I can't seem to break my food addiction
mitzi2013
Posts: 47 Member
I wake up every morning at 4am and exercise. As a matter of fact, I exercise 3-4 hours a day total. I enjoy it and it helps me so much. I just can't stop thinking about food... ALL DAY!!!! I don't overdue it very often but I take bites here and there of sweets or mashed potatoes if my kids are having them. Every once in a while I totally gorge. Sometimes I feel so full and guilty it literally makes me sick. If I'm alone I think about what I can eat before someone gets home and sees me. My trainer says I just need to eat clean and it'll become a habit. It's just not that easy for me. I don't know how to change my thinking patterns. Any advice is very welcome. If you've been here and beat this please let me know how you did it. (and if you know me in real life please do not tell anyone about this. It's a personal issue)
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Your profile and diary are closed so I can't get a good frame of reference to try to state what I may see is going on.
Don't know your age, height, goals (weight loss), exercise (other than 3-4 hours a day), etc..
I will say if I exercise 4 hours a day I would be totally famished but let alone have time to eat and gorge.. Tell us more other than you are "addicted to food".
Edited to add: It sounds like it could be B.E.D. and/or some type of disordered thinking... this I cannot help with...-1 -
For me it is an every day battle. Take it one day at a time one meal at a time one bite at a time. The only failure I believe is in not trying.0
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I wake up every morning at 4am and exercise. As a matter of fact, I exercise 3-4 hours a day total. I enjoy it and it helps me so much. I just can't stop thinking about food... ALL DAY!!!! I don't overdue it very often but I take bites here and there of sweets or mashed potatoes if my kids are having them. Every once in a while I totally gorge. Sometimes I feel so full and guilty it literally makes me sick. If I'm alone I think about what I can eat before someone gets home and sees me. My trainer says I just need to eat clean and it'll become a habit. It's just not that easy for me. I don't know how to change my thinking patterns. Any advice is very welcome. If you've been here and beat this please let me know how you did it. (and if you know me in real life please do not tell anyone about this. It's a personal issue)
Eating until your sick is not normal behaviour, speak to a doctor.0 -
TavistockToad wrote: »I wake up every morning at 4am and exercise. As a matter of fact, I exercise 3-4 hours a day total. I enjoy it and it helps me so much. I just can't stop thinking about food... ALL DAY!!!! I don't overdue it very often but I take bites here and there of sweets or mashed potatoes if my kids are having them. Every once in a while I totally gorge. Sometimes I feel so full and guilty it literally makes me sick. If I'm alone I think about what I can eat before someone gets home and sees me. My trainer says I just need to eat clean and it'll become a habit. It's just not that easy for me. I don't know how to change my thinking patterns. Any advice is very welcome. If you've been here and beat this please let me know how you did it. (and if you know me in real life please do not tell anyone about this. It's a personal issue)
Eating until your sick is not normal behaviour, speak to a doctor.
THIS.... +1-1 -
Commit to short periods of time. Be strict on your self for 2 weeks. Absolutely no cheating. You can get through anything for 2 weeks. After the 2 weeks, it should become a habit. Also, always have good choices for snacking food on hand. Things that are ready to grab and eat and don't have to be cooked is best. Things you really like, so when you want something you have a healthy option and won't take bites of the sweets. Pickles, help get rid of sweet cravings.0
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You are working your body too hard. OF course you are starving, you think a bite here and a bite there won't hurt you, but in truth those bites add up. Log every single thing you put in your mouth, remember this is a lifestyle change not just a diet. You look great! I think we all tend to turn to something that has made us feel good before at some point. Whatever circumstances you may be going through, a lot of us find comfort in it, you should maybe talk to someone and see what's causing you to feel this way. Again, you work out an extreme amount, give your body some time to rest. You look great!0
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I'm 36. 5'5 and I started at 251 pounds. I'm currently at 214. It has taken a couple years to lose this much. A lot of ups and downs. My ultimate goal is to be healthy. The number isn't particularly important but somewhere between 130 and 145 sounds good to me. The reason my diet is private is because I don't keep up with it like I should. The days I eat well I log everything but then when I break down I stop logging.0
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I'm 36. 5'5 and I started at 251 pounds. I'm currently at 214. It has taken a couple years to lose this much. A lot of ups and downs. My ultimate goal is to be healthy. The number isn't particularly important but somewhere between 130 and 145 sounds good to me. The reason my diet is private is because I don't keep up with it like I should. The days I eat well I log everything but then when I break down I stop logging.
