Is it a binge if...

Eve_e
Eve_e Posts: 57
in Health and Weight Loss
Is it a binge if I stayed under my weekly calories?

I usually save calories up over the course of a week, in order to either drink or treat myself otherwise over the weekend. But I at least try to be reasonable about it. Just now, in a short time period, I ate a massive amount of calories. I feel disgusting. Technically, I'm still under my weekly calories. Would you classify this as a binge? Don't worry about sparing my feelings, thanks for the input.

Replies

  • Sonicz90x
    Sonicz90x Posts: 40 Member
    This type of behavior is treading a fine line. Just don't worry about it and move on. Perhaps become more flexible with your calories over the week so you don't feel the need for these occasions.
  • defauIt
    defauIt Posts: 118 Member
    Is it a binge? Yes. Is that *necessarily* a bad thing? No.

    Binge eating disorder is usually defined as uncontrollable, frequent binges where you try to hide it from others, can't stop yourself from eating pretty much everything in sight and feel awful during and/or after.

    Simply choosing to have a larger (but still controlled) meal, being open and honest with yourself about what you ate and making sure it's not a daily occurrence is perfectly fine.

    Lots of people save up calories during the week so they can eat more on weekends when out with friends but they're still reasonable about it. My maintenance calories are usually between 1500-2000 but today I'm probably going to end up eating around 3000 because it is my friend's birthday and we're going to eat some great food together.
  • pennyllayne
    pennyllayne Posts: 265
    I think you need to ask yourself why you are so concerned with labelling it a binge or not. Binges are usually uncontrollable bouts of eating and eating and eating, being unable to stop until you are physically too stuffed to eat anything more. But we all sometimes eat too much and it's no big deal. It only becomes a problem when we suddenly start obsessing over it instead of just eating less the next day to compensate as we'll likely be less hungry. And if your reasons for overeating go beyond a party or just having a good time and enjoying yourself on occasion, then it's not calories you want to worry about but your relationship with food. And if you're eating to the point of discomfort you're putting a lot of stress on your digestive system so try intermittent fasting to give your digestive system a break.
  • Eve_e
    Eve_e Posts: 57
    I guess I'm just curious. I DID just eat more than I needed, until I was stuffed, and I felt out of control. It just happened to stay under my weekly goal. I'm upset because I know I could've had a lot of delicious, healthy, filling food. I didn't need to stuff myself full of crap in a half hour window.
  • mortuseon
    mortuseon Posts: 579 Member
    "I feel disgusting"

    Then yes, I would call it a 'binge' - eating an unusual amount of food at once and experiencing feelings of guilt/loss of control. If it's once in a while, it's pretty normal to have the occasional face-stuffing session. If it is on a regular basis and you're feeling guilty and awful about your intake very frequently, that's when you might have a problem. Either way, it's important to just log it and move on . Maybe fit an extra workout into your week if it makes you feel any better, but since this is fitting your weekly calories, it's important not to dwell on it and accept that we'll slip from time to time. Restricting as a result of a binge often leads to more problems, including more bingeing.
  • Sonicz90x
    Sonicz90x Posts: 40 Member
    I guess I'm just curious. I DID just eat more than I needed, until I was stuffed, and I felt out of control. It just happened to stay under my weekly goal. I'm upset because I know I could've had a lot of delicious, healthy, filling food. I didn't need to stuff myself full of crap in a half hour window.
    Then I would definitely refer to this as a binge. Just get back on the horse, it's all in the past now.
  • Graelwyn75
    Graelwyn75 Posts: 4,404 Member
    I guess I'm just curious. I DID just eat more than I needed, until I was stuffed, and I felt out of control. It just happened to stay under my weekly goal. I'm upset because I know I could've had a lot of delicious, healthy, filling food. I didn't need to stuff myself full of crap in a half hour window.
    Then I would definitely refer to this as a binge. Just get back on the horse, it's all in the past now.

    ^^ This.
    And, maybe look at incorporating small amounts of these foods during the week, and just relaxing a little at weekends, to get a better balance. It is not worth it, to end up feeling stuffed and miserable. Been there, done that too often to count. Have a few things you really crave at the weekend, but also balance it out with the healthy and filling foods.

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