abstainer or moderation

Espressocycle

I believe in fitting everything I like into my diet, but there are certain things I just have to avoid because I lose all control. Cereal is the big one for me... I just can't eat one serving and it can easily become a 500 calorie snack. I had to stop eating it entirely.

UsedToBeHusky

If you can abstain for the rest of your life, then by all means...

Otherwise, how are you ever going to learn how to actually eat and not yo yo up and down if you don't learn moderation. IMHO, moderation is practiced an learned...MFP is a training ground

This is pretty much how I feel, but then I don't relate at all to food being an addictive substance. As someone in recovery, I understand the difference between physical addiction and psychological compulsion. The two are similar but not the same. Some who have never experienced a physical addiction might not understand the differences, and despite my best efforts, I find it difficult to communicate those differences. If abstaining is a workable solution for the individual, then that really is what they should pursue. But I think if you are an 'abstainer' you should at least attempt to moderate your eating habits from time to time.

1princesswarrior

This is very interesting. I find the longer I abstain from candy, cakes, ice cream, cookies, or the baked food aisle the worse the thought of eating it sounds.

It's like that ex-smoker 'syndrome' that I have. I quit on August 28, 1998 cold turkey. Now I can't even stand to smell smoke on someone else or be around an ashtray, let alone secondhand smoke.

On the other hand there are many things I can eat in moderation as well like pizza and pasta which I absolutely love.

deksgrl

I can do some things in moderation.

However, there are a few things that are "triggers" for me and I find that it is best to abstain because I can't do moderation.

MyChocolateDiet

I've tried both. I can lose weight both ways. I don't know if I have good will power, or just choose plans that make lots of inherent sense to me and so I find them easy to follow and stick to. They all seem to have a bottom line of just cutting calories sometimes in the form of actually watching the numbers and sometimes in the form of calling certain foods "bad for you" that just happen to be high cal foods and so inadvertently one eats fewer cals than before and loses weight. Whatever works for you I guess.

I will say that if I start the day with a carb heavy breakfast (like almost nothing but carbs) it's all down hill from there. I will be carbs crazy for the rest of the day. It will be a fun day, but a sugar and nap filled and over cals day.

lcvaughn520

I've read this article too and it's definitely interesting to think about. I think when I'm first starting to be very conscious of my choices, it's best for me to abstain. If I order fries with the intention of only eating a few, I will inevitably finish whatever is served to me. I usually don't really think about particular food items too much when I'm not around them, so I don't feel deprived of anything - I just eat what I eat and move on.

My goal is to learn how to SELF moderate, though - learning how to only eat a few french fries even when there's a plateful in front of me. We'll see?

JenAndSome

I do it all in moderation, but I am fortunate in many people's opinion because I don't like sweets. I don't eat chocolate, candy, cake or cookies. I don't even eat things like pancakes or waffles because I don't like syrup. I guess this makes it easier to avoid a lot of things that are a struggle for some people. The things I have to not over-indulge in are cheese, beer and chips. I still eat all of the things I eat, just not as much at once.

arains89

I don't abstain from anything. I do make healthier choices with everything however. I will still eat ice cream but I will get low fat. I still eat pizza but I order it thin crust with veggies on top instead of meats. I'll have a burger but it will be a turkey burger. I will have alcohol but not on weekdays and usually only one day on the weekend. (I usually have no more than 3 beers or a couple glasses of wine anyway). If I really want a soda I will have a coke zero (on great occasion as well). If I crave a sweet tea I sweeten with sweet n low. You get the picture. There is no reason to cut anything out of your diet completely. It's unrealistic to believe you can live that way forever. Unless you have a medical issue.

Pangea250

I've just convinced myself I don't LIKE rich, greasy, sugary things! That way I can eat around people having chicken fried steak, donuts, ice cream. . . Nothing tastes as good as being a size 6!!!

drojen

Depends what it is - sweets like donuts, cakes etc, make me want more. Junk food will make me desire something sweet afterwards - like eat at McDonalds, have a donut (or 5) for dessert. So now I have to really want it or it's not worth having it. For instance, on Mother's day, I had one piece of coconut butter tart pie at a restaurant we went to. One piece is sweet enough, two is too much and even if I crave it, it's not easy for me to get back to that restaurant on the spur of the moment to get a piece. so, it was worth it because it was good and because I don't have easy access to it. I find my sweet tooth doesn't handle the sweets the same - I find a lot of things too sweet now. This is a good thing, since before I started here, I was pre-diabetic. Blood test since starting has me in the normal range again. I just have to remind myself of that whenever faced with one of my food challenges. So i won't abstain completely, but I'm really choosy about what I have when I do it. It has to be worth it.