OK.. I see a huge problem as to what and how you explain using the MFP tool. Again the "food addiction" or gorging until your pretty much sick is a disorder. You do not use the tools you choose to use therefore no commitments or behavior modifications and especially finding your relationship to food.
Sorry to be so blunt and I do not find good excuses in anything you posted...
You really don't need a long 6 page or 10 page full of comments stating so.-1 -
Want to change everything? This does: http://whole30.com-3
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First of all, "eating clean" means very different things to different people (no carbs, paleo, no processed food, the list goes on). It sounds like you are restricting yourself quite severely and that it's a strategy that doesn't work for you. I know it doesn't work for me, I do much better if I allow myself treats as long as I can work them into my calorie budget. It may also be that you are simply restricting your caloric intake too much and are just not getting enough fuel. That's pretty much bound to lead to binging.
Having said that, the excessive secrecy and guilt-tripping around food does sound fairly unhealthy and is something you should talk to a professional about (not your trainer though, he/she does not appear particularly helpful on this account).0 -
I'm not looking for excuses. I've had enough of those on my own. I'm looking for advice. You've now given yours, so thank you.0
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3-4 hours a day of exercise is a lot! and needs to be fueled. however, the emotional issues and addiction behind the food, and guilt and obsessive thoughts however are not good. have you spoken to a medical professional? also, there are over eaters annonymous groups that can help people with all sorts of food issues, over eating, under eating, fear of foods etc. perhaps try one of those? i am part of an eating disorders anonymous group which is similar, and works the way aa or na would. very helpful the support that is there, that could be a good start if you cannot get to the doctor or afford visits or something like that. sounds like a binge eating type of issue. i hope you can work it all out! also, what are your reasons for the 3-4 hours of daily exercise?0
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I'm currently doing a weight loss competition at my gym. It has 7 weeks left. Before that I worked out about half as much, sometimes not at all. I thought the competition would help with the food issues. In a way it has. I'm not eating fast food at all and I make better choices when I go out to eat. It's when I'm home that I have the self control problems.0
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Id reappraise your approach and check the basics such as logging, calorie deficit and amount of exercise.
You then need to put as many things in place to stop you breaking your deficit as and when you choose because its self sabotage. Set your calories at a realistic level, eat the right type of foods to both fuel your workouts, give you adequate nutrition and satiety. Mini binges are often a sign of trying to be too aggresive.
Take it one day at a time and commit. Review each day and as you ont wnat excuses, then when you are binging or breaking your deficit through absent minded eating make a not of it an how you were feeling plus why. You need to understand it so you can recognise and avoid it in future. Its not about eating clean but portion control, which you must surely know considering your weight loss success so far.
At some stage you simply have to commit.0 -
You work out a lot so it's not surprising you are hungry. My advice to you is this, log all the good and bad and in between. My guess is you will see a pattern emerge. Once that pattern os there you might be able to make the modifications you need. You might also consider seeing a therapist if there is a pattern of emotional eating. It is not easy to stop eating stuff we love but awareness of the what, why and when of it all makes a huge difference. Good luck.0
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Exactly what exercises are you doing?
On the days you do log ... how many calories are you logging?
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I take a lot of classes. I enjoy spin, zumba, body pump, and body combat the most. I don't exercise to make up for the eating or anything. I genuinely enjoy it once I get started. When I keep up with my food log I generally eat between 1200 and 1400 calories.0
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Your answers make it impossible to even ballpark estimate what you burn or what you eat.
