Reward Your Way to Weight Loss

>From an early age, we are conditioned to reward ourselves with
food. It might have begun in kindergarten, when we were treated
to cupcakes at the annual Halloween party. It may have continued
through junior high and high school, when we reached for the
cookies after a hard day at school. In adulthood, we may buy a
high-calorie frappucino to celebrate a success on the job.

But the problem is, food was not designed to be a reward. It
exists simply to give us energy. When we look at food as a
reward, there is a great temptation to overeat. We believe that
we deserve it, that we’ve earned this opportunity to indulge. We
feel gratified when we eat food that might otherwise be
forbidden.

Our food-as-reward culture has had calamitous consequences. An
increasing number of us are overweight, and getting fatter by
the year. We suffer from a myriad of health problems as a result
of our obesity. We may feel lethargic and unmotivated–too
stuffed to engage in exercise. We have become a nation of couch
potatoes.

Yet, we don’t have to continue living this way. We can simply
stop rewarding ourselves with food. However, it may not be that
simple. We will have to change our mindset–to develop
alternative systems of rewards. While this may seem difficult at
first, it can be accomplished in time.

Here are some ideas for rewards that do not involve food:

* Give yourself a day at the beach. This can clear your mind and
can be wonderfully invigorating.

* Schedule some play time. Your play might involve tennis,
video games, or blowing bubbles–whatever activity that will get
your mind away from the daily routine.

* Go shopping at a dollar store. You won’t spend much, but you
could pick up some tremendous bargains.

* Share some quality time with your dog or cat. Grab some pet
toys and have some fun.

* Go to the cosmetics counter of your local department store
and indulge in a makeover.

* Spend a day at a spa. It can be wonderfully relaxing to be
pampered with massage and aromatherapy.

* Volunteer an hour or two at your local elementary school.
Being with children, even for a short time, can be a rewarding
experience.

* Take your children to the playground, a roller rink, or a
swim club. The activity can leave you feeling refreshed and
energized.

* Buy a new CD from one of your favorite musical artists. Then
make sure you spend an hour or two listening to it.

* If you play a musical instrument, sit down and play a few
tunes. Music can be a great mood-elevator.

If you don’t like the idea of developing an alternative reward
system, consider simply varying your routine. If you’ve become
accustomed to rewarding yourself with a high-calorie cappuccino
in the morning, spend some time in quiet prayer or reflection
instead. If you feel as if you’ll be tempted to raid a candy
store on your way home from work, take an alternate route
instead. In general, keeping busy can prevent you from indulging
in food rewards. For instance, you might be so busy reading or
knitting that you simply don’t have time to reach for a snack.

Making a conscious decision to no longer use food as a reward
is certainly counter-cultural. We have been conditioned to
believe that there should be a plate of brownies at the end of
the rainbow…that heaven is just one hot fudge sundae after
another. While food itself isn’t bad, our expectations about
food can be. The first step to ending a food addiction may be to
recognize that food can no longer serve as our reward.

While it can be rough getting out of the food-as-reward habit,
it is well worth the effort. If we no longer view food as the
prize, we will organize our day differently. We’ll devote our
mealtimes to food, and the rest of our day to something else. We
will eat only those foods designed to help us stay healthy–and
we’ll be in better shape as a result.

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