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If you are thinking of getting more carbs in..

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  • yustick
    yustick Posts: 238 Member
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    Now, I want pancakes.

    Seriously, thanks for sharing.
  • JanetLynnJudy
    JanetLynnJudy Posts: 173 Member
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    I do something very similar to this and it has worked for me. I just called it mental preparedness/visualization. It's kind of a two part thing because one part is thinking about mistakes and every reason why I don't want the same error again and using that information to mentally prepare myself for the future. The other part is is about visualizing specific scenarios and making plans.

    I very rarely go off plan or have full on cheat foods, but I will say that the answer doesn't always have to be I'll never eat that again. Based off of my experiences, I kind of have a running list in my head of "never worth it" or "worth it, but only in small amounts and/or very rare occasions". Some "never worth it" things to me would be things that are way off my plan, but that I can totally live with never eating again (like store bought sandwich bread, saltines, etc.) It's a pretty broad, non-specific list. "Worth it, but only in small amounts and/or very rare occasions" would be things that are off plan, but that I'm honestly not wanting to give up forever and it's a much more specific list like "Sicilian Spaghetti from Muriale’s" or "a small slice of really good wedding cake with the almond flavored icing". These would be things I would have very very rarely and sometimes I will pass on completely. A "worth it" thing can be "not worth it" if in a big portion, so I consider not just the food itself, but also the portion and frequency. Thinking about that sick feeling from eating too much of something is a great deterrent. I also love to dwell on that awesome feeling after working out, eating on plan or stepping on the scale and experiencing the joy of a drop.

    I use this information for visualizing and mentally preparing myself for future situations by thinking about things that could potentially trigger me and planning accordingly. When I say future situations, I mean in a very specific way (as specific as I can anticipate) not just the food, but also the environment and the other people that will be there. For most situations I can reasonably anticipate what the triggers will be. For example, if I know I am going to a birthday party, I know there will be cake and ice cream there or if I'm going to a Mexican restaurant I can know there will be chips put out on the table or if I am staying with someone that has lots of naughty food in their house I know they might offer some naughty food to me. Maybe something there does fall on my "worth it" list and I can plan to stick to a small portion of it or maybe I'll plan that if the cake looks store bought and not that great that I will pass. If I think nothing there will be on plan or I'm going to be somewhere for a long time without access to my usual food choices then I can just plan to bring my own food or eat a big meal ahead of time. I can also plan some damage control to take full advantage of that extra fuel by adding in a jog or something to my daily routine to help burn it off.

    I realize that on one hand it is pretty standard "diet" advice, but on the other hand it's so specific that it may come off as a bit crazy to some, but it's not as crazy as me staying fat all those years and for some reason thinking about these things in this very specific way just clicked for me.
  • Noiram55
    Noiram55 Posts: 43
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    I do something very similar to this and it has worked for me. I just called it mental preparedness/visualization. It's kind of a two part thing because one part is thinking about mistakes and every reason why I don't want the same error again and using that information to mentally prepare myself for the future. The other part is is about visualizing specific scenarios and making plans.

    I very rarely go off plan or have full on cheat foods, but I will say that the answer doesn't always have to be I'll never eat that again. Based off of my experiences, I kind of have a running list in my head of "never worth it" or "worth it, but only in small amounts and/or very rare occasions". Some "never worth it" things to me would be things that are way off my plan, but that I can totally live with never eating again (like store bought sandwich bread, saltines, etc.) It's a pretty broad, non-specific list. "Worth it, but only in small amounts and/or very rare occasions" would be things that are off plan, but that I'm honestly not wanting to give up forever and it's a much more specific list like "Sicilian Spaghetti from Muriale’s" or "a small slice of really good wedding cake with the almond flavored icing". These would be things I would have very very rarely and sometimes I will pass on completely. A "worth it" thing can be "not worth it" if in a big portion, so I consider not just the food itself, but also the portion and frequency. Thinking about that sick feeling from eating too much of something is a great deterrent. I also love to dwell on that awesome feeling after working out, eating on plan or stepping on the scale and experiencing the joy of a drop.

    I use this information for visualizing and mentally preparing myself for future situations by thinking about things that could potentially trigger me and planning accordingly. When I say future situations, I mean in a very specific way (as specific as I can anticipate) not just the food, but also the environment and the other people that will be there. For most situations I can reasonably anticipate what the triggers will be. For example, if I know I am going to a birthday party, I know there will be cake and ice cream there or if I'm going to a Mexican restaurant I can know there will be chips put out on the table or if I am staying with someone that has lots of naughty food in their house I know they might offer some naughty food to me. Maybe something there does fall on my "worth it" list and I can plan to stick to a small portion of it or maybe I'll plan that if the cake looks store bought and not that great that I will pass. If I think nothing there will be on plan or I'm going to be somewhere for a long time without access to my usual food choices then I can just plan to bring my own food or eat a big meal ahead of time. I can also plan some damage control to take full advantage of that extra fuel by adding in a jog or something to my daily routine to help burn it off.

    I realize that on one hand it is pretty standard "diet" advice, but on the other hand it's so specific that it may come off as a bit crazy to some, but it's not as crazy as me staying fat all those years and for some reason thinking about these things in this very specific way just clicked for me.
  • Noiram55
    Noiram55 Posts: 43
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    That was a brilliant post. Just what I needed this morning, so thanks. ????
  • jen_zz
    jen_zz Posts: 1,011 Member
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    THanks for sharing! Visualization helps. Although I'm still having difficulty with my binge eating, I find reminding myself how gross and painful I feel after each binge helps to prevent it, to some extent.
  • Alliwan
    Alliwan Posts: 1,245 Member
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    ha! reading this right as hubby is handing me breakfast, where he made me special gluten free pancakes! i need to drill down! down! but not hurt his feelings
  • danimalkeys
    danimalkeys Posts: 982 Member
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    I do the "it's not worth it" thing with food all the time. A couple weeks ago I was on the road with my motorcycle at a meetup with some internet friends. Thursday night was a pizza party. It was really difficult but I refrained from having any- it wasn't worth it, especially since I knew I'd be having a few beers which would have carbs in them. Last weekend was my friend's 50th birthday- at an Italian restaurant. Seeing those piles of homemade pasta was really tempting, but I had a chicken breast with veggies instead, and lots of salad. We used to do Mexican night every Tuesday- they have a margarita special, so we'd go have a couple 'ritas and some dinner. It's off my list of places to go now. Instead, we'll go to Buffalo Wild Wings for half price wing night and have some wings instead.

    It's a lot easier at home. Just don't buy the tempting things. Having an ice cream or other treat once in a while is ok as long as I know where my carb level is for that day, but the days of making a pound of pasta for myself are gone for good.
  • leighn62
    leighn62 Posts: 142 Member
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    If I know I am going to be in a situation where "bad" foods will be present or the only thing there is (like happy hour after work), I plan my day accordingly because after all the occasional fried pickle or calamari is just good. I will restrict carbs all day and have a small amount of the "bad" foods and then be happy because they were very tasty but I just had a little...and don't forget chardonnay is low in carbs so that helps too. I refuse to beat myself up for enjoying myself when I eat healthy 90% of the time. Live a little!
  • chani8
    chani8 Posts: 946 Member
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    Love the 'drill down' idea from the article!

    In fact, if I want pancakes, I can make them low carb. And smother them in butter. Top them with chopped pecans, or a small dollop of raspberry spread, or shred some 85% chocolate on top. :)

    I think the hardest part for me is losing self-control and overeating or overdrinking.

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