hunger thinks “let’s eat to make us feel better”. We feel bored, and head hunger says “no problem” and we head to the fridge to fill up that time.
The naturally thin eat for head hunger but very very seldom; only around 2% of the time, which isn’t much at all.
What is the solution for head hunger you might ask? Feel your feelings is the answer. If you’re sad – cry. If you’re bored feel boredom and find an activity that you can do that’s healthy.
Practice FEELING into your feelings and let me know how it’s going for you. The saying really does apply to emotional eating – in order to heal your emotional eating, you’ve got to feel your feelings!
Clients who begin feeling instead of eating say that at first it’s pretty uncomfortable, but as times goes on it gets easier and easier until turning to food happens only on occasion.
Have fun feeling ! :)