4 Things I Learned About Sneaky Weight Gain After a Busy Week

Have you ever nudged a rock off a steep ledge with your toes just to watch it?

Would it free fall and then tumble for a while?

Or would it tumble, gain momentum and bring other rocks with it on the way down?

Busy weeks can be like tumbling rocks gaining speed, hitting other rocks and creating a cascade of downward momentum till they hit a river or land below with a full stop. 

For humans the stop is either welcomed or dreaded depending on the type of busy.

It may come with some fatigue, need to sleep in, or an awakening to needs, desires or “ah ha” moments.

This Sunday while writing this…I’m full of “ah ha” moments after a solid 10 hour night of sleep. 

One of the biggest frustrations of getting older is weight gain and body composition change.

Busy weeks can challenge expert planners when it comes to nutrition if they forget about emotions and food. 

How do you plan for emotions?

• You learn your reactions to social situations
• Check in with yourself to gage how you’re feeling
• Adjust accordingly 

When you know what sets you off you can prevent mishaps like “snac-cidents”. 

“Snac-cidents” are overeating events that occur when you’re under the spell of an emotion.

Some call it emotional eating, I prefer my term. 

According to my pal Ali Shapiro, there are 4 feelings with potential to derail your best laid plans…

1. Anxiety 
2. Inadequacy
3. Fatigue
4. Loneliness

In my most recent podcasts (Ep 482 and 495) with Ali I open up about my food issues. 

I report back on my experience using Ali’s advice in episode 495.

In episode 495 I share on my experience with stress eating due to feelings of inadequacy around my Dad and preferring to have something in my mouth versus make small talk with strangers.

It’s a trip to dive into what makes you tick and the inner workings of a being on the verge of a “snac-cident”.

After a super busy week it hit me how these 4 emotions have a lot to do with sneaky weight gain – if you don’t plan for them. 

Fatigue is the sneakiest of emotions that can drive a super healthy person to eat junk food. 

Last week was an epic week of playing at my friend’s cabin and sailing for the first time. 

Coming off of the high of finally getting to sail I was pretty tired. 

On Friday I was driving the 3 hours and 20 minutes from my Dad’s on the coast of Lake Michigan to my house in central Wisconsin. 

I packed snacks for Bryan the pup and I to munch on, mainly to keep me awake, as the flat midwest highways only get interesting when billboards advertising marijuana in Michigan, or cheese change their marketing.

And I can’t forget the occasional kids on their way to a cabin in the “Northwoods” of Wisconsin making faces at me from the back of minivans – I especially have fun with them. 

But what really spices things up is construction. 

There’s never a summer that Wisconsin doesn’t decide to completely destroy everyone’s dreams of a smooth trip to somewhere cool. 

Nothing gets my blood boiling like an hour delay to go 10 miles.

Especially when it’s the gateway to being free from traffic after Oshkosh and Lake Butte des Morts (as a kid – which I still am – I refer to it as “Dead Butt Lake” but resources tell me it actually means “Hill of the Dead” – if you ever come this way north on highway 45 – I’ll let you choose).

Stress + fatigue = hunger. 

Even after the filling fiber of cucumbers and green beans for snacks.

Crucial mistake – not having protein in the mix. 

So as any good “sconnie” (aka person from Wisconsin) I quickly found a Kwik Trip and headed in. 

A few minutes later I walked out with beef jerky and Jackson’s Sweet Potato chips. 

I could have stopped at the beef jerky but no… had to go the extra mile for the “sweet fat” flavor. 

Knowing full well I’d have to fight myself to not eat the entire bag the rest of the trip. 

5 oz bags of chips doesn’t seem like a lot till you do food math. 

Now one “snac-cident” episode isn’t going to cause significant damage to the waistline. 

This was the ledge where the rock tumbled over.

After I arrived home to drop Bryan off I had to quickly head out to help out at the cheese curds stand for my friend’s church fundraiser…

…the Athens Fair –  fried cheese curds, elephant ear and loaded potato spirals (you get the idea).

Plus we couldn’t miss the live music after our shift that night.

Fried cheese curds are not my thing but fresh cheese curds with the perfect squeak. yum. 

Curds in the belly I was fueled to dance till well after midnight. 

You can see how this builds. 

Saturday after the fair I had a blackberry picking date with my 82 year old neighbor Norm and then my hubby and I went out to celebrate our 12th anniversary.

Normally eating out I opt for a salad with protein every time time.

This time it was like an alien hijacked me and I went all out on a WayGU Gouda burger – complete with onion rings and BBQ sauce on top with a side of fries. 

And so the rock keeps rolling down the hill. 

Of course we had ice cream for dessert as it was our anniversary celebration after all. 

I chose Pirate’s Booty, had to keep the sailing theme going.

The caramel ribbons, M&Ms and Oreos in velvety vanilla ice cream – were irresistible. 

As I’m typing this I’m grossed out, not my typical ice cream choice – uh and the chemicals!

Now you can see how mental fatigue leads to out of body experiences. 

Lesson learned – I need to ensure I’m sleeping 8 hours at least, stay up on protein intake and take breaks during the day. 

While this was a very unusual week for me, I can see how it can compound every weekend for some and catch up with you in the end…

…and I’ve only touched on fatigue and food. 

Other situations like anxiety and inadequacy or not feeling good enough are other places I choose to eat versus deal with situations. 

Emotions are funny things and I believe they often have a play in weight gain over 40. 

When in the past you could workout extra, skip a meal or 2 to offset… the older body throws it’s middle finger up at you.

Being aware of the emotions underneath your desire to eat certain things is huge… 

…especially when they are foods you really like and have trouble portion controlling them. 

When Ali and I dove into my squirrel behaviors, we cracked the “nut-case” on me and I realized it was my feelings of not feeling good enough and social anxiety driving me to binge on nuts. 

I don’t do weight loss coaching in my practice because of my “snac-cident” tendencies. 

Ali has opened up my eyes to the emotions underneath my habits and it’s given me a new perspective on the little things that compound to keep weight on after 40. 

She’s helped me quite a bit and especially with the realization from last week I’m now aware of what to do for future busy weeks. 

I don’t regret any of my choices…well minus the ice cream, that was just gross. 

“Snac-cidents” happen – all you can do is learn from them and move on.

If you can resonate with my story or have struggled to find a solution to your stress or emotional eating I recommend listening to my podcasts with Ali Shapiro – Ep 482 and 495. 

Ali also has her own podcast – Insatiable – good stuff for uncovering the food noise in your head!

Here’s to your health,

Dr. J

Our Partners

PS: 

If you’re looking for support right now – Ali’s “Why Am I Eating This Now” 12 week program is starting Sept 12th – you can get $100 off code “Jannine”. 

She’s also hosting a masterclass September 11th with details coming soon – check her website HERE.

PPS: I’m hosting “Aging Well with Peptides” masterclass on Thursday the 22nd 5:30p PST – register HERE – if you register you’ll get a replay if you can’t make it live