Why You Stress Eat and What to Do About It

Stress eating or emotional eating are terms used interchangeably. Both refer to the same pattern of eating where people use food as a coping mechanism to be able to deal with stressful situations.

We all use emotional eating at one time or another in our lives. It becomes a problem when emotional eating is the go-to coping mechanism for difficult feelings, as opposed to building the tools to deal with the emotions that are coming up.

Emotional Connection to Food

Our relationship with food is emotional at its core. Access to food is part of our survival. When we were young we emotionally bonded with our mothers who were our primary source of food. 

Food is also a big part of our cultures and families. It makes sense that we feel nostalgic about food from our childhood, family recipes, or meals we have on certain holidays.

Not all food decisions are driven by positive emotions. If you’ve ever been through a significant break up (or suffered a loss) you know that your appetite is affected. This shows up in different ways. One day you might feel overwhelmed with emotion and not want to eat. The next you might be drawn to comfort food.

Negative emotions often create a feeling of emptiness or an emotional void. Often we turn to food as a way to fill that void and create a feeling of fullness so we can temporarily feel whole.

The danger here is that the physical fullness can’t fully replace the emotional void, which is why you might never quite feel satisfied when you’re eating out of emotion. 

One way to get past stress eating is to determine whether your hunger is being driven emotionally or from real physical sensations of hunger.

Emotional Hunger vs Physical Hunger

Emotional hunger can be powerful. It’s easy to mistake it for physical hunger if you don’t know what to pay attention to. Here are some ways you can tell the two apart:

Emotional hunger happens suddenly. It comes on quickly and feels urgent. Whereas physical hunger comes on gradually and doesn’t feel urgent (unless you haven’t eaten in a long time).

Emotional hunger isn’t located in the stomach. It comes from your head and is more of an anxious thought or craving than a growling belly or a sensation in your stomach. One way to notice this is if you’re focused on specific textures, tastes, and smells as opposed to how hungry you feel.

Emotional hunger focuses on specific foods. You pass by a billboard for a fast food restaurant and suddenly have a craving. Or you scroll past a dessert picture on social media and suddenly you want to leave your house to go get chocolate. These are emotional cravings because they come on fast and specific. Physical hunger usually isn’t for anything specific, and your desire will be for real food as opposed to sweets and treats. 

Emotional hunger isn’t fulfilled, even once you’re full. When you keep eating past the point of being full, or you keep wanting to snack even after you’ve eaten these are signs that the hunger you’re responding to is emotional. Physical hunger doesn’t need to be stuffed to feel satisfied. You’ll get the sensation that you’re stomach is full and feel like you’ve had enough.

Emotional hunger often happens mindlessly. You sit down with a bag of chips and before you know it, it’s gone. Mindless eating is a sign that you’re trying to numb your emotions. When you eat to fulfill physical hunger, you’re more aware and intentional with what you’re doing.

Emotional hunger often leads to “eaters remorse.” When you feel guilty, ashamed, or regret after eating it’s a sign that you weren’t eating for nutritional reasons. When you eat to satisfy physical hunger, you’re unlikely to feel guilty or ashamed because you’re giving your body what it needs. 

Reasons Behind Stress Eating

Stress eating is a way to suppress or soothe negative emotions that you otherwise don’t know how to deal with. Common emotions that lead to stress eating are: overwhelm, anger, fear, boredom, sadness, and loneliness. 

These emotions can be triggered by major life events or brought on by the hassles of daily life. The emotions are just the trigger. The challenge is to respond in a different way. 

The physical changes that go along with stress can also cause a person to overeat. Initially, stress will decrease your appetite but over time, high cortisol levels will increase your appetite which can lead to overeating. Elevated cortisol levels will also increase cravings for high-sugar and high-fat foods which the body uses more of when it’s under duress.

