In Monday’s post, I mentioned how I found a way to balance writing and exercise. That’s definitely a good thing. But what about writing and eating. Could there be some unhealthy habits between the two? I believe so.

I recall a post in a writing community I follow. One of the writers mentioned foregoing food for hours when he’s submerged in his work. Another said she didn’t stop to eat, only drank sodas or coffee. Others ordered pizza or some delivery type food.  And me, well, I’m with the latter bunch. I will eat.

Now, before you paint a picture of me sitting in front of a buffet gorging and writing, let me explain. I’ve recently put the connection together between me writing and emotionally eating. When I get extremely caught up in a scene or character, the emotion can be so thick, exciting, and even overwhelming.  It’s like the ideas rush my mind simultaneously, and create such a thrill. So instead of typing or recording them, I’ll step away to grab some form of junk food. Usually chips or something sweet, but still unhealthy nonetheless.

Though the portions I eat are smaller than what’s listed on the products, it’s still counterproductive to me exercising and losing weight. I consciously kept track over the course of an hour today, and I got up five times to eat. I wasn’t hungry, just wanted to eat. I denied myself the food in three of the instances, which is a good start.  But I needed to know why I was doing this in the first place.  Standing in front of the open refrigerator, I realized I wasn’t thinking about my actions.  Not like blacking out, but more involuntary. On the side of emotions, internally I was on 10 with excitement.

So in a nutshell, I’ve got to get this monkey off my back. That means either making myself sit still, stocking up on healthier snacks, or a combination of both.

What are your thoughts on writing and eating habits? Is it a problem bigger than we think?