HELP- How to have self-control when it comes to food?!?

jayme252014

Congratulations! Knowing one of your key challenges is the very first step in finding a new way . Once you develop a new mindset it really all begins to change quickly and before you know it you become a new you.

I have lapsed for some time, but this is not my first rodeo and I am back in the saddle--and believe me I have learned from mistakes. With this being said I still fight the same battle, I just have a better set of weapons now so feel free to add me and we console each other on the OMG I just at a whole pizza moments--because they happen to the best of us, but those in it for the long haul just try harder the next day. I have done everything the wrong way before and I have done some things the right way before and now IA am putting it all together into the final master plan and having fun doing it! In my wise fourties I have found the following things helpful in sticking with my plan and they are working :

FIrst, exercise and log your meals HONESTLY--even when you fail you learn. The harder you work out, the more you realize how important it is to fuel your body to support your work and honestly to be less hungry. Even if you consume 1,000 calories more than you should your first few weeks you will start to see patterns (example I was drinking fat and calories in huge amounts in my coffee) and now I see that I am not getting enough protein. My best successes now are coming from wisdom from earlier failures. Understanding YOU and what drives you is important.

Don't starve and don't give up everything. Pick a treat night and while you cannot binge excessively that night you feel less deprived to know that ice cream sundae is right round the corner. Never, ever be hungry--keep snacking because when you are both physically and emotionally hungry you binge.

Find something to solve the emotional hunger--sitting in front of the television often leads to a bag of chips and a gallon of ice cream. The lonely comes out and the bored comes out and so do the fat cells. Try doing something else-reading, going to bed earlier, joining a chat group on line, focus on a hobby...anything to interrupt the food pattern. I have found after working out at night that just playing a mindless video game upstairs after a long day keeps me out of the kitchen because I am too lazy to go downstairs.

Always have food with you that is healthy stashed away. It is easier to avoid stopping at the drive through when you have a fast lazy solution with you that you like.

Drink water--it really does make you feel fuller ( and I hate drinking water but it does give you something to do with your mouth)

Portion out your food in advance. It is a royal pain to take a bag of popcorn and put it in baggies by serving BUT when your food is already measured out you have knowledge and control of what you are eating. A huge bag of something and I have just one more until that huge bag is gone.

Have an emergency stash for when you really cannot help yourself--with healthier options-- something sweet (dark chocolate or fruit), something fatty--like lowfat cottage cheese, something salty like pretzels, and something spicy like wasabi peas. They might not be exactly what you crave but they will help you through.

TechMike

Self control has always been my problem. I joke that I'm a big fan of "see"food. I see food and I eat it.

Honestly, it is taking lots of words of encouragement from friends and family. Biggest supporter being my wife. I actually started leaving my debit card and any cash at home so I can't go to the vending machine and eat snacks during the day. I pack my lunch bag and only eat what I bring.

lessbounce

It's really hard and I haven't cracked yet. All I know is that things are improving with time. If you slip up on one day log it all of it - then draw a line under it and start afresh the next day. Sometimes now I'm impressed when I say no - other times I have no willpower, but I'm sure it's getting better. Practice makes perfect.

kelsully

A number of years of ago when I was ready to drop the last 20 lbs after having 4 kids I started with a an easy philosophy of leaving at least a bite on my plate. I might make a sandwich and I would cut it into 1/4's. I would eat 3/4 of the sandwich and wrap the rest with the knowledge that I "could" eat it later if I was still hungry. I NEVER was. I didn't have to leave a lot but I was trying to relearn that I don't have to eat it all to be satisfied.

Then, once I was feeling a bit more like I did not have to eat all the food I started with the philosophy of changing one thing at a time...so I changed my breakfast to a really reasonable breakfast from one that was a bit less healthy....I knew that my lunch and dinner did not have to be any different I was just focusing on breakfast...then in a week I would move on to breakfast and lunch. By changing one meal at a time, my body could adjust to the changes slowly and I felt more in control. The funny thing was, I made better choices the rest of the day too because I just did.

It is a work in progress..do not give up after a bad day or week and remember...any good choice, any day you do eat within your macros etc is a day that gets you closer to your goals..and days that are tougher might be frustrating but likely won't takee you too far from your goals....just try again

ge105

What are you eating? What are you craving? You likely don't have enough will power to stop yourself from eating if you're leaving every meal hungry. I don't mean that to say its a fault I think you have in your personality; its just not possible. Will power is a muscle and like a muscle, it need rest. If you are constantly exercising it, it will break down and you will fail. You don't need more will power. You need to find a way of eating that doesn't leave you so hungry that every time food presents itself you are tempted to eat it.

