How to Avoid Post-Breakup Weight Gain

If you are going through a breakup, it could be assumed that the stress will make you skinnier. But the need for comfort sends many of us right to the ice cream, the junk food and the fast food. The loneliness we feel creates misery – which makes us eat more – which causes weight gain – which then causes more misery. This is a vicious circle that cannot be broken by wishing it would change, or by making a casual effort and expecting to acquire the figure of Barbie in just a week’s time.

Here is a quick consultation guide of what to do and what not to do in order to avoid the weight gain that occurs when a breakup is preoccupying you. If you follow these guidelines, you will also find that your post-relationship melancholy may vanish as well. Furthermore, these tips may offer a way in which to conduct yourself regardless of your relationship status.

Post-Breakup “Do’s”

Find a Venting Friend

If you have someone to whom you can turn and let it all out, it will be easier to talk about your feelings. You can then deal with them, rather than repress them with the third frozen pizza of the night.

Take a Cooking Class

It is important that food not become your enemy. When you take a class, you learn to make your own healthier meals. You begin to relate to food in a social manner, meeting new people, making friends and putting together a good assortment of kitchen habits that can help you avoid food that seduces you based on how convenient it is to prepare.

Exercise

Burning calories is mandatory. A class at your gym can double as a social occasion. Many health clubs have co-ed workout rooms where you can work on keeping the weight off while you take your mind off your former man.

Adopt a Rescue Dog

In addition to having a new relationship involving unconditional love, a rescued pet is your affirmation of hope. While doing your part to make the world a better place, your weight will also benefit; a daily walk or jog with your canine partner is going to keep the pounds off.

Volunteer Opportunities

Taking your mind off eating can be easier when you give of yourself. There are plenty of organizations, be they religious, charitable or provide some specific service, that could use your time and effort. Whether your interest is in the arts or zoology, an organization exists that can focus you on getting outside of yourself and away from the bags of potato chips that appear in your pantry when you are home alone and bored.

Join a Club

Would hiking far from the nearest fast food restaurant help keep off the pounds? There is a club that can get you closer to nature and joined up with friends. Other clubs exist to discuss astrology, share crocheting tips, follow your favorite sports team … all sorts of things that don’t involve cheeseburgers as snacks in between meals.

Pamper Yourself

A pint of Rocky Road is a treat, but it comes at a great cost. Why not hit a day spa, get a pedicure or go shopping for something that will make you look dynamite. Overeating while you are lonely is a symptom of babying yourself. Instead, treat yourself like a grown woman who deserves to be treated great and you will find that your attitude improves as your waistline resists expanding.

Get a Hobby

While volunteering and joining clubs get you out of the house, the likelihood is still there that you will often stay in, alone with the brownie mix calling your name from a cabinet in your kitchen. Having a hobby at home, be it making holiday crafts, oil painting or fantasy baseball gives you something in which to be absorbed so deeply that you miss the call of the brownie mix.

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Post-Breakup “Don’ts”

Avoiding certain things is also necessary to keep off the pounds. Paying attention on what not to do will be the best way to avoid the traps that post-breakup emptiness sets for you.

No Fast Food

Eating healthy is a top priority for weight control. Try to visualize the convenience of the fast food joint as adding time to the misery you will have being alone and stuffed with poor dining choices.

No Drive Thru

What fast food lacks in quality it makes up for in affordable quantity. By never going through the drive-thru and only ordering one sit-down meal, you might begin to reconsider if fast food is something you want to eat at all. Once the convenience is taken out of the mix, you may realize the advantage of making healthier restaurant choices and of cooking your own meals.

No Ice Cream

There are dozens of fresh fruits to choose from in your supermarket that are sweet, tasty and make just as good a dessert as ice cream, but with fewer calories. And most of these fruits are healthy for you.

No Pity Parties

Every hour spent wallowing in self-pity is an hour spent staying out of shape and likely getting something to eat to complete the negative time alone feeling sorry for yourself. Don’t do it.

No Negative Friends

Not being home alone does not mean that you are exempt from any negativity associated with your breakup and any weight gain that follows the split. Many so-called friends are only interested in spreading their own lousy feelings. The old saying, “misery loves company,” is a truism that is amplified when times are tough. You must avoid any negative people who encourage you to avoid moving on with your life. Anyone who scoffs at you for being all that you can be or otherwise places negativity into your world is also going to be suggesting an extra order of fries.

No Drinking

Alcohol can make the tough times a little lighter, but the fattening properties of every glass of beer, wine and booze is shocking. You may as well chew on two candy bars for every drink you pour. The calories add up faster than the buzz, and last longer in your thighs than the hangover does in your head.