Binge eating

iwanttogotodere

I have been binge eating for the past week how do I stop? I can't help it.

tkcasta

Are you actually binging or are you just eating a lot of crap. There is a big difference. Can you explain what you're doing?

mc54iznit

do you feel easily annoyed? anxiety, stress? Feel more tired than usual?

usually binging is your body telling you that you aren't eating enough. Either you set your calories to low, or you're eating less than what you think, or you're doing more exercise than you think.

Your body gets devoid of nutrition and you slow down, start to work out less, feel less excited about the day, energy levels come down, your metabolism lowers, and hunger spikes. So you start to eat a lot, while moving less because your body says it needs rest and food.

try eating at maintenance for a bit, forget about weight loss (as hard as it is) for maybe 3 days, and just eat good nutritious food (lean protein, healthy fats, complex carbs) do it up. After the 3 days evaluate how your body feels, are you less anxious to eat? do you get more full more easily? you'll probably start to notice that's the case, you're body will start realizing its time to control eating and start moving more.

when you have food on a pedestal, there's usually a reason for it, and its usually because your body is certain you need it. You gotta eat what your body tells you to, and as long as its good nutritious food, then your body will cooperate. You wouldn't work a teammate and then not give them enough to sustain themselves, so you shouldn't do it to the body either.

once you get into that flow of giving your body just enough (500 under) and doing a good amount of activity, so that not only do you get your macros, but because of the bulk of the food you're eating to reach your goal, you get tons of phytonutrients, vitamins, and minerals. Someone at a 500 deficit eating 1500kcal, is getting less nutrition than someone eating 3000kcal at a 500 deficit, even if they both lose weight at the same rate. So you do in fact benefit more from working a little harder if you make sure to keep the same deficit.

tldr; eat maintenance for 3 days till you feel good about your energy levels, then apply a small deficit, and just make sure you don't mistreat your body, because as much as we can hate them sometimes, they're the only ones we got, and they work with us when given the right treatment.

tkcasta

Also just to add, you say you're feeling out of control. The important thing then is to recognize the feeling and try and recognize the trigger so you can be prepared for that. In the meantime, make a plan. For instance, if you are feeling the urge, workout, have a planned meal and then another planned activity. This keeps you conscious of what you are doing and if you stick to a plan you have no time for mindless eating. But you have to stick to that plan.

Also I just want to add, if you are having a legitimate binge, and not just a physical binge or eating too much, that compulsion to eat does not easily go away. Even if you stick to the plan you may still have the urge to binge and you may have to fight it tooth and nail. Just know the more you can distract yourself and the less time you give yourself to be mindless in any way will make a big difference. It is not easy to get through but you can.

mc54iznit

oh yea one more thing, don't be afraid of eating. Food is not the enemy.

I've had multiple problems with binging in the past and the only thing i can say for sure works, is to not be afraid of food.

I know for me at dinner time i'd try to eat small. A 5 oz peice of lean chicken, some veggies, thats bout it. I wasn't giving my body what it needed, so later it would feel like I almost had no control, as my body would make me come down stairs and start munching away. And of course since i had already eaten chicken and veggies, i had no desire to eat that again, so i'd go right for all the nice cookies and cereal.

Nowadays i sit down with about a pound of chicken, 4 tomatoes, an avocado, 200g of carrots, and that's my dinner (of course i'm not saying to eat exactly this, we all have different maintenances, but you can actually increase yours by doing simple things like walking an hour a day on top of your normal activity, that's what i did, it helps not only to increase activity, but give you a period of low stress where you can find some peace for a bit and enjoy nature). I get so full with good food and nutrition, that later in the day my body is actually like "dude you're good, stop eating" when i'm still under by 1000 calories.

Too many paragraphs i know, but it seriously is important to work with your body, instead of seeing it as something to overcome and forcibly shape.

/end hippy lecture

iwanttogotodere

Are you actually binging or are you just eating a lot of crap. There is a big difference. Can you explain what you're doing?

Actually, I have eatten so much today for no reason.

mixedbag4444

May I suggest the Binge Eater's Support Group???

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/743-binge-eating-support-group

I am a member and I find it helpful

SarahRose35

do you feel easily annoyed? anxiety, stress? Feel more tired than usual?

usually binging is your body telling you that you aren't eating enough. Either you set your calories to low, or you're eating less than what you think, or you're doing more exercise than you think.

Your body gets devoid of nutrition and you slow down, start to work out less, feel less excited about the day, energy levels come down, your metabolism lowers, and hunger spikes. So you start to eat a lot, while moving less because your body says it needs rest and food.

try eating at maintenance for a bit, forget about weight loss (as hard as it is) for maybe 3 days, and just eat good nutritious food (lean protein, healthy fats, complex carbs) do it up. After the 3 days evaluate how your body feels, are you less anxious to eat? do you get more full more easily? you'll probably start to notice that's the case, you're body will start realizing its time to control eating and start moving more.

when you have food on a pedestal, there's usually a reason for it, and its usually because your body is certain you need it. You gotta eat what your body tells you to, and as long as its good nutritious food, then your body will cooperate. You wouldn't work a teammate and then not give them enough to sustain themselves, so you shouldn't do it to the body either.

once you get into that flow of giving your body just enough (500 under) and doing a good amount of activity, so that not only do you get your macros, but because of the bulk of the food you're eating to reach your goal, you get tons of phytonutrients, vitamins, and minerals. Someone at a 500 deficit eating 1500kcal, is getting less nutrition than someone eating 3000kcal at a 500 deficit, even if they both lose weight at the same rate. So you do in fact benefit more from working a little harder if you make sure to keep the same deficit.

tldr; eat maintenance for 3 days till you feel good about your energy levels, then apply a small deficit, and just make sure you don't mistreat your body, because as much as we can hate them sometimes, they're the only ones we got, and they work with us when given the right treatment.

I don't know about the OP, but for me, this was INCREDIBLY helpful. I restricted for a while and then, of course, developed a BED. Now I'm trying to maintain (:

BrendaLee

I have the urge to binge most days, but most of the time I can fight it by reminding myself that whether I eat or not, I'm still going to be obsessing about food. Binging never takes that feeling away for me. If I'm going to obsess anyhow, I may as well not binge.