Help: How to Override Situations That Make You Binge

Lastchancetochange

Hi team, in my struggle for weight loss and health I feel I'm overall now winning the battle, losing weight and improving my fitness.. There is still one mental process I have difficulty with.
This easter holidays I spend them with the inlaws. They've never made any sport or cared about it, and really they don't much. For Breakfast one of them has a sandwich and a beer and then nothing more for the morning, just hang out in a beach apartment and then binge lunch with plenty of carbs and alcohol and dessert.
So in this situation I end up following up with their plan ( I skip the beer in the morning ) but then lunch it's binge for more than 3 days. Then I feel like crap and don't workout as there is nothing much to where they are.
The amazing situation is that my parents are also the same style. Zero sport and only activity is eating binging. As you can imagine the 4 of them are very overweight with multiple derived sicknesses.
So when I see either of them I kind of blend into the "ambiance" and binge and I feel like an idiot after. Also I look at them and I don't see the example on which to reflect. I love the 4 of them, they are good people but simply live a different life to the one I'm trying to move to.
It's my fault I know, I'm 43 not 12 but I do struggle severely in these circumstances.
Any advice on how to overcome these family obligations ? In the case of the party friends I have basically stopped meeting them and that works.

Thanks

L1zardQueen

Love them for who they are and do your own thing. No one is forcing you to eat and drink.

dewit

Go for a walk, if possible. You'll have less time around food and burn some of what you ate ;-).

Sip on water while you make conversation and they eat the cakes. Have one piece of cake, too, of course, but not 5 ;-).

Pushups, planks, wall sits, burpees or jumping Jacks don't need any equipment. You can make them in a hotel room or even a bedroom.

Have a tea while they open a new bottle of beer.

Dunno which of these would work for you in particular, but be creative and find substitutes. You can have a little time of your own even when visiting. Just try to be polite if they make observations. At the end of the day, do what you think is healthier, given the circumstances, while also enjoying the celebration. Portions is what you can control, without falling into the spot lights.

Have a nice time and happy Easter to you!

Lastchancetochange

L1zardQueen wrote: »

Love them for who they are and do your own thing. No one is forcing you to eat and drink.

Hi, I really liked your message. True, no one is forcing me and even if some do I have to learn to say no.

Thanks.

Lastchancetochange

dewit wrote: »

Go for a walk, if possible. You'll have less time around food and burn some of what you ate ;-).

Sip on water while you make conversation and they eat the cakes. Have one piece of cake, too, of course, but not 5 ;-).

Pushups, planks, wall sits, burpees or jumping Jacks don't need any equipment. You can make them in a hotel room or even a bedroom.

Have a tea while they open a new bottle of beer.

Dunno which of these would work for you in particular, but be creative and find substitutes. You can have a little time of your own even when visiting. Just try to be polite if they make observations. At the end of the day, do what you think is healthier, given the circumstances, while also enjoying the celebration. Portions is what you can control, without falling into the spot lights.

Have a nice time and happy Easter to you!

Lots of valuable tips here, took notes of all. Now time to apply it. Today at least I played a golf tournament so some activity built in.

Happy Easter

Speakeasy76

Why do you think you eat like they do when visiting? Is it because you don't want to seem like the "weird one" by eating normally? I'd that's the case, then I'd focus on overcoming your insecurities about that, first. I say this because, while my in-laws are not binge eaters, they also don't really eat healthy or have a lot of healthy foods in their house. They also don't do any formal exercise. In their defense, though, they were farmers in a small town, eat "2 square meals" a day, sometimes with dessert, but very few snack foods. They aren't overweight.

Anyway, I have always felt like somehow they were juadging how much/what I ate. However, I got to a point where I just thought that IF they were, then it was their problem, not mine. This past visit, I actually brought my frozen fruit/veggie blends with my protein premade shake to make my own smoothies in the morning. All they typically have are high-carb breakfasts, which make me feel crappy 2 hours later after eating them. I also try to fill up my plate with as much as the healthiest stuff possible, and I usually do have at least a little bit of dessert. I log everything, and know I may be eating at maintenance those few days.

As far as exercise, I may do some online stuff if I can, but also do a lot of walking. If I didn't, it would just be a lot of sitting.

I will say, though, as someone who was a binge eater/mindless snacker, that can be difficult to "trick" yourself to do something else besides eat continuously when everyone around you is doing it.

goal06082021

You might want to look into mindfulness. The situation doesn't make you binge - that's something you're choosing to do. So, reframing the binge in your mind as a choice that you're making, and then working to actively make a different choice, may also be helpful for you. Take some time to work out what your "triggers" are - what situations, besides Easter with the in-laws, often result in you choosing to binge? How can you anticipate these triggers, and what other options do you have to choose from besides binging? Making this thread is a good first step to answering some of those questions. A mental-health professional can help you come up with more tools to use when you find yourself in those situations as well as practice using them.

corinasue1143

It looks like you have little ones. This has given you the opportunity to show them to do the right thing while still showing love to those who aren’t. Add some active play with the little ones. Take them to the park. Invite family members to go along. If they want to go along, but sit and watch, not play, accept that. You keep playing.
Good luck! I bet you’re going to figure it out!