ddslowly

can we drink yet?

were we supposed to wait for something to start?

i had started to post that i prefer moderation but then i realized that, due to food allergies (chicken, chicken eggs) and my stomach's natural preference to not properly digest most meats and really sugary/greasy/fatty/salty foods, i've pretty much eliminated most of the foods that pop up on peoples' trigger/naughty/do not eat food lists.
i do french fries and potato chips in moderation. i guess i like a combination or moderate/abstain?

btsinmd

I have to go with the both too. I do moderation with 99% of the foods that I deal with, but I cannot drink Pepsi or really any cola and not crave it for days and weeks afterward, even if it made me sick at the time I drank it. After trying for many years, I decided that I will never drink another cola again, and have not had one for three years now. Once it was fully out of my system I have no trouble resisting it, but for 20 years, trying to moderate it always failed.

MyChocolateDiet

I've just convinced myself I don't LIKE rich, greasy, sugary things! That way I can eat around people having chicken fried steak, donuts, ice cream. . . Nothing tastes as good as being a size 6!!!

This explains the people who go "Cheeseburgers? GROSS!" On my newsfeed. I always read those like yeah,and? Why are you trying to act like you don't like cheeseburgers like everyone else does. OR pizza, or brownies, or etc. I KNEW you people were trying some kind of jedi mind trick on yourselves. Just KNEW it! Glad one of you finally escaped the asylum to admit it!

Please, though, when you use this tactic if it works for you, just keep it to yourself and don't proclaim "Cheeseburgers Gross!" out loud when I'm biting into my drippy juicy A1 sauce and mayonnaise laden piece of heaven because this counting cals is what's working for me and I may have been looking forward to that meaty monstrosity all day and won't take kindly to any attempts at caulkblocking.

BeachGingerOnTheRocks

I had to learn moderation. When I first started to lose, there were things I had to cut out. Most things I have worked back in, but it took time.

ferocityturbine

I have a chocolate truffle every day. My partner keeps them on top of the kitchen cupboard and gives me one after dinner each night (he's a lot taller than me!).

I eat it in little bites and let each one melt and it's heavenly. I just really appreciate it and it's totally enough. I taste it so much more than if I had free reign and the box.

Moderation works for me as long as I don't have access to excess (see what I did there?). Psychological health is as important as physical health and deprivation is no fun for me.

DatsDonna

Abstainer or Moderation? For me, it depends on the food. It seems that certain foods will get me into trouble (pork dishes, pasta) even if I eat very moderate portions of them. I tried cutting some relatively non-essential foods, and I began to lose weight and inches. I suspect I may have food allergies that need to be checked on. Others I just out and out abstain from, like sugary, creamy desserts.

Crochetluvr

I do moderation. I think its better that I have everything once in a while rather than some things exclusively so I don't crave anything. Now I know there are probably some people that once they get a taste can't stop but I have never been like that.

maybeazure

I like to know that I can eat anything, even really horribly unhealthy things once in awhile. I have always loved food, and to think that I can't have something ever again, would make me sad. I do sometimes delay things and reason myself out of spending my calories on something "expensive" like chocolate. But eventually I will have a day when I'm well under my calories, and then I'll splurge.

chezjuan

So what do you think is best for you? Are you able to eat things in moderation or are you like me and need to abstain from the "bad" foods?

Moderation works for me. I am the kind of person who can have one or two cookies and walk away from the bag.

Jxnsmma

Moderation and abstaining both lead to bingeing
i eat what i want and exercise it off
it w orks ggod for me- 27 pounds gone., 10 percent of body w eight a nd 2 inches off waist

Not a very good mindset of having to burn off everything you eat. And both moderation and abstaining lead to binging?

Breathing leads to binging for me...