See a doctor. If you are putting forth any effort in those classes, you simply do not provide your body with the fuel it needs on the days you log. That leads to binges that none of us here can assess because you don't log them.0 -
There is a lot of things being said here that are off.
For starters she has a trainer (supposedly helping her exercise/eat clean) to advice her to get into better habits??? And then she is on a weight loss competition that will help her with her food issues????
I question this because I am relying on the "facts" she is writing in the post.. (contradictory to say the least).. As I mentioned this will go on for 6 pages or even 10 pages and the same conclusion will be relevant...
edited: Not committed to the "weight loss competition" that has 7 more weeks?? and what is the grand prize? is there any incentive and does she want to win it? ??? ???-2 -
Gia07 I see that you don't see where I'm coming from and maybe I'm not explaining myself well enough for you. And that's fine. Please feel free to stop posting. Don't contribute to the 6 or 10 pages if you have such a problem with it.
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Gia07 I see that you don't see where I'm coming from and maybe I'm not explaining myself well enough for you. And that's fine. Please feel free to stop posting. Don't contribute to the 6 or 10 pages if you have such a problem with it.
No problems here... this part you have wrong.
But I will say this and I am not trying to be rude or anything but this type of thread is so very common and for us that have been here for a while know what is true and tried in your case and how your posting to this thread.
You are not explaining yourself well enough for anyone to understand your thinking. You expressed you needed your thinking changed and for anyone that knows you to please don't tell anyone because this is a personal issue.
I see these things as problems in it self not just the eating issues. Best to you and please get some help... Good luck...0 -
I take a lot of classes. I enjoy spin, zumba, body pump, and body combat the most. I don't exercise to make up for the eating or anything. I genuinely enjoy it once I get started. When I keep up with my food log I generally eat between 1200 and 1400 calories.
That's not enough. No wonder you're ravenous.
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I wake up every morning at 4am and exercise. As a matter of fact, I exercise 3-4 hours a day total. I enjoy it and it helps me so much. I just can't stop thinking about food... ALL DAY!!!! I don't overdue it very often but I take bites here and there of sweets or mashed potatoes if my kids are having them. Every once in a while I totally gorge. Sometimes I feel so full and guilty it literally makes me sick. If I'm alone I think about what I can eat before someone gets home and sees me. My trainer says I just need to eat clean and it'll become a habit. It's just not that easy for me. I don't know how to change my thinking patterns. Any advice is very welcome. If you've been here and beat this please let me know how you did it. (and if you know me in real life please do not tell anyone about this. It's a personal issue)
Therapy, therapy and more therapy. Food addiction comes from something deeper than just food. Food addiction is just like any addiction, drugs, alcohol, gambling, it is to feel a void and emptiness or something else we do not want to feel, like PTSD or grief. I know, I have a food addiction, I have had one my whole life. I have also been in therapy my whole life. The only way to fight is to fight what ever is else you are struggling with in your life that isn't food related with a therapist and a pysch.
Right now the only way I am not thinking about food is because I am on psych med given to me by my pysch for my mental disorder. It has some pretty scary side effects so I would never recommend taking it just so you can forget about food.
I wish ya luck. ((hugs))
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kristenlarkin wrote: »Commit to short periods of time. Be strict on your self for 2 weeks. Absolutely no cheating. You can get through anything for 2 weeks. After the 2 weeks, it should become a habit. Also, always have good choices for snacking food on hand. Things that are ready to grab and eat and don't have to be cooked is best. Things you really like, so when you want something you have a healthy option and won't take bites of the sweets. Pickles, help get rid of sweet cravings.
This doesn't help with true food addictions, actually can make them worse. Getting to source of why someone is addicted to anything in the first place is what will help.
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I'm 36. 5'5 and I started at 251 pounds. I'm currently at 214. It has taken a couple years to lose this much. A lot of ups and downs. My ultimate goal is to be healthy. The number isn't particularly important but somewhere between 130 and 145 sounds good to me. The reason my diet is private is because I don't keep up with it like I should. The days I eat well I log everything but then when I break down I stop logging.