Tips to Stop Emotionally Eating

The approach you use will depend on the reason for your emotional cravings. Here are some approaches to help you stop emotional eating:

  • Identify the feeling and respond to what it’s asking for. Our emotions are signs from the body that there’s a need to be filled. For example, if you’re lonely call a friend, if you’re angry write out your feelings or talk to someone so you feel heard. Learning to respond in these ways will help you deal with your feelings, as opposed to stuffing them down with food.
  • Take a time-out before giving in to a craving. When a craving strikes take 10 minutes to see if it will dissipate. Distract yourself by having a shower, cleaning the house, or going for a walk to take your mind off the craving. It might disappear or become less urgent.
  • Slow down. Eat mindfully. Being present with your food and paying attention to the flavour, texture, and sensation of the food in your mouth will help you slow down and enjoy the experience as opposed to mindlessly eating. A simple way to avoid shame after eating is to eat slowly and mindfully and be present in the process. When you respect your body in this way you’ll have a healthier outcome.
  • Adopt healthy stress management habits. Dealing with stress is a lifestyle approach. Ensure you’re getting proper rest, drinking enough water, relaxing regularly, and making time for fun and personal connection are good strategies to keep your stress levels down so you don’t end up with emotional cravings.
  • Be gentle with yourself. Learn from your setbacks. There’s no expectation for you to get it right every time. Learning to pay attention to your body and respond to your needs in a loving way is a process. Take it one day at a time.
  • Accept your emotions. Often difficult emotions are met with our own judgment or shame. The more you can accept and allow yourself to feel your emotions, the easier it will be to move through them without responding with food.

Want help with emotional eating?

For some of us, dealing with emotions can feel confronting. It can feel like a daunting task to overcome emotional eating without tools or support. If you find yourself turning to food as a coping mechanism, it might help to have support in changing your habits.

In the Eats & Asana program, we touch on mindful eating, making healthy food choices, and understanding cravings so you can break the cycle of emotional eating. 

You’ll also discover tools to manage stress and deal with emotions so you’ll be less inclined toward stress eating in the first place. 

Book your Body Love Breakthrough Call to learn more about the Eats & Asana program and how it can help you create a healthier relationship with your body and food.

References:

  1. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/320935#triggers
  2. https://www.healthline.com/health/emotional-eating
  3. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/weight-loss/in-depth/weight-loss/art-20047342 

How to Spot Emotional Eating and What To Do About It

Picture this: You hit the snooze button one too many times, had a last minute project thrown at you at work, and then sat in an hour of frustrating evening traffic.

Finally home, you breathe a sigh of relief, head into the kitchen, and decide you deserve a snack after the day you’ve had. Maybe you reach for a few crackers, then a bit of chocolate.

Before you know it, you’ve munched your way through the entire kitchen without eating a proper meal. You’re stuffed, ashamed, and wondering what the heck just happened?!

Sound familiar?

It’s called emotional eating, which is eating for any other reason besides actual physical hunger, fuel or nourishment.

3 Trademarks of Emotional Eating

  • Binging – usually on high-sugar and carbohydrate-rich comfort foods (i.e. junk food). How many people do you know who reach for carrots or broccoli when they’re upset?
  • Mindlessly eating – you’re not aware of what or how much you’re eating or how those foods are making your body feel. You’re usually mentally checked out while eating them.
  • Eating to numb, soothe, please, relax, or reward self, i.e. “I had a bad day and deserve it” kind of thinking. Eating during these times provides temporary relief, but often leaves you feeling worse than where you started.

I’ve had my own experiences with emotional eating. When I first started my business, I’d reward myself after a long day’s work by walking to my favourite coffee shop for a peanut butter cookie. Pretty soon one cookie turned into two, and before long I’d skip the walk and drive there to get my evening treat.

What started out as a fun habit and a little treat for myself soon became the highlight of my evening, and I’d be moody if I didn’t get to reward myself with my favourite cookie. Sometimes I’d even want to skip dinner and just have cookies instead. That’s when I knew I had to take a step back and reevaluate this habit.

Looking back, it wasn’t so much about the cookie as it was a chance for me to check out and relax. When I set better boundaries around my time and allowed myself to designate my evenings to personal time I stopped feeling like I needed to mark “my time” with a treat and the habit was easy to break.

The trouble with emotional eating is it overrides your body’s natural hunger cycle and can promote things like:

  • weight gain
  • an increase in your risk for inflammation and chronic disease
  • create an unhealthy relationship between you and food
  • lead to more dangerous types of disordered eating

What Triggers Emotional Eating?

Even though it’s called “emotional eating” because people often reach for food to cope with their feelings, there are a lot of other non-hunger reasons that can prompt you to eat.

Some common non-hunger reasons include:

  • Uncomfortable emotions, like anger, guilt, fear, and sadness
  • Stress
  • Boredom
  • Need to feel pleasure and/or comfort

Six Tips to Help You Get a Handle on Emotional Eating

If any of those scenarios sound familiar, know that you’re not alone. Emotional eating affects a lot of people at one point in their lives.

