Do you still have a forbidden food? You know, the one you crave after a particularly stressful day but, perhaps, feel guilt about enjoying? If you do, what is it?

Hot Fudge Brownie Sundaes

For a long time, brownie sundaes were my forbidden food (and, to be honest, sometimes I still feel that way). Just imagining myself eating one could elicit a calm feeling – thinking about sitting down and relishing the cold vanilla ice cream, the crunchy brownie and the warm, gooey hot fudge. 

However, when I actually ate one, it wasn’t pleasurable. 

About ½ way through the dessert, I would begin to feel guilty. For those who struggle with compulsive eating, their response to eating forbidden foods can be even more dramatic. 

Many of my clients report frequently sneaking food, eating to the point of discomfort, and feeling crippling shame. To counter these experiences, increased awareness about your forbidden foods is critical. 

Increasing Awareness

So, if you still have a forbidden food (or many), consider the following techniques to enhance your awareness:

• Pick a forbidden food from your list
• Give yourself permission to eat the food freely - state this permission aloud, to a trusted friend, or write it down and post it in the kitchen
• Do not sneak the food or hide it from others
• Eat your forbidden food mindfully – notice if it tastes good, if you are enjoying it, and if you are satisfied after eating it
• Write down your feelings about the food and the experience of eating it (physical sensations and emotional reactions)

Repeat this experience for four days in a row to help loosen the lure of the forbidden food. As Geneen Roth states in her book, Women, Food, God, “A forbidden food is quite a bit like a forbidden love – once it is readily available, it loses much of its appeal.” 

Hopefully this experience will help you break free of the good food/ bad food mentality and support you in becoming a more intuitive eater.

I hope you will try this experiment and that it will help you better understand yourself and your relationship to food. In addition, I would love to hear from you about your own forbidden foods and the joys of learning to eat more mindfully. What foods do you find “forbidden?” How has this experiment impacted your perceptions?

 

Sara Armstrong is the owner of Zoi Wellness Consulting. In addition to wellness coaching, Sara specializes in health education seminars, diabetes prevention and management, Health for EVERY Body, and worksite wellness design. You can email Sara for a free wellness consultation at sara@zoiconsulting.com.