Very few of us have a healthy relationship with food. Some have healthier ones than others, but in general, a lot of our time is consumed with food thoughts. In fact, I’d even go so far as to say that many of us are actually addicted to the eating / dieting / guilt roller-coaster. Feeling crappy? Oooooh that cookie looks great! Yummmm that was delicious! Feeling stressed? Ooooohhh salty, delicious, crispy chips you make me feel so much better! From there, some will decide to maybe compensate for this “indiscretion” by doing a little extra cardio. Others, may chalk up the whole day as a “crappy-eating-day,” feel guilty about it and vouch to do “better” tomorrow. But, there’s a certain amount of thrill involved in our eating. We are emotionally invested in and affected by the food choices we make, to the point where it’s becomes a form of rebellion, a way to assert control, or to actively manipulate our mood. By “being bad,” we can live the excitement of a food that’s forbidden, even if that food is followed by guilt. This puts us on a constant rollercoaster: highs followed by lows. All. the. time.

One of the big things I’ve realized is that by going Paleo I’ve effectively step off that rollercoaster. For one, I’ve removed a lot of the foods that I would normally turn to on an emotional-eating-kinda-day. I’m having that day right now, actually. Yea, maybe I’m bored…maybe I’m frustrated…maybe I’m overwhelmed…but the fact is that I’m not willing to compromise this way of eating. Physically, I feel way too good. So that leaves me with the option of munching on Paleo goodness — fruits, nuts, veggies, meat —- but, since I can eat however much of that as I want anyways, there’s simply no allure to eat when I’m not hungry. Hmmmm…so what do I do? I guess it really boils down to me having to actually deal with my…emotions?! WHAT?! That’s crazy talk!