Can't stop eating...almost back to my start weight :(

ameyer410
ameyer410 Posts: 32
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi all...so I got serious in January 2012 about losing weight after a "mirror reality check", and I buckled down, got serious about losing the weight, and lost about 2 lb a week and ended up reaching my goal of 154 down to ~125lb. Anyways, a year and a half later (technically just a year after hitting bottom), I have gained a decent amount back - I'm about 145 lb. I am not satisfied with my current self knowing that I can do better and keep it, but, I just LOVE FOOD and don't want to cut calories and exercise like a freak again. Every Sunday or Monday is a "new start" for me for six months now, and it's getting so old...I cut enough calories from my binges to maintain my weight, but not lose. I just can't say no to the donut shop some mornings, desserts at night, or overeating pizza or Mexican when going out.

To get to the point, I guess my ultimate point is: if you are similar to me and have borderline overeating/binge disorder (esp. with sweets), how do you just stop saying "no" to these things?

I'm looking at programs that revolve around sugar addiction and trying to work through that, I think it's the root of my problems. I even feel like sugar stuff has started to emotionally affect my daily lifestyle (highs, lows, out of control cravings, etc.).

I am a smart and educated girl, and even worse I know tons about nutrition and wellness, and am a decent chef. And, I have the time. I just can't seem to say "no" to my junk food, or overeating when the opportunity presents itself (I also just moved to San Francisco and there is food everywhere!). Any help, would be very appreciated - especially from serious sugar addicts/overeaters who have learned to stop the punishment/reward cycle of high-calorie bad for ya foods. Thanks! ;)
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Replies

  • Emtabo01
    Emtabo01 Posts: 672
    I can only suggest, really stop buying your trigger foods. Yes binging is a mental thing, so when your mind is going crazy, it'll still say yes let's binge on almonds and dried fruit and pop chips or whatever you have replaced your old triggers with. But it's not as rewarding to binge on that stuff, therefore I don't do it at all or not nearly as often.
  • slkehl
    slkehl Posts: 3,801 Member
    It starts in the grocery store. Focus on buying healthy foods and stay away from food that tends to make you binge.

    Also, calculating how much money you'll save by not eating out might provide some motivation.
  • tameejean
    tameejean Posts: 197 Member
    Bumping because I've been almost exactly the same way for the last year or so :(
  • Rags_91
    Rags_91 Posts: 15 Member
    I also have an issue with this. I lost 25 pounds last summer, kept it off until Christmas, and then when my mode of exercise broke (bike) and I couldn't get it fixed until summer I started eating worse, and gained those 25 pounds back
  • mahanaibu
    mahanaibu Posts: 505 Member
    same suggestion. if pizza and sweets are problems for you, I get that. Then don't let them in the house, because they're not your friends. maybe learn how to make yourself some substitutes that fill your cravings...the cauliflower-crust pizza or portabella mushroom pizza. someone had a nice recipe for that microwave cake in a cup done low-calorie style with apple sauce.

    You've done such an amazing job and it's a pretty rare person who maintains like you have for so long, so I hope you're not down on yourself, because I'm all admiration for you. what you have achieved is so much bigger than any pizza, any piece of cake. You can live without those, but you can't live without your health and vitality.
  • ameyer410
    ameyer410 Posts: 32
    Wow, you guys are so supportive, esp. this above last post (Mahana). I've never looked at it that way, and that means a lot...thanks so much. I hate that others feel the same way, although it's nice to know there is someone empathizing with you.

    Also, as far as keeping things in the house...I usually don't. If I want a donut or pizza, I get my gams moving and take the quickest mode of transportation to that place. That's what I mean, I'm talking out.of.control. cravings. If any of you that are like me want to be friends and try to resume motivation...friend me! :D
  • happystars82
    happystars82 Posts: 225 Member
    I have the same problem and then after a binge having a feeling of guilt... But after discussing with a friend on here, what I do is throughout the week I write down everything i'm craving and then on the Saturday I buy it all and have a one day binge then the next day back on it.. Works for me as i'm not missing out plus it aids my weightloss!
  • DawnEH612
    DawnEH612 Posts: 574 Member
    I can relate in many fronts. In my early stages of being on MFP i was really here to learn how to have a healthy relationship with food, loosing weight would be a positive side benefit. I realize I Had horrendous eating habits and also, what I truly believe is an addiction to refined sugars.
    I actually practiced how to eat just one serving of a trigger food.. I write about my struggles in my blogs and offer suggestions and tips i came up with that helped me along the way.
    Good luck!
  • hilaryhill
    hilaryhill Posts: 156 Member
    Ok well I was this way about 2 mos ago. Ill be honest about what helped me....

