I am working with a coaching client who had put on about 30 extra pounds since reaching her weight-loss-surgery goal. To tackle her weight-gain problem, she decided to start recording what she eats.

After two weeks of setting that goal and not meeting it, I suggested she explore what else might work for her.

"But I want to record what I eat!" she said. "I'm just too embarrassed to write it down and share it with you."

I assured her she was going to be sharing this information with someone who well understood her problem -- someone who had been battling the food demon her whole life, as well.

"Okay, so if I take my embarrassment out of the equation," she reasoned, "I'm still left with not wanting to admit what I'm eating. I don't want to give up the foods I love. I want to eat them anytime I want!"

In the next breath she blurted out, "Why is it so hard to stop eating? I want to be thin. I don't want to go back to not being able to get out of a chair. But, I also want the freedom to eat what I want."

Eating anything you want, whenever you want, is not freedom.

If you really think about it, eating with free abandon does not feel like freedom for people who struggle with compulsive eating. In fact, being a prisoner to food thoughts and mindless eating 24/7 can be miserable.

Trapped by cravings and food thoughts, a person will conduct their daily business and make their daily decisions based on the eating they want to do.

"I can't go to the play tonight," you might say. "I am not feeling well. I think I'm coming down with something."

But, what you are thinking may be, "I want to eat the rest of the bread I bought today. With butter! But, I'll have to pace myself. It will take me all evening to eat it."

Does this scenario paint a picture of a person who is experiencing freedom? Or does the bread have them trapped?

So, you see, eating anything you want isn't freedom.

Eating anytime you want isn't freedom, either.

After weight loss surgery, many people get into the habit of grazing, or eating small amounts frequently. That's what my client was doing.

She mistakenly believed grazing was a way to be free from the shackles of dieting and food plans. And she hated diets and food plans!

Unstructured eating, however, can quickly lead to eating unhealthy foods in unhealthy portions. (Yes, even if you tell yourself you'll never go back to the unhealthy foods you used to eat.)

My client was rebelling.

A rebelliousness exists inside most overeaters, and they don't want to give up their freedom to choose what to eat and when.

Step back, though and give yourself the "Dr. Phil" treatment. Ask yourself, "And how well is my rebellious attitude working for me?"

It's time to live in the solution.

Many people who struggle with their weight never lose obsessive thoughts about food, but that's partly because they are not living in the solution.

The people who are the most successful at breaking free from the burden of unhealthy eating, have transitioned from being rebellious (reactive) to responsible (proactive).

They spend some time planning. They establish a routine with boundaries around their eating, so that they don't get carried away.

Ironically, when you add some structure to your eating by making a food plan for the day, an amazing sense of freedom can set in -- freedom FROM compulsive eating.

So, if you're struggling with obsessive food thoughts and overeating, make a food plan today. Write it down and refer to it often. Give yourself the gift of one day of freedom from overeating.

Oh, and the "rebellious" client I've been working with has lost 6 pounds already.

She told me, "I'm amazed at how much less I obsess about food now that I make my plan every morning. I just write down what I'm going to eat for the day, and then I go live my life."