Help, I just binged. what now?

remmus102

I have been eating pretty healthily with the occasional binge here and there, but tonight I just ate 3 deep fried Oreos, some icecream, a cup of kettle corn, and a bowl of chili. I’m lethargic and disappointed. Should I detox by cutting my calories tomorrow, or what?? I don’t know what to do to get back on track

livingleanlivingclean

Sounds like dinner, dessert and some snacks to me...
Log it, move on. Don't "punish" yourself for eating food. Perhaps consider changing your attitude towards food (ie, don't demonise foods).

Nony_Mouse

livingleanlivingclean wrote: »

Sounds like dinner, dessert and some snacks to me...
Log it, move on. Don't "punish" yourself for eating food. Perhaps consider changing your attitude towards food (ie, don't demonise foods).

^^This. It's done, let it go. Though you may want to examine why you did it - is your eating plan overly restrictive (ie are you cutting out a bunch of foods you think you shouldn't eat)? Is your calorie deficit too aggressive? Both of these things can lead to binging.

Rayvenx54

My family used to diet by having a "cheat day" every week. They would be allowed to go over their calorie goal for that day every week and it helped them to deal with the repressed feeling of having to watch what they ate all week.

This worked great for my grandfather but for me, that day makes it insanely difficult to get back on track the next day on top of those awful feelings of being sleepy and even stomach discomfort.

Remember that you are only human, if you've been a binger your entire life, it's going to take time to adjust and sometimes you will give into that weakness. Like livinglean said, log it, accept that it happened and move on to tomorrow. Don't starve yourself, just eat like you normally would and learn how to deal with your cravings.

If you can, increasing protein throughout the day and having small, protein packed snacks will help. Good luck!

jondspen

Enjoy it. It's already in your system, and while you might have regrets, savor that you got a treat for a change. Honestly, next time you get the urge, you will probably think back on this and say, "Nope, not worth it."

I'm on a 1500 calorie diet to lose weight, but some days I go completely off the rails (2600 was my last one). No one is perfect, and I've found listening to my body (and mind) by tapping out on occasion helps me stay mentally positive and willing to keep trying. If you're miserable b/c you only eat celery all the time...how much drive do you really think you are going to have to keep at this for the long haul.

Life and a healthy lifestyle is a marathon, not a sprint. Keep the long term goals in sight, and don't get caught up on the occasional misstep.

DonM46

As in the movie, "Tomorrow is another day."
You can't undo today.
Forget the Uh-Oh, except to remember what it felt like.
Get back on track tomorrow.
If you feel you need to be under your calorie budget for the next day or two, fine, but don't try to make it all up in one or two days.
Just do your best to stay on track as you move forward.
Best of luck to you.

AnnPT77

Just log it and get back on track.

Other than that, the only things you should do are:

• Think just for a few minutes about why it happened - what triggered it, what the situation or context was - and how you might prefer to handle a similar scenario next time. Rehearse the new script in your head a couple of times - visualize yourself doing it.
• Consider whether you might be trying to lose weight too fast, or by restricting food choices too much. Slow weight loss you can stick to is more effective than theoretically fast weight loss that isn't achievable in real life.

Eating food is not a sin that requires expiation. Don't punish yourself; just get back on your healthy track.

I lost 50+ pounds, and have been keeping it off for nearly 2 years. Last weekend, 2 days in a row, I ate roughly two times my daily maintenance calories . . . and its no big deal, as long as I don't do it often. For concrete details about why that's so, see this thread: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10603949/big-overfeed-ruins-everything-nope

Cbean08

Accept that it happened and move on. You might hold some water due to the extra sodium that you consumed but don't worry about it. If I were you, I'd wait a couple days to weigh myself again.

Keep with your usual food plan. 1 day of over eating is not a big deal. You didn't gain weight by overeating once every so often! If you want, you could do some extra cardio tomorrow or use the fuel to shoot for a new weightlifting PR.

lorrpb

Figure out why you did this and what you can do differently next time you're faced with a similar situation..

acorsaut89

So I don't know if this comes across bad, but binges are typically 3,000+ calories in one sitting. I am a binge eater and historically the following has been consumed, all in one sitting: 2 junior chickens, 2 mcdoubles, 2 large fries, a bag of chips, a bagel or two and usually a 2L of some kind of pop.

I don't want to compare binges but if this is what you consider a binge, what are you usually eating in a day? And how did you get to a place where you need to lose weight if this is considered a binge?

Nana_Booboo

I too find myself doing really well and then binge like you've mentioned. Recently I've been reading about emotional eating. I've learned that with emotional eating you crave specific foods like cake, donuts, chips where if you were truly hungry even an apple would do. I've also learned that the cravings will pass if you can hang on long enough.

If you struggle with binge eating or emotional eating, try journaling. Figure out your triggers. It has helped me to become more aware and binge less. The cycle is real but can be stopped.

Best of luck

-Barbi

kristen8000

Let it go and learn from it. You may need to think of WHY you binged? Have you been restricting calories too much? Letting yourself get WAY too hungry? Have you been cutting out foods you like because you think they are "bad"? Prelogging and planning can help in the future.

Figure out your triggers. Think of things to stop you from binging (like a new hobby, or going to take a walk, call a friend, etc). You can't fix this one, but you can fix the next.

ccruz985

Nope. You indulged and as Scarlett says, tomorrow is another day. You didn't fall off the wagon, you just did a little extra sightseeing. You're good.

fitoverfortymom

Today is a new day. Don't punish yourself by denying yourself your daily calories.

Rickster1967

Log it and do better next time.

You only have to record what you did today, but after it's over it's over.

Looking back over the long term trend is what counts. You say you've been doing well most of the time

Keep it at most of the time and you'll be fine.

smh_cliff

fitoverfortymom wrote: »

Today is a new day. Don't punish yourself by denying yourself your daily calories.

Definitely this. Starve yourself tomorrow and you will only be more likely to cave in the evening. But if you plan and pre log a day bang on the calorie goal you can feel satisfied and back in control

lil_moniQ

Definitely don't let this set you back. And don't give yourself too much le-way when it comes to food. Stick to getting progress done by making sure you do portion control, and also eat nutritious food that doesn't contain too much carbs or sugar or salt... You should be fine soon anyway. Believe in yourself. Your body isn't a place where you punish yourself. It's the only physical aspect you've got in this world. Treasure it and eat healthy. It doesn't sound easy? Make small changes first...

Gradually cutting away from junk food can definitely help you!

Good luck!