    I started reading Real Food blogs. And watched documentaries on Netflix about the state of the food industry in this country and I dont know, I just "got it" that what I was putting in my body was causing me to be unhealthy. Forget weight... I was on the road to cancer, death, destruction LOL. And now I just cant eat that stuff. Well,ok, sometimes I do, but its a treat, not an every day thing. I make most of my food from scratch (my food diaries are so long lol) and when I do eat out it's smaller portions or at a "fresh" and organic place. Our bodies were made to eat whole foods and too much refined sugar is just not good for me.

    I hope it "clicks" for you soon so that you can get back on the bandwagon!
  • diamier
    diamier Posts: 66 Member
    Another myfitnesspal member was talking about a movie "Hungry for a change" and I saw it too. The whole movie spins around how the consumerism killed our natural lifestyle and how people eat crap, but it's not only their fault. By the way, there was a very good phrase, instead of saying:" I want it, but I can't have it", say "I can have it, but I don't want it". You should check the whole movie out, because it has really good information about healthy lifestyle there, good luck!
  • Antlady69
    Antlady69 Posts: 204 Member
    In principle I'm the same way. You put a pizza in front of me (or pasta or even worse, dhal curries; or any curry *mmmmmmmh*), and I eat so much that I physically feel sick. But as soon as I've digested enough to squeeze another spoonful into my belly, I do exactly that. I will stuff the whole plate of food into my stomach, no matter how full I am.

    But what I've found helps me is mixing my (vanilla) protein powder in a glass of vanilla soy milk. Not everybody can tolerate soy milk but I quite like it, especially with the added taste of the protein powder.
    I drink one glass in the morning and one in the evening, and it actually curbs my greed.

    (Before anyone brings up GM: the soy milk I use is GM-free, supposedly.)
  • AngelaMarieMs
    AngelaMarieMs Posts: 21
    I'm in the same boat. In 6 months I lost 50 lbs and after a breakup I gained back 10 of it. I let the over eating get the better of me and I know I really need to change.
  • backfatmamma87
    backfatmamma87 Posts: 1
    I have the same problem!! I love sweats and I can't stay away!!! I feel like it controls my day! Ill be eating really healthy and then someone will bring up cake or say "oo cookies sound good" and for te rest of the day I won't sleep until I have a cookie... Seriously this is redic lol
  • pen2u
    pen2u Posts: 224 Member
    You might want to try a South Beach-type plan for a couple of weeks to kick the sugar cravings to the curb. It really helped me get over my carb cravings & carb bingeing a few years ago. I'm not even tempted by sweets or baked goods anymore. (It would be nice if we could eat "just one" cookie but some of us cannot.)
  • janimei
    janimei Posts: 105 Member
    Life style, not diet: MFP asks that we lose a pound a week because if we lose more than that, we're probably not changing our lifestyles permanently.
    Good cheats: Somewhere out there are foods that will satisfy your sugar cravings without destroying your progress. I carry KIND bars and fruit leathers with me because they do satisfy me--find your equivalents by experimenting. Those foods exist, you just have to determine what they are for you.
    You are definitely not the only one with this issue: My past includes whole bags of donuts, four slices of pizza at a time, a whole loaf of sugar/cinnamon bread for reading the Sunday paper, and three bowls of pasta as a "serving."
    Strategy: For me, having a health problem has helped me focus on better eating. You need to find that motivator and way of making sweets a minor part of your life, maybe with the help of a counselor or nutritionist.
  • lovingangel4uau
    lovingangel4uau Posts: 78 Member
    Sounds like you have made the first step to getting seriously getting back, as you said your a smart girl. I would suggest seeing this youtube lecture about sugar. I have found knowledge is a strong motivator.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM

    My other suggestion is to LOVE YOURSELF not food. You are worth being healthy. Putting a lot of weight on and off is more devastation to the body than keeping to one weight. Work out why you are looking for food yes you like food but try to work out why its so important to you? Some of whys they may or may not relate to you -- loneliness, boredom, frustration, upset, trying to hid and not face a situation, sugar addiction, salt addiction. Body staved of nutrients therefore is looking for some goodness to fill it up but we tend to put empty calories in instead therefore the body is always staving and need feels satisfied.

    I'm still on the battle each day but have found some of these things help me.

    Good luck hon x
  • MEMD1974
    MEMD1974 Posts: 20 Member
    I feel like I understand what you are saying. For me, it is not about avoiding buying trigger foods, it is about the binge. I can binge on toast - grapes even, followed by a banana, by a grapefruit, by some frozen corn, by some more toast, croutons, whatever there is - and if I have nothing in the house, I will go buy something, usually in "snack" size, but then I buy many items so it doesn't matter in the end. It is the binge. It is the binge. And it makes me feel so sick physically and bad mentally.

