What Type Of Eater Are You? 6 Common Eating Habits And How To Fix Them

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Whether you're a diet junkie, a binger, or turn to food for comfort, most people identify with a specific eating pattern.

CBS2's Alex Denis sat down with clinical nutritionist Jennifer Christman, of Medifast, to discuss the six types of eating patterns, and what you can do to change them.

First, the emotional eater -- someone who eats when they're happy or when they are sad.

"What they end up doing is, they connect that emotion with the food and they're tied together," Christman said.

The unconscious eater falls victim to seeing food, and then just eating it.

"This would be the type of person that goes into the break room seems that box of donuts sitting there and can't help themselves and they eat one for two," Christman said.

The habitual eater craves routine, eating the same thing every day and exercising in the same way.

"With habitual eaters, if they go off track they're totally detailed for the day," Christman said.

Then there's the critical eater, who tends to be either 100 percent committed to a diet, or totally off diet, causing a yo-yo effect of weight loss and weight gain.

"A critical eater knows all the ins and outs of diets," Christman said. "They know the cleanses the, fad diets, the, liquid diets."

Always ordering an appetizer, dessert and good wine to pair with your meal? You may be a sensual eater.

"A sensual eater really enjoys food. They indulge in food with no abandon," Christman said.

And finally, the energy eater -- who eat (or try to eat) the same amount of food as the calories they burn.

"They go up a flight of stairs, and then they think they can have a Snickers bar," Christman said. "So that perception of how much energy they're actually burning and how much they're taking in is off-set."

So, once you figure out what type of eater you are, can you change?

It's possible, with some practice.

Here are some tips to change your eating habits:

• Emotional Eaters - Try to find another way to cope with emotions that doesn't involve food.
• Unconscious Eaters - Avoid areas with free-reign food.
• Habitual Eaters - Try to keep on schedule and get right back on track if you stray from your diet.
• Critical Eaters -Try to approach food in moderation, as extreme dieting tend to fail.
• Sensual Eaters - Try to be mindful of what you're eating -- do you indulge? Or do you hold back?
• Energy Eaters - Create a schedule to keep track of what you're eating throughout the day.