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There's a difference between "emotions" and "impulses" or physical urges. For example, if I'm hungry, that's an impulse. If I'm sad and lonely and want to feel better and think that eating ice cream will make me feel better, that's an emotion.
Shagging a girl: impulse
Regret over shagging girl: emotion
Tired of lifting weights: impulse/sensation
Envy of Brad Pitt: emotion
Impulses are a lot easier to deal with, IMHO. They tend to demand their own satisfaction, and you either feed or deny that satisfaction. You might have some emotions during or as a result of those actions, but that's different from the impulses themselves.
Emotions are not a bad thing - they cement social relationships, they give us conscience, they tell us when a situation is dangerous. But I do think there's a lot of value in being able to control your emotions. Or, not necessarily control. Not sure you can do that. But identify the origins and then control the behavior that would result from the emotions. Am I particularly good at doing this? Not really. But I think recognition of the source of an emotion is a good start.
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