STOP THE INSANITY!!!!!!! AKA BINGE EATING!!

Luvmesumkenny

PLEASE I NEED ADIVICE!!!
I have been on my weight loss journey for about 8 months. I have for the most part been able to keep the weight i have lost off.. It has been going up and down for the last few weeks due to some unexpected stress as we all go through in this wonderful place we called LIFE! Well, my biggest problem is that when I get stressed I binge eat like no tomorrow.. I eat, and eat, and eat till i feel sick.. then i cry and sulk about it later and the guilty feeling hits me. What can I do to kill these cravings that I'm having?? My life is slowly getting back to normal and I'm back into my routine but I just need ideas on what to do when I get the feeling to binge..

THANX!!
Feel free to Add me,, God knows right now I need all the support I can get.

glockster972

Drink.........some water

Grimmerick

Kelly Howells sacred body guided meditation cd. it is very relaxing and will destress you while it repatterns your brain to make healthier better choices I love it!

Twins2007

Hey there...

You need to pick up Geneen Roth's books...She has helped me and countless other women dealing with emotional and compulsive eating...
I still struggle but now I know it's my insanity talking....

http://geneenroth.com/index1.php

E xox

dad106

Go exercise! or log what ever you feel like binging on.. seeing the binge in real life will generally derail it!

Quinton32

I have all of my clients Run/Cardio. Generally after cardio you do not want to ruin it so you will make better choices.

dragonbug300

I wish I had a perfect answer for this, but then I wouldn't need this site. There are hundreds of coping mechanisms, many of which I have tried, but they only work for as long as I have willpower. When the stress comes, my mind blanks on every single one.

The best thing to do: avoid trigger foods. Anything delicious that you may binge on: get rid of it. If you know you're at risk for a binge: don't even enter the kitchen. Keep a bottle of water nearby at all times and drink from it every time you feel the need to eat... even if you do think you're hungry.

I also keep frozen blueberries around. For those times when I feel like the world will end if I don't put something sugary and delicious in my mouth: I put frozen blueberries and soymilk in a 1/2 cup measuring thing and eat it all slowly with a spoon.

HMonsterX

Do some boxing! It's great for getting your stress and frustration out on!

blue4myeyes

PLEASE I NEED ADIVICE!!!
I have been on my weight loss journey for about 8 months. I have for the most part been able to keep the weight i have lost off.. It has been going up and down for the last few weeks due to some unexpected stress as we all go through in this wonderful place we called LIFE! Well, my biggest problem is that when I get stressed I binge eat like no tomorrow.. I eat, and eat, and eat till i feel sick.. then i cry and sulk about it later and the guilty feeling hits me. What can I do to kill these cravings that I'm having?? My life is slowly getting back to normal and I'm back into my routine but I just need ideas on what to do when I get the feeling to binge..

THANX!!
Feel free to Add me,, God knows right now I need all the support I can get.

That's really tough. And I am sorry to hear that you have been so stressed out. When I am tempted to eat more than I should (or need) I seriously talk myself through it. Get up and get moving and tell myself if I am still hungry after a walk/workout/whatever, I can have a snack. I also make sure and keep plenty of healthy low cal snacks around so when I really feel like I NEED chocolate -- I can have it in a reasonable way and not get a king-size kit-kat frm the vending machine . (Conversly, I don't keep stuff around that will tempt me that I shouldn't have. For example, I don't keep full fat Ranch or mayo in my house, even if I do have a million varieties of 100 calorie packs. I think surrounding yourself with viable choices is setting yourself up for success. Also, I visualize what I will look like when I reach my goals, the satisfaction I will feel and I know that nothing can possibly make me feel that good.

Finally, there is something that my Jenny Craig consultant said to me when I fist started and was having trouble craving my favorite pizza joint with the best philly cheesesteaks you would ever want (haha). She said to me...you will have it again, just not today. And she told me to tell myself that whenever I was faced with eating something off plan or over my limitis. It may sound totally cheesy, but it worked for me. I always felt like I will be able to have those things again -- I just don't need them right now while I am focusing on reaching my goal.

IDK if any of this will work for you -- but I hope it does. And I hope that for your sanity your life settles into a less stressful place really soon.

jmruef

I used to be bulimic - maybe not quite what you're dealing with, but I'm famliar with the binge eating thing. I've given this advice before here: Make a list of things you can do INSTEAD of binge eat. Go for a walk, work out, read, write (journal), surf online, knit, crochet (if you don't know how, learn! No time like the present, right? :laugh: ), anything that keeps your hands occupied. Make it a long list. Then, make a bunch of copies of that list. Post the list in several places - fridge, bathroom, bedroom, etc.

When you feel like you need to binge, grab the list and start doing things on it. In order. Sometimes I'd get so caught up in the first thing on the list I'd forget about the need to binge. Sometimes I'd need to go all the way through the list and start over - it really depended on how strong the need was, what need I was trying to serve by eating that way, etc.

Good luck - hope this helps.

AmandaCG

I have a binder with all of the things I have liked from the fitness magazines I get. Quotes, Pictures, articles, recipes, clothes I want.......I look at it when I am feeling stressed, unmotivated, depressed about the challenges that come along with a healthy lifestyle, when I feel like just throwing in the towel and eating an entire pan of brownies!! I also write in a journal which I find is the thing that helps the most. I write about EVERYTHING! Good as well as bad. I have had days where my food choices are pretty disgusting, things I would NEVER eat and it never fails to make me feel horrible physically, I write that down, how it makes me feel. The last time I ate something horrible I felt sick, bloated, my heart was doing some weird thing where it was skipping a beat then racing, I was exhausted.....clearly my body was having some issues not knowing what to do with this poison I had given it. I will never forget that feeling....YUK...and honestly I haven't had a "binge" since. It's vital to deal with your emotions instead of feeding them, numbing the emotion, using food as a drug. You have to really talk yourself through it. Its so tough to do. But it is vital. I would suggest finding a book on emotional eating, Roth is a good author, Jillian Micheals books are AMAZING. You have to get to the bottom of why you abuse yourself with food. You are better than that, and deserve more.

dls06

I eat a bag of low fat microwave popcorn while reading a good book. It takes my mind off of everything else and the popcorn doesn't kill my day too much. :flowerforyou:

lanaholt

I feel your pain. I was seriously at my wits end till a friend told me about this site. I was contemplating going to an overeaters anonymous meeting but felt very insecure about it for several reasons. 1. I'm a fitness professional. I'm not supposed to have this kind of problem. 2. I'm not that overweight and thought I would not fit in. I was freaking out. Something really weird clicked when I got a one on one accountability partner and opened up my menu to my friends on this site. Now I think, do I want to publish this to the world? It stopped me cold. Then all of a sudden, I started to feel my body change, my mood change, my energy change and I just wanted more. There is no simple solution. What works for me may not work for you. But, you are on the right track. Continue to reach out, be honest, open up your menu. Find a one on one fitness pal. I'd be glad to be one if you don't already have one. =]

plourensz

I find if i eat 6 smaller meals a day throughout the day i don't crave binge food and I was awful before. I started the Insanity journey now and really enjoying it! I haven't lost much weight but its the toning up then im really going to crack the whip at the gym!

I found that eating low fat yogurt, fruit and crunchy oat cereal - that taste sweet - is healthier and is like my daily treat. Try it