Bob Greene's Circle of Life
By Bob Greene
You know the pattern. You're angry about something, so you grab a fistful of chocolate chip cookies. You're down in the dumps for no particular reason. Nothing Ben & Jerry's can't fix. One of the greatest obstacles to weight loss is emotional eating—impulsive, unhealthy snacking triggered by stress, boredom, depression and other factors. To halt these cravings that can sabotage your weight-loss efforts, you first have to determine what triggers those episodes of late-night cookies and straight-from-the-carton ice cream binges. What are you angry or depressed about that makes you turn to food for comfort?
A great self-discovery exercise, which can help you overcome emotional eating, is the Circle of Life. It pinpoints your life's most important areas, determines their current status (going well or needs improvement), and then helps to develop a plan to correct the problem areas. It can put an end to your emotional eating and help you address other troubles spots that may interfere with your health and wellness.
Here's how it works: Draw a large circle on a blank sheet of paper. Divide the circle into several sections so it resembles a sliced pie. Each section represents an area you feel is an integral part of a fulfilled life, such as career, family, health, fitness, friendship, romance, finance, relationships, etc. Aim for at least six categories and write one in each pie slice.
Next, ask yourself how everything is going in each area—and be brutally honest. If things are going well, write a positive sign; not so well, make a negative sign. Then, examine the slices with a negative sign; spend some time thinking about how you could improve that area. What is something you can do every day to stimulate positive change? For example, if a friendship has soured, write a letter, send an e-mail or pick up the phone to try to repair the relationship. If your fitness has stalled, rejuvenate it: Start an exercise journal or buy some new workout clothes. Not eating healthfully enough? Clean out the refrigerator and fill it up with fruit and vegetables. Relationship woes? Consider joining a social group or bond with co-workers after hours. Revamp your financial situation by meeting with a financial planner, updating your resume or reviewing your household budget. Write at least one thing in each section that you can do right now to improve that category, and then commit yourself to it. You'll discover that once you've addressed negative feelings about a relationship or money worries, your emotional eating episodes will vanish.
People who struggle with weight gain often want instant gratification. But if you're patient and take small steps everyday, the results can be amazing. If you can consistently do at least one thing daily to change a negative into a positive, I promise that powerful change will occur in your life after one year. If you can do three things daily, you won't recognize your former life. The philosophy is similar to losing weight: If you eat healthfully and exercise, you don't feel any change on a day-to-day basis, yet you can look back a year later and see a profound transformation.