Here are six great tips to stop emotional eating in its tracks:

1. Have a non-food outlet to process uncomfortable feelings

  • Try journaling, exercising, or talking to a trusted friend or coach

2. Manage stress

  • Exercise, meditation, deep breathing, getting enough sleep, and not taking on more than you can realistically handle can help decrease stress levels.

3. Recognize boredom

  • Call a friend, take a walk, pick up a book, or tackle a DIY project or hobby you’ll enjoy when you know boredom is likely to strike.

4. Practice self-care

  • Set aside time to take care of your needs. Tune in to your body to notice if you need to rest, move, stretch, or have some fun, then follow your body’s lead.

5. Practice mindful eating

  • Avoid distractions at meals. Your focus should be on the food in front of you.
  • Eat slowly, chew, and savour each bite. This helps give your body time to receive the signal from your brain when it’s full.
  • Stop eating when you feel full.

6. Eat a balanced diet

  • The majority of your diet should be nutrient-dense whole foods.
  • Allow for occasional treats and indulgences so you don’t feel deprived.
  • Include protein, fibre, and healthy fat at each meal to promote satiety.

BONUS: Reward yourself with something other than food. Often we use food as the focal point for celebrations, but this can be problematic if you’re prone to emotional eating. Instead focus on a fun activity, connecting with someone you care about, or doing something you enjoy, which will take the focus off food.


RECIPE:

These energy balls feel like an indulgent snack, but are made from whole food ingredients and contain a bit of protein, healthy fat, and fibre to help you feel satisfied.

Chocolate Chip Almond Butter Energy Balls

Ingredients

1 cup natural almond butter (or other natural nut butter)

½ cup coconut flour

½ cup ground flax seeds

¼ cup hemp hearts

½ cup dark chocolate chips

¼ cup maple syrup

Pinch of sea salt

How to prepare

1. Combine all ingredients in a medium mixing bowl, stirring until smooth. If mixture is too thick, add 1 Tbsp. of water at a time to help the mixture come together.

2. Scoop 1 tablespoon of the mixture and use your hands to roll into a ball. Repeat with remaining mixture.

3. Store energy balls in an airtight container in refrigerator up to 1 week.


REFERENCES:

Study: Current Diabetes Reports, 2018 — Causes of Emotional Eating and Matched Treatment of Obesity

Study: Journal of Health Psychology, 2015 — Boredom proneness and emotion regulation predict emotional eating

Healthline: Mindful Eating 101 – A Beginner’s Guide

Two Overlooked Factors That Affect Your Waistline

When it comes to your overall health it’s no secret that exercise and sleep are huge factors. But did you know they both have a significant impact on your waistline?

Well, you know that exercise will help you burn off some extra calories and boost your metabolism. But sleep is also essential for your overall health and well-being, and can impact your weight.

Better to skimp on sleep and get up early to work out?

Or better to sleep in and skip the gym for another day?

Well, it’s a bit more complicated than that. We need exercise to sleep better but we also need sleep to exercise. And when it comes to weight management, we need both.

So let’s take a closer look at how exercise and sleep affect each other and which one takes the lead when it comes to managing your weight.

The Exercise & Sleep Connection

If you’re looking to get a better night’s sleep, it’s time to lace up those running shoes.

A study by the National Sleep Foundation found a 65% improvement in sleep quality for participants who performed 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise a week.

That means that something as simple as a brisk walk for 30 minutes, 5 times a week can help you feel more rested and refreshed.

Want Muscle? Get More Sleep!

If you want to see big results from your workouts, you’ve gotta catch some zzz’s!

Sleep is crucial when it comes to exercise recovery…and recovery is where the post-workout magic happens!

As we rest, our body is busy repairing the microscopic muscle tears from our last weight training session. As these muscles repair, they come back bigger and stronger; increasing your strength and boosting your metabolism.

If you’re not seeing the results you’d like from your gym sessions, the answer may be an earlier bedtime. Make sure that you’re getting adequate sleep to help your body repair and recover.

Sleep Tips:

Here are a few strategies to help you get the most out of your night’s sleep:

  • Dim the lights in your home 30 minutes or more before going to bed. This helps promote melatonin production (a sleep hormone) so it’s easier for you to fall asleep when you go to bed.
  • Sleep in total darkness. Avoid leaving the curtains open or a night light on. Even a small amount of light can affect your body’s ability to sleep soundly.
  • Aim to be in bed by 10 pm. Getting an early start to your night’s sleep ensures you get some quality rest before midnight. Studies have shown this is important for proper hormone balancing – and balanced hormones mean easier weight management.

