The Balanced Dietitian

The Balanced Dietitian London-based dietitian using nutrition and behavioural psychology to guide you in finding your uniqu

Aleeza Rosenberg is a registered dietitian with a MSc from UCL specialising in weight management, eating disorders and bariatric surgery.

26/12/2022

It is tempting to do these 5 behaviours after Christmas dinner to try 'compensate' for it and feel less guilty for overindulging. However doing these can get you stuck in a cycle of bingeing.

Instead of these 5 behaviours consider the following alternatives:

-Instead of skipping a meal, plan what you will eat at the very next meal time and make it nourishing and satisfying
-Instead of planning your next diet which will only make you feel more deprived and keep you stuck in a binge cycle, focus and reflect on what you are going to include to promote recovery
-There is no need to weigh yourself as you don't eat like you do on Christmas day every day of the year so your weight will naturally get back to normal after a few days without needing to worry about it
-Instead of obsessively exercising, reflect on whether the exercise you are doing is healthy and enjoyable. Exercise should never be used to give yourself permission to indulge or to compensate for it.
-Instead of self harming/self loathing try to embrace some self compassion and reflect on how normal it is to enjoy the holiday season with friends, family and festive food and it's ok to overindulge sometimes.

This time of year is so challenging for anyone with an eating disorder and you don’t need to suffer alone. Reach out for support to family, friends, helplines such as Beat UK or your therapist or dietitian to help you work through your fears and feel more able to navigate the food. Also, know that one day you can reach a point in your recovery when Christmas (and other holidays) wont bother you anymore

Read the full blog post on my website, link in bio.This time of year is so challenging for anyone with an eating disorde...
20/12/2022

Read the full blog post on my website, link in bio.

This time of year is so challenging for anyone with an eating disorder and you don’t need to suffer alone. Reach out for support to family, friends, helplines such as Beat UK or your therapist or dietitian to help you work through your fears and feel more able to navigate the food. Also, know that one day you can reach a point in your recovery when Christmas (and other holidays) won't bother you anymore

If you are struggling with this time of year with all the festive food and social meals, seek support because ...
15/12/2022

If you are struggling with this time of year with all the festive food and social meals, seek support because

It was my birthday last week and I was spoilt with these amazing cupcakes. Remember that giving yourself permission to ...
13/12/2022

It was my birthday last week and I was spoilt with these amazing cupcakes. Remember that giving yourself permission to have a treat in normal portion reduces the risk of bingeing on it in secret. Birthdays (like Christmas) come once a year so give yourself permission to enjoy a birthday or festive treat.

Have you ever wondered how regular eating is possible with back-to-back meetings? I have my usual 5-hour back-to-back cl...
06/12/2022

Have you ever wondered how regular eating is possible with back-to-back meetings? I have my usual 5-hour back-to-back clinic today but I still eat regularly by coming prepared with a plate like this to nibble on in my 10 minutes between clients. This allows me to remain focused and ensures that when my clinic ends I'm not ravenous.

Today's plate is also an example of how to get your '5-a-day' in one plate and the nut butter is high in protein too!

If you are struggling to apply the principles of regular eating which is a cornerstone binge prevention, reach out for support because it is possible to achieve a healthy relationship with food even after years of disordered eating

So many of my patients who struggle with binge eating have grown up to believe that some foods are 'good' and others as ...
01/12/2022

So many of my patients who struggle with binge eating have grown up to believe that some foods are 'good' and others as 'bad'.

Typically, the bad foods are those that are high in calories like pizza, cake, ice cream and chocolates. Even though they may enjoy the taste of these 'bad' foods and often want to eat them they don't give themselves permission to eat them, usually for fear of weight gain and end up feeling deprived.

This can often result in 'deprivation binges' where they eventually give into their desire for them but instead of having a normal portion they end up bingeing on them because they have felt deprived for so long. It is these binges that ultimately cause weight gain, shame and guilt.

I never want my daughter to grow up seeing food as 'good' or 'bad'. No food is off limits in our house even pizza. I am in the process of teaching my 3-year old daughter to honour her taste preferences and if she feels like pizza to give her pizza but to teach her what a normal portion is.

