Is Your Fridge a Crime Scene? (5 Signs Your Relationship With Food is Toxic)

I apologize if the title is a bit dramatic.

But when a client tells me they feel the need to hide cookies like a stash of illegal drugs...I can't help but make the comparison!

As a nutrition expert with many years resolving clients' issues with food and dieting fads, I've pretty much seen it all.

Which is why recent statistics showing 65% of professional women over 30 exhibit disordered eating came as no surprise.

Less common in men, but there is certainly some underreporting.

As you read through this, remember, I am by no means claiming to be a disordered eating specialist.

I am giving you advice based on my personal experience and research.

After over a decade of coaching folks just like you - ambitious, success-driven professionals - patterns emerge.

Most of my new clients share the goal: "I want to stop emotional stress eating!"

But sadly, they don't realize restrictive dieting got them into hot water in the first place.

The moment you categorize chocolate chip cookies as "evil" is the moment they develop an irresistible magnetic pull from the forbidden fruit effect.

It's why I would constantly find adults hiding candy wrappers under their beds like naughty children when I used to make house calls...

But more on that later!

First, let's explore the key signs your relationship with food has turned toxic so you can start resurrecting it.

Here are the top indicators:

• You harbor intense guilt and self-loathing after eating "off-plan"
• Your self-esteem fluctuates wildly based on the number on the scale
• You can't keep certain "trigger foods" in the house without binging
• You constantly try and fail different crash diets like keto or intermittent fasting
• You ignore biological hunger/fullness signals due to restrictive food rules

I get it. After one too many slices of pizza, it's normal to feel slightly repulsed and want to slap on workout clothes to "undo the damage!"

But when you start hiding evidence like it's a homicide scene...Houston, we have a problem!

The good news?

You have the power to break up with restrictive dieting for good and reinvent a healthy food relationship that aligns with your goals and values.

As an aspiring nutrition expert who's helped hundreds of clients struggling with emotional eating binge cycles, I always return to my simple 5-point framework guaranteed to transform your bond with food real fast:

1. Retire Your Food Morality Police Officer

For my clients, that means stopping the self-flagellation when you indulge in chocolate or skipping the gut-twisting shame spiral after a big meal out.

Start catching and challenging judgemental thoughts like "I was bad for eating that cookie" and actively build more neutral associations.

Concrete actions to take:

• Make a list of 20 foods you label as "good" and "bad" and cross out those labels
• Enlist a friend to call out any subtle "I shouldn't have eaten that" comments. Your new response: "Food has no inherent morality"

2. Divorce Restrictive Diets For Good

Wave bye-bye to obsessive calorie tracking, intermittent fasting, carb cycling, keto, and every fad diet under the sun!

Sure, calorie tracking is a GREAT tool, but you shouldn't want to or attempt to track forever...

The more you try in vain to tightly control your food intake, the more deprived you feel, leading straight into emotional eating woosh.

Instead?

Learn to gently tune back into biological hunger/fullness without the low-grade anxiety of hitting specific macros and limits.

Actions to try:

• Switch off your TV and eat in a less distracted environment
• Chew each mouthful as much as you can
• Set a timer for 20 minutes at each meal to encourage slowing down

3. Shift From Restriction to Abundance

Often we become so fixated on what we can't have that we neglect discovering all the delicious, nourishing foods we CAN eat more of!

I teach my clients how to reframe thinking around adding in more vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, fruit, healthy fats instead of limiting "danger foods".

Actions to level up:

• Make a running grocery list split into abundance (what to add) rather than restriction
• Add 1-2 servings (big servings) of fruit and/or vegetables to each meal
• Let ''Cravings'' Inspire New Dish Ideas - get a bit more creative with new recipes

4. Block Out The Noise

From photoshopped influencers on Insta to impossible body standard pushed by Hollywood - it's no wonder so many professionals tie self-worth to weight and looks!

Part of my coaching focuses on shutting out those external voices through mindfulness practices, so clients can learn to trust their own bodily wisdom again.

Tactics that work:

• Limit your time spent scrolling on social media (mainly Instagram)
• Going for walks when you're feeling hungry
• Distracting yourself with specific problems
• Sticking to a regular/ish meal time
• Daily meditation sessions

5. Give Yourself Radical Food Permission

Sorry kale, but cookies deserve a place in every balanced diet too!

Give yourself full permission to incorporate all foods again, instead of preoccupation about "good vs bad" options.

Remind yourself food choices each meal won't define your value as a human.

Methods to make this click:

• Buy single serving sizes of ice cream or treats that you like
• Set aside a few days a week when you incorporate dessert
• Plan a meal out every week

There you have it - a detailed walkthrough of my proven 5-point process for transforming your food relationship and ending emotional/stress eating for good!

One of my areas of focus in my coaching plan is to improve your relationship with food to end fad dieting for good and enable you to enjoy the foods you love.

While getting into the best shape of your life, physically and mentally.

I would love to know, which part (if any) above resonated most today?

Let me know if you have any other questions at all.

Have the best day!

Adam