Binge Eating Help!

WishfulThinking2013

I am sure that this has been written loads of times but I wanted it to be a bit more personal.

I used to be quite big as a child and then lost loads of weight, became a pro swimmer/lifeguard etc. where I had to eat loads to keep my energy up. Then I broke my knee...which is where my downfall started because it took me the best part of 5 years to build the muscle up enough to do any non impact sport and impact sport still hurts now if I do it for too long.

The problem I have is that because I always had to eat, I developed a great love of food! Normally I ate healthily but occasionally our coach would let us have mcdonalds or whatever after a race as a treat because we were all just exhausted. I continued eating like this after the injury as a comfort thing, almost like it wasn't happening which I got under control thanks to this website but I still have days where I just cannot help myself!

I get home from work and I'm not even hungry but I just can't stop myself going in the sweetie draw or the fridge. And because of my past where literally you can make a meal out of anything (healthy or not) there is ALWAYS something I can find to eat. I even lie to myself about it sometimes like hide the wrapper from my Mum so she doesn't lecture me.

I mean that is just crazy isn't it? How do I stop this? I'm 23 yrs old for crying out loud I should be past hiding wrappers from my parents lol!

mountaingirl1961

Alcoholics hide their bottles, too. Seriously. Binge eating isn't about love of food.

You need to enroll your folks in helping you with this. You don't have to go into complete detail about your problem but let them know that you want to take control of your health - particularly after your injury - before you work your way into obesity again. They know what you went through and won't want to see you go through it again.

If it isn't in the house it's a lot less tempting. Convince them to work with you on eating clean - no more "center aisles" processed garbage that you can use in an unhealthy binge. Bring home healthy food from the store and make big batches of it when you cook. Make enough salad to last for a couple of days so you can drag some out of the fridge when you're hungry. Everybody wins on that one - mum included - because her health will improve as well.

WishfulThinking2013

Thats true, I hadn't thought of it like that! I've always considered it my problem but never an addiction. Actually makes me see other ways to deal with it when I look at it like that! Thank you..x

mountaingirl1961

One corollary to this - don't make it so stark that you can't enjoy it. One of the things that makes the Paleo diet so doable is the idea of 85/15 - you follow the diet strictly 85% of the time, and 15% of the time you cut yourself some slack. Another idea is to allow yourself one meal a week where you eat whatever you damned well please - pizza and beer with a big slice of chocolate cake for dessert. Or whatever. Once you have things under control and have gotten into the habit of eating clean you'll find that your body craves the good stuff and not the garbage. It requires a bit of retraining, though. The "free" meal makes it really doable.

WishfulThinking2013

Thank you so much for your help! I definately need to retrain the way I think, I am so controlled by food to the point of it being irrational. I need to learn how to treat myself without going overboard or feeling so guilty that I do a hardcore workout every day for a week after to make up for it.

I wish it was as easy to lose weight as it is to put it on! :-)

mountaingirl1961

That's part of why MFP is so useful.

People with eating disorders tend to be OCD about control, esp. when it comes to food. This gives you another, healthier way of exerting control - weighing and logging and counting everything, exercise and food intake both. Bit of a crutch perhaps but an effective tool for - yes - retraining your thought process and establishing a healthier relationship with food.

I'm one of the geeked-out masses who wears a Bodymedia Fit which (usually) talks directly to MFP and my iPhone. Technical difficulties today, alas, but generally it's an awesome tool for knowing EXACTLY where I stand during the course of the day w/r/t food and exercise. It's a great way of channeling my OCD tendencies in a healthier way.

And, speaking of exercise, I've managed to put it off long enough, time for me to push play and enjoy my INSANITY.

Good luck.

kelseyhere

As a former athlete, I was also used to eating tons of food everyday. When I started an office job that all changed and I had to re-learn to eat. Just like you, I was eating late night, but instead of hiding it from my parents I was hiding the evidence from my boyfriend. After lots of careful tracking on MFP, I learned there are a few things that trigger my binges:

1. too much sugar
2. not enough protein
3. not enough calories early in the day
4. dehydration

When I eat sugar, I want more. Just like the other posters said, food can become an addiction and boy is sugar addicting. I would suggest trying to cut out any added sugars from your diet for 2 weeks, after that sweet foods will taste way sweeter and your cravings should go down (this means no sugar, except naturally occurring in foods like fruit).

Protein, if my protein is low I'm just hungry. Carbs don't fill me up as well, so aim for at least 80g of protein a day.

When I wait too long to eat breakfast, even if I still eat plenty of calories, it's like I can't turn my hunger off. Eat frequently throughout the day, and don't leave huge gaps between meals.

Water - if I don't drink enough I want to eat salty, sugary foods. Making sure I get my water throughout the day (not all at night) helps keep me away from the snack cabinet.

I encourage you to see if you can see what your patterns and triggers are. Some may be the same, some may be different from mine. I also agree that having an accountability partner - either someone you live with, or another friend who you can text/call when you are feeling like binging can help.

Also here is an article I just read about willpower that applies: http://www.fitnessrxwomen.com/life-health/jaime-baird/pump-up-your-willpower/

WishfulThinking2013

That is actually very true, I tend to not have breakfast till about 10am yet I start work at half 7. I just don't feel hungry to later but I really should eat when I get to work. I know that does make me feel hungry all day even after I eat, if I eat too many carbs I just end up feeling sick but then I'm hungry again half hour later.

I think thats a good idea, cutting sugar out. It's harder to let something go when your so used to having it - I stopped having sugar in tea and when I tried it again I couldn't stand it so I'm assuming it will have the same effect!

I will try it and let you know the results! Thanks for your help!!

shellbell_81

Hi,

I have exactly the same problem, when I come home from work in the evening I can just eat and eat until I feel ill and it has nothing to do with being hungry. This week I have just been really strict with myself, I am allowed dinner and then a bit later on a dessert (this week it has been British strawberries with low fat ice cream) but nothing else. It has been hard some nights but I have just told myself no, I am hoping if I can keep it up for long enough I can change the habbit and it will become easier.
I am allowing myself to have a treat sometimes, just at a different time of day because if I have it at my trigger in the evening when I get home from work then it will never stop at one.

Good luck

elisa123gal

I would plan for the snack. you take control of it by embracing it...that releases the "power" of the bad habit into your court. Go to the recipe section and find something great that is around 200 calories..and build it into your day. come home.. and have your snack and don't beat yourself up like you don't have control. you do. you just like having a snack. there is nothing wrong or weak about that.