Does lack of sleep affect gym performance?

If you’re still thinking of hitting that 6 am spin class after a late night out, you may want to reconsider.

An ACSM study showed that sleep deprived participants had a slower response time and fatigued much quicker than when they were well rested.

The study participants also reported a higher RPE (Rate of Perceived Exertion) and were more likely to quit their workout early.

The conclusion? This doesn’t mean that you should skip activity altogether on those groggy days. Instead consider a lower intensity activity such as walking or yoga and leave the high intensity training for days when you’re well rested.

Sleep vs Train: which one will help you button your jeans?

When it comes to weight management, both exercise and sleep are important. But if you had to focus on one thing only, it turns out sleep trumps exercise.

One study compared weight loss efforts of sleep deprived adults versus those who were fully rested. The sleep deprived group rested for only 5.5 hours while the fully rested group got a full  8.5 hrs of shut-eye.

The results? Those with limited sleep lost less body fat and more lean muscle mass.

So can you forget about exercise?

Well, no.

Exercise still has tremendous health benefits so you don’t want to quit altogether. You may need to temporarily reduce the intensity of your workouts if you’re not getting adequate rest.

Once your sleep game is strong, you can resume those higher intensity workouts and have energy to spare.

Having trouble winding down at night?

Add some sleep hormones to your diet!

In fact, did you know that it has been suggested that foods that contain naturally occurring Melatonin (dubbed the “sleep hormone”) may be a better alternative than over-the-counter supplements?

This Sleepy Time Cherry Smoothie Recipe below is made with tart cherry juice – an ingredient that contains Melatonin, and has been proven to help you sleep better. Plus, it just happens to taste pretty great too!


RECIPE:

Sleepy Time Cherry Smoothie

2 oz of pure tart cherry juice, unsweetened

1 cup of coconut milk or almond milk

½ banana (frozen adds a bit more texture)

¼ tsp cinnamon

2-3 ice cubes

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Sip and enjoy a better night’s sleep!

Tip: If you’re using this smoothie as a post-workout, you might want to add some protein powder to help with muscle recovery.


REFERENCES

https://sleepfoundation.org/sleep-news/study-physical-activity-impacts-overall-quality-sleep
https://journals.lww.com/acsm-msse/Fulltext/2013/12000/Does_Central_Fatigue_Explain_Reduced_Cycling_after.5.aspx
http://annals.org/aim/fullarticle/746253/insufficient-sleep-diet-obesity
https://sleepjunkies.com/tips/can-cherries-enhance-sleep-quality/

17 Healthy Ways to Build Body Confidence

Does this sound familiar?

It’s Saturday morning. You’re at home, un-showered in your pjs, scrolling through Instagram. You laugh at some cute baby pics and a cat video, and then comes what seems like an endless string of photos of people with ultra-toned bodies doing yoga on the beach, posing last night in their new outfit, or modeling while on vacation.

Suddenly, what was a cozy morning has turned into a sinking feeling inside like your body (and life) don’t measure up.

If you’re nodding your head, you’re not alone. Research shows that self-esteem is negatively impacted the longer you spend on social media.

We live in a very body-conscious society. There are comparisons everywhere if we choose to measure ourselves against them.

Issues with body confidence exist far beyond social media. Though these scrolling sessions certainly seem to highlight them.

As someone who’s been on a rollercoaster ride learning to love and accept my body, I can tell you there are healthy ways to go about building more confidence, or there are Band-Aid fixes that make things worse in the long run.

I’ve compiled some of the healthy ways that helped me and my clients build a healthier body image. If you’re looking for more, I teach a 2-month body-love course called Eats & Asana. Our next session is coming up soon, get on the waitlist now.

Healthy Ways to Build Body Confidence – so you can feel good about yourself from the inside out.

