I'm Having A Food Struggle

TabithaMichelle85

Am I the only one who feels like they should be eating when others are even if you aren't very hungry? I haven't ate red meat in over 2 weeks because I have switched to ground turkey. My brother and sister are 12 years younger than me and since they are on spring break they spent the weekend at my apartment. I cooked them Cheeseburgers and it was a huge test for me to resist eating them. Instead I grabbed a rice cake (50 calories) and slowly nibbled on that until they were done eating. I feel myself struggling to not give in and to not snack all day long, which is what got me in this mess. This weekend had been a huge test and it is almost over BUT it is something I am going to have to deal with for the rest of my life. Going out to eat is a challenge for me as well, although I have done very well. My boyfriend and his family go out to eat a lot and I have been choosing more calorie friendly meals but I miss the food I used to eat. I don't want to cave to temptation and eat what I used to for fear of not being able to know my limits.

SailorSarah311

I've been in the same situation before. You get around people and you try to resist the urge to overeat. Then they will ask why you aren't eating as much. It becomes hard to explain everything to them, so you just decide to eat more. We've been taught that what is on the menu is what you order, but that has all changed. We can go to a restaurant and ask for specific items to be left out or substituted. Sometimes you can even customize your meal completely. It's ok to splurge a little bit each week because then you won't feel like doing it all the time. Think of it as rewarding yourself for doing so well. I see that you ate a rice cake. Did you eat anything on it? I eat one of those and I feel like I just ate 1 chip. Try putting some hummus, peanut butter, nutella, or fruit on it next time. Not too much though. This will help you to feel fuller. Just try to remember why you are making healthier choices when the time comes to eat. Picture yourself at that goal weight. This will help motivate you to do your best.

blisser99

I cannot go on with life knowing that I will never have my favorite foods. So I make room for them. If I know that we will be eating out, I will put in some extra exercise in order to enjoy my favorite things. I also know that sometimes that doesn't work so I just eat not as much of it as I normally would. Most restaurants have huge dishes and it is more than one serving. To-go boxes are my savior. I want to eat the whole thing... I just tell myself... No this is too much. Save the rest for a treat later.

PaleoPath4Lyfe

In my opinion, there is no reason to give up red meat..................turkey is not really healthier than ground beef, so why give it up????

I eat steak on a regular basis and have no issues health wise.

I don't care about calories as I don't count them. I just eat when hungry and don't eat when not hungry. I eat an abundance of red meat and have no issues.

TabithaMichelle85

I do count calories and ground turkey is much MUCH leaner and lower in calories than beef, which is why I won't eat hamburger. Eating the foods I used to on a "regular basis" is what got me over weight so why would I continue to do the same thing? What may work for you obviously wont work for me, everyone is different.

dangerousdumpling

It all seems overwhelming at first because we are creatures of habit. We naturally want to keep doing what we're comfortable doing. And for the most part that includes eating whatever we want without questioning it. Those changes can be very uncomfortable at first.
I did at first feel uncomfortable and felt like I stood out like a sore thumb when eating with others. After a while, though, I concentrated on conversation more than food when we went out to eat. I'd eat slower and drink water and try to eat half of my meal in the time it took others to eat their entire meal. I also noticed that if I didn't make a big deal out of it nobody else did either.

When my family wants cheeseburgers I will either choose low fat ground beef and eat one or I'll make turkey burgers at the same time. That works well for me because no one else will eat the turkey burgers so I know I'll have about four to eat for quick and easy meals for the next few days.

So to sum it up, I don't bring up the fact that I'm trying to eat healthier or eat less. I don't want to give anyone the opportunity to try to get me to cave in to the mozzarella sticks or bread and butter. If I act unsure about what I'm doing others will sense that. Their intentions aren't bad. They want me to enjoy myself. But I don't want to hear it anyway. There has to be a certain level of determination to get through the first few weeks of making changes and it sounds like you're working hard to have that.