Self Sabotage

I was struggling and still am struggling with this myself and one thing that has helped me a lot is drinking a LOT of water during the day....I mean ive been on and off with this mess for almost a year trying to get back on track...do great ALLLLLLL day long and then just eat everything in the evenings just cuz its there! but the water fills me up and helps curb the cravings for me. its been hard..ive only had 2 real honest days of tracking so far without bingeing so im definitely a work in progress! thats what has helped me...also finding so many motivating friends on here has really given me a boost to want to stay on track...You are doing a great job though! Congrats on your loss so far! feel free to add me if you want

Going on maintenance for a week is a good option since you won't gain weight again, but you can take a little break and get your focus back where it belongs! I've done this before. There's no shame in it!

I have the same problem!!

I have found that if I have my evenings as packed with things to do as I do during the day, I have no problem but when I am home alone and bored for hours and hours...regardless of what my water intake is, I EAT!! I did so well for over a year but a few traumatic things happened in my life and now I'm back to square one trying to battle the cravings or lack of will power I once found.

To try to overcome this issue, I have recently tried going to Overeaters Anonymous group meetings once a week....it helps hearing the stories of others but I'm still not convinced quite yet that it's going to be the fix for me. We'll see.

Also, I try to keep busy by calling friends and family, gardening, picking a project to work on, finding new hobbies such as gardening or dancing, or finding things to do with friends or family in the evening such as walking or game nights...

Some nights it's not possible and I truly give a good effort every night to be good, some nights I conquer and some nights I fail but the one thing I make sure to to do is keep trying and NEVER give up!!

I've lost over a 100lbs and recently have gained 20 back but I REFUSE to flush all my hard work down the toilet so I have got to get a handle on this!

Thanks for posting this great topic!

I track EVERYTHING. Half a cookie. Two carrot sticks. Everything. That's helped me so far. Also, I exercise at night, and knitting keeps my hands busy.

I find that if i brush my teeth i'm less likely to snack :happy:

i agree with tracking everything - whenever i have a day when i'm not logging, i go nuts and binge to the extreme
what i've started to do is after a day of binge, i go back and log everything i ate to see how bad it was. that keeps me focused for a while to keep on track and keeps the binge to just that day. i also realised the last few times, i wasn't actually eating nearly as much as i thought i was, as i'd got used to eating less in general.

hope you find a solution. i know someone who sets a 'treat day' every month as something to look forward to. that worked for him.

Usually when this happens to me (like it has lately but not as bad as sometimes previously) look more closely at protein intake and my cardio routine. For me it's almost always after a particularly tough cardio session or two and when I wake up and realize what's going on I splurge a little on those days and try to increase my protein intake first and foremost because I know the heavy cardio has taking it's toll on my legs (mostly).

For me, so far this has worked and I've been able to get back on track in a day or two at most.

For me, a late dinner has helped. Like, sometimes we don't eat til 9:00 or later. This hasn't been on purpose, but it has worked in my favor. What happens is that I have a healthy snack/ mini meal after I get home from work and it tides me over until we both manage to sit down to dinner. I end up heading to bed shortly after. Obviously not ideal for everyone, but it's helped me curb my late-night snacking for sure.

This is the essential part... you need to be prepared ahead of time with healthy foods in the house. I'll make a big salad or have some hummus or something on hand to keep me from picking up a bag of chips or eating all of the cookies I can find in the cupboard. It is definitely easier for me to make this healthy choice earlier in the day, around the time I'm exercising, rather than once I'm in my jammies and plopped in front of the tv already.

I find it's easier if I go out - do something, walk, exercise, do zumba, run, visit friends, anything just to be away from food.
I also eat lighter breakfast and lunch so I have plenty calories left for my dinner and treat.
Good luck!

Could just be a stab in the dark...make sure you getting an adequate amount of protein. I was having issues with my diet last month... as soon as I noticed I was lacking on protein and started amping it up.All cravings stopped, and I am hardly hungry (unless I accidentally skip a meal).

Try it and see if that fixes your issue.

Sometimes we want to lose so fast that we get scared to eat the things our bodies need!! Fat and protein is a really important part of wat your body craves and if ya eating everything else instead of wat your body really need then it is telling you to eat more eat more!! LOL Gottta be smarter and outwit the Cravings Monster!! Good luck Sweet heart xxx

I definately agree about eating more protein or possibly fat and seeing if that helps, trying a high calorie day or two before going back to what you were eating, etc..

Is it specific things you're craving? I have had great success eating a square or two of dark chocolate to satisfy chocolate cravings. With milk I want to eat the whole bar. Maybe you could find some small indulgence that will tide you over until the craving passes if it is for something specific.

Good luck!