    I can sit and say "you do not want this, you do not need this and you know you will feel better if you do not eat it" but it does not work so well for some reason. I have no real problem with portion control during meal and snack times, I love to cook, I eat healthy ... but then the urge comes on and the next thing I know I've eaten a box of Triscuit Thin Crisps...
  • OMGeeeHorses
    OMGeeeHorses Posts: 732 Member
    My habit is calorie counting now.

    Yesterday I wanted a snack, instantly my brain screamed HOT FUDGE CAKE!! Pretty much made from a box cake with hot fudge on it and ice cream. I was so set to do it, till I looked at the calories.. I ABOUT DIED, It was 440 calories for 1 slice and about 72 carbs. I use to EAT THIS CRAP and with ice cream on top of that it would come in at a whopping 600 calories with ice cream.

    That is a HUGE chunk of my calories, instead I swapped. I got a chocolate cake like brownie (170 a 12 inch brownie) and ice cream and it was like the same thing!! With the hot fudge cake, no doubt I would have binged. I know I would have because my MIND wanted it and not myself.

    Set yourself up for success and not failure. A few months ago I wouldn't have been that way. But with doing MFP and counting calories and exercising..I am being a better person to myself. You can do this, it may seem hard starting out again but once you get back into it, you will melt it off in a snap!!
  • OMGeeeHorses
    OMGeeeHorses Posts: 732 Member
    I just LOVE FOOD and don't want to cut calories and exercise like a freak again. Every Sunday or Monday is a "new start" for me for six months now, and it's getting so old...I cut enough calories from my binges to maintain my weight, but not lose. I just can't say no to the donut shop some mornings, desserts at night, or overeating pizza or Mexican when going out.

    This is your problem right here... You don't want to diet and exercise like a freak again. You set your up for failure by trying to sprint a marathon. this takes time, it takes patience.

    Donuts are okay "some" mornings, deserts at night are okay, mexican is okay, and so is pizza. the problem is "OVER CONSUMPTION." To many calories, that's the problem.

    Here is some advice, lower the intake of the foods. If they cause you to "binge" then cut the out. You can't eat what you don't have.

    This is about habits,habits is what keep us thin or keep us fat, you have to change that. How do you develop habits, with time and patience. If you eat food that causes you to binge every morning. Shoot to eat better options 3x a week. Is that so hard? No, once you get the hang of that, got it down solid, then do 7 days a week. Same with exercise. I couldn't even walk 10mins. What i would do is start off walking 8 minutes, taking a break, then walking another 2. People would say "you won't accomplish anything like that." They missed the point my view isn't to "lose weight" it was to build "habits." The habit of doing something daily. Once i was doing something daily, then i would increase the time. those 10mins turned in to 1hr and 30minutes. Hopefully you get my point of gradual progression.

    LISTEN TO HIM, Look at his ticker. He knows what he is talking about :)
  • pinkraynedropjacki
    pinkraynedropjacki Posts: 3,027 Member
    I started at about 210lb..... I'm now 130lb.... Feb 2012 I started. I love food...love love love it. I work damn hard to have my food.... but then I don't eat it.


    Willpower is the ONLY way you are going to be able to get there. I workout even when sick.... I'm actually really sick right now...yet today I've done a massive burn (well massive to me) and I'm still going. I don't stop all day.


    You have no excuse NOT to keep going, nobody does. Unless you are dead, you can find a way.
  • intuen
    intuen Posts: 7
    same suggestion. if pizza and sweets are problems for you, I get that. Then don't let them in the house, because they're not your friends. maybe learn how to make yourself some substitutes that fill your cravings...the cauliflower-crust pizza or portabella mushroom pizza. someone had a nice recipe for that microwave cake in a cup done low-calorie style with apple sauce.

    You've done such an amazing job and it's a pretty rare person who maintains like you have for so long, so I hope you're not down on yourself, because I'm all admiration for you. what you have achieved is so much bigger than any pizza, any piece of cake. You can live without those, but you can't live without your health and vitality.
  • 8happy8
    8happy8 Posts: 2

    This is about habits,habits is what keep us thin or keep us fat, you have to change that. How do you develop habits, with time and patience. If you eat food that causes you to binge every morning. Shoot to eat better options 3x a week. Is that so hard? No, once you get the hang of that, got it down solid, then do 7 days a week. Same with exercise. I couldn't even walk 10mins. What i would do is start off walking 8 minutes, taking a break, then walking another 2. People would say "you won't accomplish anything like that." They missed the point my view isn't to "lose weight" it was to build "habits." The habit of doing something daily. Once i was doing something daily, then i would increase the time. those 10mins turned in to 1hr and 30minutes. Hopefully you get my point of gradual progression.