Many patients' binge foods are those foods that they were never allowed to eat as a child. If you have foods that are now 'off limits' because you lose control with them consider giving yourself permission to re-incorporate them into your usual intake in a safe way.

Some examples might be having a pizza out with friends or order a slice of cake and eat it in a cafe as you are likely to have a normal portion with people around you. Over time and with repeated exposure you will be able to keep these foods in your cupboards at home without losing control on them. This is known as 'graded exposure' which is a piece of work I do with patients which is an essential part of recovery from binge eating.

If you have unsafe foods that you regularly lose control with please seek support because recovery is possible.

Almost all of my patients who suffer from Binge Eating Disorder have emotional binges. This is when people are feel emot...
29/11/2022

Almost all of my patients who suffer from Binge Eating Disorder have emotional binges.

This is when people are feel emotions like sadness, loneliness, grief, stress and other emotions that are painful. Instead of using helpful coping strategies to manage these feelings they try to escape from them through bingeing which temporarily numbs the pain but after the binge they feel even worse because not only do they have the painful emotion to deal with but also the shame and guilt associated with the binge.

Part of the work I do is creating emotional toolkits for patients so they are equipped with strategies to deal with painful emotions so they don't need to use food as a crutch.

If you are struggling with bingeing reach out for support because recovery is possible

24/11/2022

If you are obsessed with food or prone to bingeing try these strategies to tune into your triggers and break the binge-restrict-binge cycle:

- Never let yourself get too hungry. When you are ravenous you'll overcompensate and you'll probably feel bloated and uncomfortable too from eating too quickly
- Instead of following food rules, choose what to eat based on how hungry you are and what you feel like eating
- Ensure your main meals are balanced by having a portion of carbohydrates, a portion of protein and portion of fruit/vegetables
- Always keep a nutritious snack in your bag so you can refuel when you are out and about
- Avoid keeping 'treat' snacks which you find hard to resist in large quantities in your pantry
- Start a food and feelings diary by noting down what you eat and how you feel. This helps establish the link between your emotional state, what you eat as a result and identify your most vulnerable time of the day
- If you have had a binge, don't beat yourself up or plan your next diet. Just get back on track with sensible eating habits at the next meal time.

If you find your eating is controlling your life, seek support because recovery is possible

Many patients believe that if they haven't binged in a while and they then slip up that they have failed in their recove...
22/11/2022

Many patients believe that if they haven't binged in a while and they then slip up that they have failed in their recovery. This is not true.

In clinic I use the analogy of running a race to describe slip-ups which are an inevitable part of the recovery process and so helpful in the learning process. When you have slipped up you are merely pausing to catch your breath- you haven't gone back to the starting line and are very much still en route to the finish line.

When you slip up, instead of beating yourself up, be kind to yourself and look at how far from the starting point you have come.

If you are still at the starting line, reach out for support. Recovery is possible.

17/11/2022

So many of my patients do these 5 behaviours after a binge to try 'compensate' for it and make themselves feel better.

However, doing these can get you stuck in a cycle of bingeing. Instead of these 5 behaviours consider the following alternatives:

-Instead of skipping a meal plan what you will eat at the very next meal time and make it nourishing and satisfying
-Instead of planning your next diet which will only make you feel more deprived and keep you stuck in a binge cycle, focus and reflect on what you are going to include to promote recovery
-Instead of weighing yourself reflect on what may have triggered the binge and how you can tackle that trigger when you are confronted with it again
-Instead of obsessively exercise reflect on whether the exercise you are doing is healthy and enjoyable or whether it is just keeping you stuck in the binge-restrict-binge cycle
-Instead of self harming/self loathing try to exercise some self compassion and reflect on how you can include more self care in your lifestyle or who you can reach out to for support.

If you are feeling stuck in a binge cycle and need support don't hesitate to reach out because no matter how many years you have been stuck in this cycle, recovery is possible.

So many of my patients do these 5 behaviors after a binge to try 'compensate' for it and make themselves feel better. However, doing these can get you stuck in a cycle of bingeing. Instead of these 5 behaviours consider the following alternatives: ian

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