I was roaming the aisles at Whole Foods the other day and the bakery section caught my eye. And boy did it look fantastic! The smell of freshly baked bread, the just-out-of-the-oven muffins, the delectable display of chocolate….yep, the bakery aisle was indeed calling my name!
I tried to divert my attention away from the delicious goodies on display and focus on the task at end: buy lunch and nothing else, then exit the store. (Why is it so easy to buy 987 other things that you don’t need at the store?)
Buuuuut my diversion tactics weren’t working. I kept circling back to the bakery aisle. I eyed up the display of homemade brownies, desserts, cookies, and (drumroll….) 7-layer bars.
Now if you have not had these, they are like God’s mean gift to mankind: straight up sugary, buttery, dough-y, chewy deliciousness. (I say mean because they are VERY addicting).
I stared at them. They stared back. My mind said “Nope, not gonna happen. You don’t need a 7-layer bar”. But they looked so good. Reluctantly, I walked away.
And the familiar internal battle ensued:
I really want that freaking cookie bar.
No, seriously, Jenn, you don’t need it.
But when is the last time you had a dessert like this?
Yes, but I’ll be pissed at myself later if I buy it and eat it.
Old habits and battles sometime die hard, huh?
I literally spent a good 10 minutes having these conversations with myself in my head (symptom of a crazy person…??? I sure hope not!)
And then I was like “ you know what? F%#k It, I’m going to eat the dang 7-layer bar and enjoy every last morsel of it”.
So I bought it, ate it, and continued on with my day.
It’s funny how encounters with bakery aisles can torture us.
Next time you find yourself internally arguing back and forth, I have some advice for you: Eat the damn dessert already!
Seriously, though. Sometimes I think about how much of my life I’ve spent arguing with myself about wanting to eat ice cream, a piece of cake, a homemade cookie, etc, and I’ve refused to let myself indulge.
And then it inevitably ends up in a binge because I continued to think about it the ENTIRE rest of the day then “made up” for it the following day (read: binged).
Eating what you really want in the moment can actually stave off binges later in the day or week: really! (Click to Tweet that)
Now, I’m not talking about inhaling the last ½ of the box of Teddy Grams. Nor am I talking about when you feel like you’re going to have a full on “eat everything in the pantry” binge.
I’m talking about those special occasions where you can allow yourself to indulge in delicious, scrumptious treats that you really really desire.
So, what do you do when the bakery aisle is calling your name?
When you come face-to-face with one of these types of “dessert encounters”, remember:
- Take/buy one and eat it without guilt. The important part of this equation is the last part: without guilt. Because if you eat it, and then feel guilty, there really was no point in eating it in the first place! It’s tough not to feel guilty, but make up your mind to let go of the guilt. Even if you have to continuously remind yourself not to feel guilty, do it. It gets easier each time you practice it 🙂
- Really really really enjoy it. Smack your lips, close your eyes, and taste the delectable sweetness of that double stuffed Oreo, freshly baked bread, or ice cream sundae. For real-enjoy it like you’ve never enjoyed anything before. It’s essential to enjoy it, because when you TRULY enjoy something and REALLY taste it, you don’t need 16 more. Mindfulness and binging cannot coexist, so if you are really tasting and eating with gusto, it WILL be enough to satisfy you. (Click to tweet that!)
- Move on with your day. This is also super important. And also a choice. If you are mad at yourself and ruminating about why you ate it and you wish you didn’t, this way of thinking does not serve you. If however, you say to yourself “ok I’m going to eat it, enjoy it, and move on” then-BINGO-this is the kind of thinking that brings much more freedom and relaxation around the way you eat.
So next time you find yourself in surrounded by freshly baked goods, and the bakery aisle is calling your name, experiment with this 3-step process.
Your turn: see what situations come up in the next week (hello, Halloween candy and treats!) and put this into practice. Let me know how it goes!
PS: Check out my two published posts on HuffPost: Nights of Never Ending Oreos and Fitting Into Your Skinny Jeans: Does It Really Matter?