I'll normally eat well balanced healthy meals but then after I'll crave chocolate, crisps, biscuits basically anything in the cupboards....

Healthy balanced meals isn't very specific. I would suggest as others have though, don't keep that stuff in the cupboards. Better yet; clean out your cupboards. Just in general, its a good idea to eat as much fresh, whole, unprocessed foods as you can. You'll feel more satiated. Some obvious exceptions; potatoes, rice, onions, stuff that hasn't been messed around with too much. Also, all the things you want sound fatty (especially if the biscuits are a buttery type). Eat more good fats at your meals. Listen to what you body is telling you. Have some eggs, avocados, olive oil, fatty fish like salmon etc. Also, if you must have those chocolate is the best option. Go for the darkest bar you can buy (at least 75%). Trust me, you wont eat more than a modest portion because its just too rich.

MlissaB

A big help for me was to look at the calories in something before I ate/ordered it. One of my favorites is the Orange Shake at McDonald's. I looked at the calories and realized I wasn't going to be able to eat anything else the rest of the day. To me it just wasn't worth it at that point in my journey.

I also plan meals out ahead of time. Look at the nutritional value on the menu on-line and decide based on all the available information what I'm having before I walk in the restaurant. Then when you get there you don't even have to look at the menu and be tempted by all the other good stuff.

I was successful losing over 20 pounds, but have since put a chunk of it back on so I'm back at it again. My food scale is my best friend and I try to pre-bag snacks in 1 serving sizes so they're easy to grab on the go and I know how many calories I'm consuming. Everything in moderation. Sometimes that Hershey's mini is just enough sweet to take the edge off and a piece of gum can carry you from there to your next meal.

kenyainez

I believe in order to feel good about yourself and love your body again is to find whats beautiful about you now and let that fuel you to be better. In my opinion, if you hate your body, you will do drastic things to get to a place of acceptance again which can actually do you more harm than good. Getting fit takes time, but who wants to take that kind of time when they hate being in that position, right? So find whats wonderful about you today and let that put you on the path of building better sense of self along your journey.

As far as the self control, ask yourself, what is your why? Why do you want to do this? Why is it important to you? Connect with that everytime you feel yourself wanting to wild out in the kitchen. Of course, many of us are here becaue we've been there before, and the one thing I did was just remember what my goals are, what's important to me health wise, and where I want to be and how I want to look and feel. It's that "why" that keeps me in check, helps me roll past the fast food joints and keeps me in line in the kitchen. Hope this helps. Best of luck to you. :0) \o/

mollycodymarie

A lot of people don't know this but people can be addicted to foods or certain foods. I joined a 12 step program in February and have lost 47 pounds to date. So yes it probably is an addiction, now that you suspect, its up to you to do the rest of the work. Looking up groups. Start here, Pamela Peeke.

cidalia1973

The first thing is to remember that it's not possible to "never want to eat bad again." Moderation is key. Eat healthy 90-95% of the time, and allow yourself a treat the other 5-10% of the time in reasonable amounts.

Accountability helps. Aside from MFP, I've taken to using Instagram as a support and accountability tool. My Instagram account is for my health, fitness, and clean eating goals. I post pictures of what I eat, exercise (including pics of the great outdoors during my hikes/runs), etc.

I'm inspired by others' healthy food pics, and I tend to stick to healthier choices most of the time because I want to post healthy food pics.

I also break my meals up into smaller meals. Some people feel better eating more at one sitting and going longer between meals, but I'm a bit obsessed with food, and for me, I find it's easier to be able to eat more frequently.

Vajrayoginigirl

I like Gillian Rileys method. See overcoming overeating by her. She encourages that we see our eating decisions as choices. We can choose to eat chocolate but know the consequences are short term pleasure followed by maybe disgust at ourselves for over eating again, too many calories, potentially bad health if we're doing this a lot etc etc. It's better to make informed choices that we are happy to have made rather than a kind of forcing method of forcing ourselves not to eat and then having a melt down with the tension from this and stuffing our faces.
You do have a choice. To continue with your old habits and remain as you are. And you can be happy with that. Or make gradual changes because the change offers more happiness to you than your current way of life.
Little by little. Without pushing. Come at it from a place of choice.
I take this attitude along with following MFP tracking and sticking to my calories. If I can't stick t them one day - my craving is too strong, then I'll try and bring down the excess with the amount of exercise necessary to bring me back into range. This way, there doesn't need to be a stress or a drama. If I can't keep under my calorie goal I try to make up for it over the next day or two.
If its any help, I am a Buddhist and Buddha said, this is the desire realm 'cos we never stop desiring….and when it comes to food, don't we just know it!!
I hope that this makes some sense : )
Good luck.