How to get over food guilt?

mayalvincent

I've not had such a good day today, food wise. I was still under 2000 calories but ate breakfast, lunch and dinner when I usually only have lunch and dinner. I also ate a croissant with my dinner (ew so unhealthy!) and and feeling really bad about it now.

How does everyone deal with food guilt?

Any advice would be super helpful! And thanks in advance

agreenid

Stop treating it like a "cheat" and think of it as a "treat". You treated yourself today, you know that you can't do that every day. Get up tomorrow and be really good, drink lots of water through the day and start again. Enjoy the choices you make (good or "bad") and then get up and move on.

Sch614

I agree it's hard not to be an all or nothing eater, either I ate perfectly or I totally ruined the day...BUT I think I'm learning that it's what you do on a regular basis that matters, not the slip ups that happen occasionally. It's hard to be objective about ourselves but I bet you would be really supportive of a friend with a similar day and tell her no biggie, it means nothing and you'll be fine!

Ninkyou

Stop viewing foods as good or bad. They're all just food. Food provides energy.

I fail to see what is unhealthy about a croissant.

MsNeumann

I agree with the advice above. MFP is in many ways about learning what makes you feel good, feel bad, gain weight, lose weight... Learning learning learning! Pre-logging helps me maintain control over my day and if I had room for the croissant I would have had it and enjoyed it!

zoeysasha37

Ninkyou wrote: »

Stop viewing foods as good or bad. They're all just food. Food provides energy.

I fail to see what is unhealthy about a croissant.

This

Zombella

I don't agree that there are no bad foods, but I think it depends on how you look at it. If you want to lose weight then you can eat anything as long as you stay under your deficit. I do view some foods as bad, because I want to lose weight and be healthy. I mean foods high in saturated fat, etc.

Anyway, the only real way to help get over food guilt is to tell yourself that this doesn't screw up your journey and progress. One day is just that, one day. You can start over tomorrow. That is what really helps me.

faithyang

@Ninkyou I think food guilt comes from the ease in turning food and weight loss into an obsession. I find that I've turned food into a 'bad' thing. It used to be 'good' food and 'bad' food, but now, food = bad. I end up actively trying to stop food from going into my mouth - cutting off entire meals, food groups, foods - and feeling extremely anxious whenever I ingest most foods. Obviously the more 'bad' or calorific the food the more anxiety and guilt I feel. It recently came to a point where the only 'good' day is a day where I have either 1. Not eaten anything except maybe green tea. 2. Eat sparing amount fruit in the day, and when I have no choice but to have food in front of people (I eat with my significant other in the evenings as I prepare meals), I limit myself to a very controlled meal of mainly a bowl of soup, some veggies and sometimes 1/2 a serving of some kind of carb.
I know its bad, and I try to mindfully get myself to have a healthier mindset, but the anxiety whenever I even eat a proper meal these days has become so bad I overinflate my calorie count and I mentally count the days I will 'make up' the calorie deficit. I'm in the process of trying to change this because I entered weight loss with the intention to be fit and healthy - not develop an eating disorder! Thankfully, I think I'm not there yet (developed an eating disorder) because I still eat full meals, but its a very slippery slope.

mayalvincent

Thanks so much for all your wonderful advice! I definitely do feel better now about eating something I hadn't planned to, and will try not to be so hard on myself over small slip ups.

Hope your journeys are going well!

Lots of love, Maya xx

Ninkyou

faithyang wrote: »

@Ninkyou I think food guilt comes from the ease in turning food and weight loss into an obsession. I find that I've turned food into a 'bad' thing. It used to be 'good' food and 'bad' food, but now, food = bad. I end up actively trying to stop food from going into my mouth - cutting off entire meals, food groups, foods - and feeling extremely anxious whenever I ingest most foods. Obviously the more 'bad' or calorific the food the more anxiety and guilt I feel. It recently came to a point where the only 'good' day is a day where I have either 1. Not eaten anything except maybe green tea. 2. Eat sparing amount fruit in the day, and when I have no choice but to have food in front of people (I eat with my significant other in the evenings as I prepare meals), I limit myself to a very controlled meal of mainly a bowl of soup, some veggies and sometimes 1/2 a serving of some kind of carb.
I know its bad, and I try to mindfully get myself to have a healthier mindset, but the anxiety whenever I even eat a proper meal these days has become so bad I overinflate my calorie count and I mentally count the days I will 'make up' the calorie deficit. I'm in the process of trying to change this because I entered weight loss with the intention to be fit and healthy - not develop an eating disorder! Thankfully, I think I'm not there yet (developed an eating disorder) because I still eat full meals, but its a very slippery slope.

If you're already feeling that way, you should probably seek professional help. Even if you don't have an ED, viewing food like that is not healthy. Seeing a professional may help relieve the anxiety you're feeling and prevent going further down that path.

UnicornAmanda

Ninkyou wrote: »

Stop viewing foods as good or bad. They're all just food. Food provides energy.

I fail to see what is unhealthy about a croissant.

This!

JanetMMcC

May -
If 2000 is your goal for calories, you're gold.
If not, it might help to think of the croissant in terms of diabetic exchanges (which is what the pre-points version of Weight Watchers was sorta based on). It's not a terrible horrible illegal croissant; it's two starch and three fat exchanges. You're allowed both starch and fat. And tomorrow you'll stay in line.
The "one day at a time" philosophy works both ways. I can stay on goal one day at a time. If I go off goal, it's just one day. It doesn't mean I'm going to go off goal tomorrow.
And eating breakfast as well as lunch and dinner? That's a fine pattern. Healthy, even. Helps keep your blood sugar levels stable.

I like agreenid's idea, too. Weight Watchers allows a certain number of points or exchanges or whatever to be spent on treats.

Faithyang, I'm worried about you. I agree with what Ninkyou said. You *need* food as fuel, and seeing it as all bad is as dangerous to both your physical and mental health as living entirely on sweets. A professional can help.