    I have never posted on here before but i just love this philosophy of making new habits. This sounds like the real answer to me. Thank you for posting it.
  • be_patient
    be_patient Posts: 186 Member
    we are literally the same person. except i have no control over what food comes into my house; my parents do. But YOU do! Don't buy foods that you know will send you on a binge...and if you absolutely must, buy a small portion, such as a bar of chocolate rather than a block. A packet of chips, not a bag. xxx
  • adorable_aly
    adorable_aly Posts: 398 Member
    I agree with those who are saying make habits. I feel that the reason why you binge and then crash diet, is maybe because you haven't got the moderation thing down yet. I would try slowly going back to eating healthier but making sure you incorporate a treat everyday, a donut, going out for Mexican etc. also something that really helped me was telling myself that if I still wanted it I could just have it tomorrow. I'm not sure why saying this to myself works, but it does, and means I can fit my craving into my calories for the next day.

    Try just making one change sticking to it, and then making another.
  • pinkraynedropjacki
    pinkraynedropjacki Posts: 3,027 Member
    we are literally the same person. except i have no control over what food comes into my house; my parents do. But YOU do! Don't buy foods that you know will send you on a binge...and if you absolutely must, buy a small portion, such as a bar of chocolate rather than a block. A packet of chips, not a bag. xxx

    No control over what comes into the house is a pathetic excuse sorry...YOU have control over what you eat though. Unless it's being forced fed upon you, then YOU alone are responsible for what you put in your mouth.
  • mum212
    mum212 Posts: 173 Member
    first of all hun you need self control and then you will start saying no to that extra doughnut, you need to eat in moderation and control yourself and if you eat over then burn off those extra calories by going for a walk or gym you don't need to excersise like crazy all you need it to make the effort to burn off those extra calories, even if its something like dancing at home just get motivated x once you see the weight drop again you will then be motivated x
  • LavenderBouquet
    LavenderBouquet Posts: 736 Member
    This is almost my exact situation right now, so I am definitely feeling you. Bumping to read responses later.
  • paulbear75
    paulbear75 Posts: 44 Member
    I so could relate, for me is that I have addictive behavior and my mind always gets the best of me. Moderation is a foreign word to me but MFP is a tool that is keeping me in check. In the past I would binge on the weekend and say the hell with it and this binge would last for 6 months, with MFP I have the community sending words of encouragement. It sounds strange but it's been helping me so far. best wishes and have a great journey
  • deksgrl
    deksgrl Posts: 7,237 Member
    I just LOVE FOOD and don't want to cut calories and exercise like a freak again. Every Sunday or Monday is a "new start" for me for six months now, and it's getting so old...I cut enough calories from my binges to maintain my weight, but not lose. I just can't say no to the donut shop some mornings, desserts at night, or overeating pizza or Mexican when going out.

    This is your problem right here... You don't want to diet and exercise like a freak again. You set your up for failure by trying to sprint a marathon. this takes time, it takes patience.

    Donuts are okay "some" mornings, deserts at night are okay, mexican is okay, and so is pizza. the problem is "OVER CONSUMPTION." To many calories, that's the problem.

    ^^This.

    That said, I too find that once I go overboard on the sugar, it is harder to keep things under control. I read a study that showed a link between excess sugar consumption and stimulation of the hormone "ghrelin" which is what tells your body you are hungry. When these hormones are out of whack, it makes it very difficult to overcome. Some of us then think there is something wrong with us mentally or emotionally wondering why we don't have the willpower of other people to just stop eating.

    What I do is stock up on greek yogurt and fruit, and use those for snacks. There are those who say "sugar is sugar" whatever the form, but I definitely notice a difference between eating healthier sources versus junk. After I wean myself away from the junk and start eating more normally and within my calories, then it is easier to stick to it and I can again eat whatever I want in moderation again.
  • momzeeee
    momzeeee Posts: 475 Member
    Wow, you guys are so supportive, esp. this above last post (Mahana). I've never looked at it that way, and that means a lot...thanks so much. I hate that others feel the same way, although it's nice to know there is someone empathizing with you.

    Also, as far as keeping things in the house...I usually don't. If I want a donut or pizza, I get my gams moving and take the quickest mode of transportation to that place. That's what I mean, I'm talking out.of.control. cravings. If any of you that are like me want to be friends and try to resume motivation...friend me! :D

    I did alternate day intermittent fasting, as laid out in Dr. James Johnson's book, The Alternate Day Diet. I had a lot of food triggers and this plan totally broke those. That's because you only 'diet' every other day. So on the calorie restricted days you got to look forward to the next day, where you ate normal calories and could have all the foods you craved. Thing is, after you do it for a few months you realize you no longer crave those foods, even when you can have them :) It took took me about 6 months to lose 40 pounds, only dieting half the time, and I transitioned into maintenance with a totally different relationship with food. Might be worth borrowing the book from the library-otherwise there's a group here, search for JUDDD to find it :)

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