  1. Root your confidence in who you are, not how you look. When you recognize that there’s a lot more to love about you than just your body, there won’t be so much pressure to look perfect. You’ll be able to be social and have fun with confidence because you know that having your hair out of place doesn’t make or break who you are or how others see you.
  2. Stop comparing yourself to others. Our bodies aren’t a competition. Even if they were, there’s no way anyone could “win” because we’re all so unique and different. Focus on yourself and what food, exercise and clothes work for you and let everyone else do their own thing. When you do find yourself comparing (we’re human, it happens) use it as an opportunity to be inspired by something you like, rather than feeling jealous and putting yourself or the other person down.
  3. Practice gratitude for your body. This goes deeper than appearance. Our bodies are walking miracles and we rarely stop to recognize that. Create a gratitude practice where you intentionally look for all the awesome things your body allows you to do (play sports, have a baby, help your friends, give hugs, heal, etc.). You’ll feel pretty awesome once you recognize all of the advantages your body affords you, most of which have nothing to do with how it looks.
  4. Meditate to calm your mind and connect with yourself. Strengthening the connection with yourself on the inside to focus less on your appearance. It will also help you build the mental muscles to direct your thoughts where you want them to go.
  5. Move your body in a way that feels good to you. There are so many ways to appreciate what your body can do, rather than how it looks. Find an activity you like (lifting weights, rock climbing, yoga) and focus on developing a skill with your body, instead of on manipulating its appearance through exercise. There’s a lot of freedom here and it will give you many more reasons to build your confidence.
  6. Stand up straight. Posture affects mood and reflects how you think about yourself. Lift your chin up, pull your shoulders back and feel the difference this instantly makes in your self-confidence.
  7. Talk to yourself like you’d talk to your best friend. Speaking to yourself with kindness and compassion is one of the quickest ways to build your confidence. You go from having an internal enemy to an internal ally. The effects of this are powerful.
  8. Make a list of things you love about your body. Start with the ones that come most naturally. Think about everything your body can do (even on the inside). Consider everything your body has helped you do in the past. This list will never be complete, keep adding to it over time.
  9. Spend less time on social media, and more time doing things that make you feel good.
  10. Talk about it/seek help. If you’re feeling consumed by thoughts about your weight, shape and appearance, talking with someone can help take some of the internal pressure off. Start by opening up to a friend or family member. You might eventually need to talk with a coach or counsellor who has the expertise to help you out.
  11. Eat well. Believe it or not the voice of internal criticism has good intentions. It gets louder when you’re not fueling yourself properly to warn you that you’re out of alignment. When you eat good quality, nourishing food that agrees with your body, this voice becomes quiet or it might even go away.
  12. Get rid of clothes that don’t fit and only shop for the size you are now. Using clothes as “motivation” works the opposite way you want it to. If you want to look and feel your best, wear clothes that make you feel confident right now, as you are. Don’t wait for a time in the future, when you can feel good about yourself today.
  13. Spend time with people who are kind to you and to themselves. Role models are everywhere. Find people who speak kindly about themselves. Witness their relationship with themselves and you’ll see that it’s ok to feel good about your body and to treat yourself with respect.
  14. Read books that help you build yourself up. This can be any type of book that makes you feel better than when you picked it up. Part of building confidence in your body is allowing yourself to feel the way you want to feel more often than not. Books are a great way to bring up those positive feelings.
  15. Put away magazines. Unfollow social accounts that make you feel icky. You are the guard at the gates of your mind. Choose wisely what you’ll allow inside.
  16. Avoid TV shows where characters talk down to themselves or diet to change their appearance. You don’t need any more role models on how to have unhealthy body image.
  17. Say nice things about yourself. Words are powerful and your body is always listening. This is one time to take the advice “say something nice or don’t say anything at all.” It will help you build the mental muscle of dismissing negative thoughts and planting positive ones instead.

A note on change

There are plenty of ways to get started building more confidence in your body. One thing to note is that self-improvement and self-love aren’t mutually exclusive. It’s ok to love yourself and to want change for how you look or feel in your body.

It’s important to make changes in healthy way, from a place of healthy motivation. Check in with yourself and your desire to make changes. If you can do things (like exercise, eat healthy meals, etc.) from a place of self-love, then go for it and your confidence and trust in yourself will grow. If you’re motivated because you don’t like the way you are right now, that’s a good indicator to use these body-confidence tips before trying to make changes.

How to Build Your Self-Confidence

If you’ve been around for a few decades you probably know that confidence is something that comes easier for some than it does for others. The tricky thing though, is that you can’t always tell who it comes naturally for.

We live in a culture that prides itself on knowing the answers, being productive, and forging ahead even in uncertain times. That leaves little room for second-guessing, being indecisive, or wondering if someone else would be better suited to your leadership position. And yet, these are the feelings that come up naturally for many of us.

