Binge eating support/advice

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  • kelly_c_77
    kelly_c_77 Posts: 5,658 Member
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    I have 5 suggestions for you.

    1) Join the "Binge-Eating Support Group". http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/726-binge-eating-support-group
    2) As others have said, try to keep your binge foods out of the house in the first place.
    3) Try to redirect that urge into doing something healthy. If you're down because you are "in the worst shape of your life," DO something about it. Go for a walk. Do armchair exercises. Whatever. Get your heart beating and your blood pumping. Respond by burning a few extra calories!
    4) Talk about it. If you feel the urge to binge, set a timer for 15 minutes and get on the message boards. Start with a post asking for help. Then read and reply to as many topics as seem interesting to you. When the timer goes off, go back to your thread and read the replies. (If you have good RL supports, you could call/text/visit them as well.)
    And 5) If all else fails, try to "binge" on something healthier. Since you won't have chocolate bars in the house, maybe eat some apples. No cake, so eat celery. No donuts, so eat a large salad. You get the idea.

    All in all, you CAN do it. You just have to make up your mind that it's worth doing and stick to it.

    I love this advice! :)
  • lyss1200
    lyss1200 Posts: 22 Member
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    I've said it before... the biggest thing that helps stop me from eating things I know I "shouldn't":

    instead of telling yourself you can't eat it, tell yourself that if you CAN eat it- if you still want it in 15 minutes time.

    Get your phone out & set a timer to go off in 15 minutes.

    Usually when I do this, I get busy doing something else and then the timer goes off &I think "what... oh yeah well I don't really want it anymore..."
  • lydialou87
    lydialou87 Posts: 12
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    I'm terrible... I can't get out of the cycle of eating well and exercising during the week and going crazy at the weekends! I justify it by saying i deserve it, but I don't as I end up undoing my hard work!

    I just find the weekends difficult as its a social time for me - going for drinks, going out for dinner, lunch, even breakfast! I need to not see the weekends as a 'treat'.

    I'd love to hear some advise on how to deal with the weekend trap... what to people do on nights out or when meeting friends for dinner? x
  • lambchoplewis
    lambchoplewis Posts: 797
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    Eating out for me is not that bad. I try to go online and look at menu and pick ahead of going to restaurant. I try to order first and not listen to others orders that would cause me to change my mind. I also ask for things not on menu. I go for the house salad, no cheese or dressing with a grilled protein on top (like fish or shrimp). Even if not on menu - ask for it. For lunch - look for the same - salad with veggies, soup (not cream based) etc. B'fast is an egg white veggie omelet. Just tell people you feel better eating like this.

    For me, a few drinks turns into more and then a binge. That is my issue. I am trying to just enjoy the relaxed buzz and not eat.
  • lithezebra
    lithezebra Posts: 3,670 Member
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    I went into treatment for my eating problems, in my late teens. It's hard to give up a coping mechanism, before you've found a better way to cope.
  • whitlisd
    whitlisd Posts: 85
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    I'm terrible... I can't get out of the cycle of eating well and exercising during the week and going crazy at the weekends! I justify it by saying i deserve it, but I don't as I end up undoing my hard work!

    I just find the weekends difficult as its a social time for me - going for drinks, going out for dinner, lunch, even breakfast! I need to not see the weekends as a 'treat'.

    I'd love to hear some advise on how to deal with the weekend trap... what to people do on nights out or when meeting friends for dinner? x


    I'm bad that way too. Because I do everything based on my emotions, every mood I had was a reason to eat! Now I'm trying to reward myself with other things besides food. I love to go out to restaurants on the weekends as well, so now I either pick healthy things on the menu, or I don't go at all and I "treat" myself with a book, new clothes or some other hobby that I enjoy.
  • keepongoingnmw
    keepongoingnmw Posts: 371 Member
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    I've said it before... the biggest thing that helps stop me from eating things I know I "shouldn't":

    instead of telling yourself you can't eat it, tell yourself that if you CAN eat it- if you still want it in 15 minutes time.

    Get your phone out & set a timer to go off in 15 minutes.

    Usually when I do this, I get busy doing something else and then the timer goes off &I think "what... oh yeah well I don't really want it anymore..."

    This is an excellent strategy. I usually only eat sweets on the weekend, so I tell myself I can have it later. I also try to stick to just three meals a day one plate of food at each meal, ( I am a little lax about fruit after dinner, so if it fits my calorie allotment I will eat some) so I tell myself I will have it with the next meal and put some on my plate.
  • lemonsquare6
    lemonsquare6 Posts: 51
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    You know how you say the binge eating is triggered when you take a look at yourself and how it's been the worst shape in a while? This was also a trigger for me. I'm like heck, it's already gone to ****, can't do harm with a little more. Then I kept behaving this way day by day because I felt like I was going to be deprived the second I had the guts to stop. I wonder if you can channel looking at yourself as the motivation. We all have that point where we go "this is going too far." I couldn't even get out the house anymore because I didn't want to see anyone I know. When I skipped a plan I had arranged a month ago that I was dearly looking forward to, all because I couldn't look at myself, or dress myself.. I knew this wasn't okay anymore. It helps to kick-start on a Sunday.. then Monday seems fresh with a Sunday buffer.
  • OGJake12
    OGJake12 Posts: 186 Member
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    I was a binge eater for most of my life.

    Here's what worked for me:
    1.I gave myself a 3 week timeline to slowly decrease my food intake when a trigger would come up. By the end of the 3 weeks, if it wasn't meal time, I had completely changed my binging problem to a need for a glass of water.

    2. Eat enough food throughout the day and often enough.

    3. Eat at the same time everyday.

    4. Replace the need with minor athletic activity. Planks, pushups, or crunches are great. Or even a 5 min run. (This actually eases most triggers better than food ever would anyway) And it won't be long until your addiction switches from food to health.

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