Change Eating Habits
Habits are great, until they’re not.
Eating habits are among the behaviors of daily life that require some degree of maintenance to ensure they are helpful and not causing problems. Behavior analysis has several tools for recognizing problem habits, understanding the role they play in our daily lives, and identifying strategies to change eating habits that are no longer useful.
Do you engage in any of the following food-related habits?
Is it a habit to change?
Now, just because you engage in a food-related habit, does not mean it is a problem. For example, drinking soda is not a problem if it is only occasionally. Consider your weight loss goals and also how the habit behavior makes you feel. For example, if someone eats a roll of mints because he’s upset, it is likely not going to interfere with his weight loss goals. However, using food like this when someone feels upset can make the situation more upsetting for that person.
Think Replacement.
Rather than squashing habits, it is more natural to transform them. If you have not already seen it, the post called Behavior is a Tool describes in more detail how behaviors serve a purpose. Rather than demanding that you stop, it is more effective to recognize that the unhelpful habit plays an important role in your life. How does this habit help me in my daily life? When you can answer that question, the replacement behavior will reveal itself. Here are some applied examples:
- What: Tracy feels unsettled when she gets home from work and tends to snack and watch TV.
- How: This helps her to unwind and transition from work to home.
- Replacement: Tracy decides to stop at the gym after work. After a short workout, she is ready for her evening. A shower is also a good replacement in this context.
- What: Tom has several sugary drinks each day.
- How: The drinks keep him awake, especially when he has something he has to do, but no energy to do it.
- Replace: Tom begins to carry a water bottle so he can keep the drinking habit but make it healthy. He decides to address the tiredness directly by going to bed no later than 10p on weekdays.
Change the Context
When deciding to modify a habit behavior, it is very useful to change something about the context as well. This might be something to remind you that you intended to do it differently this time. For example, No Weigh users are encouraged to brush their teeth after eating when they intend not to snack between meals, or in the evening. A clean mouth is a new context that also comes with a rule we already follow—avoid eating when your teeth have just been brushed.
The Trick to Change Eating Habits: Always Roll with It.
Recovering diet app users might come to the conclusion that their diets apps failed them with all-or-nothing thinking. The freedom of behavior analysis is that it is built on acceptance. If you can clearly see reality and all its connections to context and learning history, then the solution shows itself (and the solution is never to will yourself to stop in your tracks).
Are you ready for something different?
Valerie A. Evans, Ph.D. is a licensed and board certified behavior analyst and small business owner.
Valerie worked as a behavior analyst in school and home settings and also as a consultant. She began her career working with adults with intellectual disability, a population of consumers that has special meaning to her. In addition to her clinical experience, Valerie worked in research labs as a student and also held a position as Research Associate for the School District of Philadelphia.