Along with figuring out what is going on inside your head, ya need to allow yourself forgiveness and allow failures. We are all humans and make mistakes. We will all fall down. As long as we get back up and keep moving is what makes the difference.
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I think have the same problem as you. Food is constantly on my mind. I have a preoccupation with it. What has helped me is making sure I log every calorie I eat and if I have an urge to eat something, I incorporate it into my day. If I can't get fried chicken off of my mind, I make sure I won't go over my calories for the day and I eat it. If it is going to put me over on calories I wait until the next day and have it then. This lessons the intense craving because I know I will be getting it tomorrow. And I won't have to feel guilty because I won't be going over on my calories. Sometimes tomorrow comes and I decide I don't want whatever it was I was waiting for!
While it is not normal to eat until you are sick, I have done it many times. I think that it is because I have gone so long without eating what I want that when I finally hit my breaking point I go nuts and eat everything I can get my hands on. That is another reason that it is good to eat foods you like as long as you can fit them into your daily calorie goal. This should not be a diet, this should be a way of living that you can maintain for the rest of your life. I don't know about you, but I am not going to go the rest of my life without fried foods, sweets and carbs. In fact, today I am having cake and icecream at my nieces birthday party! And, I won't be going over on calories!
You can do it mitzi!! I think it was not only brave, but smart of you to reach out for advice. One of the reasons mfp works so well is that we are not alone and we have a plethora of knowledge and experience to tap into. You have to filter out what applies to you and let the rest go by the wayside. Don't be deterred! Judging from your pictures you have been very successful and I hope to read your success story on here one day, and read the advice you will have for the next person who traveling this path. Hugs....0 -
I am addicted to food as well. For me, it took being morbidly obese & getting weight loss surgery to actually lose the weight, but I still have that disordered eating mindset. The surgery does allow me to feel full on the small amount of calories I get each day which is one of the big reasons why I got it.
You should go see a therapist. When I feel out of control, I just have to stop bringing it in the house so that there is no choice but to not snack. I find myself going through the cabinets in case there's something there. I will buy sweets & hide them from my family. I have to plan out my eating a day ahead of time & stick to it. It is really, really hard. I have 4 kids & they want snacks. When I am in control, I can buy them & not eat them. When I am stressed & know I won't resist I don't buy them. Each meal is a new choice for me & I have to make the right ones. That's all it boils down to.
I usually don't log when I am in control. I basically eat the same things all the time. It's when I'm out of control that I force myself to log. You don't have to open your diary to everyone. You only owe yourself. Don't lie to yourself. By not logging, you are not facing up to your own reality & seeing the damage you are doing to yourself. Work out how much you should be eating. There are lots of tools here for that. If you are working out for 3-4 hours (which seems to be an excessive amount of exercise) a day & not losing weight, you are eating more than just a bite here & there. I don't "eat clean". I know I would not stick to my eating plan if I didn't get to eat anything good, ever. The typical "clean" diet is not one that I want to live on. I work out the day before what snacks & meals will satisfy my need for food & then I stick to it. I am fully in favor of using any tool that will help. Maybe talk to your doctor about an approved weight loss drug to break the cycle while you work with a therapist.0 -
Have you considered eating low carb? I am a carb/sugar addict. I eliminated carbs to under 20g a day and after 2 weeks of withdrawal don't have any cravings anymore. I was just like you 8 months ago. Now I'm 103 pounds lighter and have no more issues0
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Keep an honest track if your food fir a week. See your doctor to get help with addiction part. Use non food items as rewards...list five lbs go fir manicure or list 10 lbs buy a new gym out fit. Eat what you want but portion control and plan your meals for the week. Eat salads as part of your meals and like everyone will say...drink water. Lots of water. Even start of with two weeks where your only change is drinking water before each meal. And I think 1 and a half hour work our should be enough. Don't over do it.0
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