Last September, author Dr. Michelle May visited our community and talked about her new book, Eat What You Love, Love What You Eat. Those attending her presentation received a copy of this book and learned about her non-diet approach to weight management.
     Across the country, many people struggle with their weight and have an unhealthy relationship with food.
     According to Dr. May, “Most diets fail because they are negative and unsustainable, leaving the dieter feeling guilty and disappointed.     Diets focus on what people should eat without addressing why they eat in the first place. Dieters often don’t learn to recognize their eating triggers or effectively meet their true physical, emotional and social needs. As a result, the overeating cycle is never really broken.”
Powerful words, indeed.
 

The following quiz is designed to give you some insight into your relationship with food and eating. Simply read each statement and answer by writing in the number that best reflects your opinion from the following scale:
1 = Strong Disagree
2 = Disagree
3 = Maybe
4 = Agree
5 = Strongly Agree

Food Quiz
____ I am hungry all the time.
____ I am never hungry.
____ I know I’m not hungry, but I eat anyway.
____ I am starving by the time I eat, so I eat anything I can get my hands on.
____ I eat by the clock.
____ I think about food all of the time.
____ I love food and eating too much to be a healthy weight.
____ I use food to cope with stress and other feelings.
____ I am an emotional eater.
____ I eat when I’m bored.
____ I reward myself with food.
____ I celebrate every special occasion or milestone by eating.
____ I don’t know why I eat.
____ I often eat until I am stuffed.
____ I have trouble stopping myself when I eat “bad” foods.
____ I have tried a lot of diets.
____ I either diet or eat too much.
____ I feel guilty about eating certain foods.
____ I sometimes ignore hunger in order to control my weight.
____ I avoid certain foods because they are fattening.
____ I am confused about what I should be eating.
____ I hate to exercise.
____ I exercise to control my weight.
____ I dread the thought of going on another diet but I don’t know what else to do.

Results and Upcoming Workshop
     Look back over your ratings. Statements you rated a 3 or higher are probably issues that affect your ability to manage your weight effectively and easily. These are some of the tough issues that Dr. May’s Am I Hungry? workshops will tackle using a unique non-diet approach.

Watch for LifeCare’s upcoming workshop based on Dr. Michelle May’s approach to healthy eating presented by Dawn Hedlund, licensed Am I Hungry? facilitator. To learn more, call Dawn at (218) 463-2500.