How I beat emotional eating: forgiving myself when I slip up is the key to achieving success

Forget meditation and yoga--when I started writing this column 11 months ago, chocolate doughnuts and pepperoni pizza were my preferred forms of stress relief. Anytime anything went wrong, I'd automatically head straight to the kitchen, and how much I ate was directly related to my tension level. However, I've noticed a subtle shift in my behavior recently: Yes, I'm still stressed. In fact, I'm under a lot of pressure these days juggling a two-hour commute, taking care of my daughter, Brooke, and trying to deal with the recent death of my maternal grandmother. But now I find myself stopping to think before reverting to my old habits. Instead of eating, I'll read a magazine to relax or go out for a walk to soothe my frayed nerves.

Learning to cope

Of course, I still have days when I slip up on my diet. On those occasions the words of dietitian Pam Amann, R.D., of Tacoma, Wash., ring in my head: "No one eats perfectly all the time. Just don't wait until the beginning of next week to start over. Make a healthy choice the very next time you eat." In order for that to happen, I know I need to be flexible and more forgiving of myself, because it's so much easier to move on when I'm not obsessing over my mistakes.

Allowing myself to start over

I recently put this lesson into action at my grandmother's funeral. After the wake my family gathered for dinner, and calorie counting took a backseat to comfort, which I know is perfectly normal in a situation like this. I scanned the smorgasbord of dishes and ended up with a little bit of everything: potato salad, a hamburger, coleslaw, you name it.

To be truthful, I don't really remember all the details of what I ate or how much. But for the first time in my life, I didn't beat myself up over it. The next day I took Amann's advice and simply started where I left off: I had a banana and a bowl of wholegrain cereal for breakfast, an apple and a turkey sandwich on whole wheat bread for lunch, and a chicken breast with steamed vegetables for dinner. And by weigh-in time at the end of the month, I hadn't gained a pound. In fact, I had lost 5.

RELATED ARTICLE: WEIGHING IN

Month 1

Height 5'2"

Weight 163 lbs.

Body fat 34%

Resting blood pressure 120/76 (normal)

Cholesterol 218 (borderline high)

Month 10

Weight 146 lbs.

Pounds lost 17

Body fat 27%

Body fat lost 7%

Resting blood pressure 100/70 (normal)

Cholesterol 184 (desirable)

Month 11

Weight 141 lbs.

Pounds lost 22

Body fat 24%

Body fat lost 10%

Resting blood pressure 100/70 (normal)

Cholesterol 184 (desirable)

STAY TUNED

Next month, Renee reflects on the lasting benefits of her new lifestyle.

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