Andrea419

I personally do better with moderation. If I want a treat, I fit it into my diet and eat a small portion. I find moderation helps me to stay on track. When I try to abstain, I end up overeating forbidden foods because I feel like I'm depriving myself. It's such a personal thing, and obviously abstaining works for some, it's just a matter of finding what works best for you.

ecmorales

...it sounds like you know yourself pretty well, being insulin resistant. abstaining from refined sugars makes food management much more manageable and pleasant for us. Eating more than a bite starts a cycle of insulin peaks and valleys, cravings and crashes....it makes me cringe to even write about it. I've been there, and willingly, and then I kick myself. I'm a lover of ice cream, and an abstainer of ice cream. it is not my friend; one bite is too much and a gallon is not enough

UsedToBeHusky

I've just convinced myself I don't LIKE rich, greasy, sugary things! That way I can eat around people having chicken fried steak, donuts, ice cream. . . Nothing tastes as good as being a size 6!!!

This explains the people who go "Cheeseburgers? GROSS!" On my newsfeed. I always read those like yeah,and? Why are you trying to act like you don't like cheeseburgers like everyone else does. OR pizza, or brownies, or etc. I KNEW you people were trying some kind of jedi mind trick on yourselves. Just KNEW it! Glad one of you finally escaped the asylum to admit it!

Please, though, when you use this tactic if it works for you, just keep it to yourself and don't proclaim "Cheeseburgers Gross!" out loud when I'm biting into my drippy juicy A1 sauce and mayonnaise laden piece of heaven because this counting cals is what's working for me and I may have been looking forward to that meaty monstrosity all day and won't take kindly to any attempts at caulkblocking.

Yep. The failure to respect others food choices is why so many threads fall apart around here. LOL!

WifeofPJ

...it sounds like you know yourself pretty well, being insulin resistant. abstaining from refined sugars makes food management much more manageable and pleasant for us. Eating more than a bite starts a cycle of insulin peaks and valleys, cravings and crashes....it makes me cringe to even write about it. I've been there, and willingly, and then I kick myself. I'm a lover of ice cream, and an abstainer of ice cream. it is not my friend; one bite is too much and a gallon is not enough

I'm the same way one bite too much and a gallon or the entire bag of what ever it is, is not enough. I just learned this January that I was insulin Resistant and it explained a whole lot. If I could do this past week again I will still not worry on the wedding day like I did, but I would make sure I did not go out to eat at all during the week, especially to a place that we would order such horrible (But delicious!) appetizers because I really feel that it was the tuesday night appetizers that really did me in for the week. I got back to this feeling of being extreemly hungry (and it can't be satisfied) but at the same time experience indigestion. Found that even Metformin does not keep away the cravings if I eat the processed simple carbs.

To the guy who said that people tell him Ewwe Gross about eating a cheese burger. They are just jelous that you were able to eat a cheese burger. I will eat burgers with everything on it but the bun. I try to stay away from all processed grains even whole wheat bread. But this is all due to my IR and infertility issues.

pjp1125

I choose a Hybrid approach. I abstain from booze and junk food during the week, then use moderation on weekends. It works for me.

ruwise

I find it best to abstain for about 4-6 weeks and then try and re-introduce foods and learn to be moderate. It is something I am still learning and I'm not always successful but I have to keep trying as it is normal to eat both good and bad foods.

ncmedic201

I abstain from things that affect my health and eat in moderation things that I enjoy and don't bother me.

nilbogger

I wouldn't say I abstain from anything. There are some foods I haven't eaten in awhile, but the fact is there are some things you just can't fit in on a regular basis: Cheesecake Factory cheesecake, donut burgers, Bloomin' Onions, big ice cream sundaes, red velvet pancakes, etc.

There are also things I won't buy in large portions unless there's a special occasion. I don't need a whole cake in my house or a big bag of chips.

I can't think of anything that I would never, ever eat again. It just has to be less often or in smaller portions.

peggy_polenta

abtain...moderation is like telling an alcholic its ok to have one drink. most of us are food addicts...it will only be moderation for so long before we are back into full blown addiction.

GormanGhaste

I pretty much have three food categories.

1. Stuff I keep on hand most of the time, which is the largest category by far. I have a container of cookies right next to my desk that are probably too stale to eat at this point.

2. Food I only eat at parties or when I buy a single-serving package. Examples would be chips and soda.

3. Foods I don't eat. The main one is cheese. I crave it, but it truly does not agree with me.