I recently read a revealing profile in the New Yorker in which Sheryl Sandberg admits she’s felt like a fraud all her life.

Sheryl is a two-time NY Times Best-Selling author with the role as COO of Facebook on her resume, and 270K Twitter followers. If she’s not confident in herself what does that say about the rest of us?

Where does confidence come from?

I suppose what that says about those of us who haven’t worked in leadership at a Fortune 500 company, is that we have more in common with the perceived elite than we think.

Whether that’s refreshing is up to you.

Personally, I find myself wondering if she feels that way because she’s a woman? There’s something to be said for coming up in a patriarchal culture that plants nearly invisible seeds of doubt in women’s minds through the media, political and corporate structures (more on that another day). Regardless of gender, if our roles, accolades and success don’t make us confident in ourselves, what does?

Could it be that confidence is a ruse? As in, it starts out as a mindset you create for yourself and then you live into it until it feels real? The affirmations and positive self-talk of the personal development world would like to have us think that.

While it’s true that mindset is a powerful way to impact the nervous system (which governs our experience of reality), it seems there’s more to the story. There’s a transparency to genuine confidence which makes it harder to feign and easier to learn.

After all, if you’re reading this you probably want to feel confident, not just outwardly look it to others.

The bottom line is that self-confidence comes from the inside. It’s partly based on your mindset but there’s another important piece: connecting with and trusting yourself.

Confidence can be learned

The good news in all of this is that confidence isn’t something you’re born with (or without). It’s not something that’s bestowed upon you. You have control over your level of confidence and it starts with connecting to yourself.

The more years I spend coaching and doing my own personal development, the more I can see that many desired states all lead back to the same practices. It shouldn’t come as a surprise then, that slowing down, making time for reflection, mindfulness practices, yoga, and meditation are a few central practices that can help you create a deeper connection with yourself and thus improve your confidence.

Cultivating a strong relationship with yourself does a few things that will get you ahead: first, it allows you to discern your inner voice from outside influences. Second, it enables you to take an honest look at your behaviours, your thoughts and fears and your motivations so you can critically assess your strengths and weaknesses. Lastly, it creates a foundation for self-trust so you’re more likely to act according to your intuition and know (trust) in your ability to make decisions, follow through and be resourceful when facing a challenge.

Without building this inner muscle (of listening to and trusting yourself) you’re much more likely to be wrapped up in what other people think or approve of, instead of trusting yourself. If you’ve ever tried to make an important decision by trying to appease multiple viewpoints, you know it’s extremely difficult to do.

Confidence Spoilers

There are plenty of things that get in the way of experiencing confidence. Here’s a good list to look through to pinpoint some of the things that might be holding you back:

  • Seeking approval from others
  • Trying to please others
  • Placing too much importance on things that don’t matter in the given situation
  • Personal insecurities (appearance, weight, clothes, etc.)
  • Giving too much credit to others’ voices
  • Not reflecting on past wins to reference your strengths
  • Not asking for help (thinking you should be able to do it alone)
  • Not recognizing your strength, talents, and abilities
  • Fears that aren’t based in reality

How to build your confidence:

Ready to have a boost in self-assurance? Here are actions you can take to build your confidence:

  1. Check your negative thoughts. Instead of letting negativity carry you away, return to the facts by asking yourself “is this true?”
  2. Have a trusted advisor you can talk things out with when you need to be reminded of your abilities.
  3. Set yourself up for success by preparing as much as possible. This will ease your nerves in the moment.
  4. Visualize your success. Rehearse the outcome you want in your mind until you can see yourself behaving the way you want to in the given situation.
  5. Reflect on times you’ve succeeded in the past. This gets your mind used to thinking of you as someone who succeeds.
  6. Use confident body language. Amy Cuddy has a great Ted Talk on this.
  7. Use meditation and mindful movement on a regular basis to connect to your body and strengthen your relationship with yourself.
  8. Make a point to learn from your mistakes. This will take some self-compassion, but you’re more likely to trust yourself if you feel like you’re improving as you move forward.
  9. Embrace optimism. Whether you believe you can or you can’t, you’re right. Remember, confidence has a lot to do with your mindset.
  10. Celebrate your successes. Big or small, take time to personally acknowledge your wins to reinforce the behaviour you want to see in yourself.
  11. Get to know your values. The more you understand yourself and what’s important to you, the easier it will be to make decisions with confidence.