how to stop obsessing over food

lesliethescribe
lesliethescribe Posts: 9
in Health and Weight Loss
i'm CONSTANTLY thinking about food, to the point where when i'm not hungry, just thinking about a craving almost fools my stomach into thinking it's hungry. mind you, it's not like i don't enjoy the occasional treat, so i'm not restricting myself in any way that should cause me to crave foods the intense way that i do.

it's easier for me to manage when i'm at work, as i have things to distract me throughout the day, but when it's the weekend, it's a bit more challenging since sundays i usually blob out at home for most of the day.

anybody have tips/tricks on how to stop or weaken the obsession?

Replies

  • donjessop
    donjessop Posts: 186
    Stuff yourself with low calorie foods/water. To be honest, I make myself a HUGE salad for lunch, filled with lettuce, spinach, red/yellow peppers, celery and top it off with 100grams of chicken breast. This thing is so huge it takes me 20 minutes to eat. After that I am no where near hungry for hours. And when I do become hungry, I fill myself up with more low calorie foods / water. Protein makes you feel full longer (a higher satiety index) so I make sure that every meal / snack has that included.

    To be honest, the only time that I have felt hungry or obsessed with food over the past five months has been during the Christmas break. There was lots of turkey, stuffing and chocolates floating around the house and didn't adhere to my new lifestyle choices. But, once I started getting back into the swing of things I stopped obsessing about the food.
  • katiestanners
    katiestanners Posts: 3
    I have the same problem. After a meal when I know I'm not hungry all I can think about is what I'm going to eat next and if I can allow myself to eat it. I think I'm obessing over it because I'm really trying to add everything I eat to mfp. I've started to add all my calories that I'm going to consume on my diary about half hour before I eat them so I can obsess over that and not what comes next... I feel like when I do that I'm more satisfied with my meal and I know how many calories I've ate so I shouldn't be hungry.

    I also obsess about food when I'm bored or sitting on the couch watching tv. When that happens even though its really cold where I live I put on the winter boots and walk around the block once or twice and then chug water. If I'm still obsessing and wanting food ill try to eat a low calorie snack.

    And when i can't keep my hands off the cupboard doors I force myself to brush my teeth so that food wouldn't taste good anyways if I were to eat it.

    And when all else fails... I force myself to go to sleep because you can't eat if you're asleep. (Although sometimes I sleep walk in to the kitchen... Ugh)

    What a crazy world. Anyways hope some of my tricks work and I don't come off sounding like a crazy person haha.
  • CaliLizard
    CaliLizard Posts: 26
    I'm new so I could be wrong and if so a snarky member may point it out lol. But I think that when you first start to count calories correctly, your body isn't used to eating less so your stretched stomach begins to feel cheated making you want those extra big meals or bites. In time a think the urges go down but oral fixations can be aided by chewing gum in between meals and drinking plenty of water! Also brushing teeth is an awesome idea def love the hygiene boost so propss for that and also he's right it takes up less calories to fill up a salad then to eat constantly.
  • darlingdeardc
    darlingdeardc Posts: 35
    When I feel cravings here are a few things that I do when i get cravings.. Get up and do a little exercise on your floor, Drink a lot of water, like someone mentioned brush your teeth because not many eat after they brush at night. then I would just eat a little fruit or vegetables.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    For me, it hasn't gone away. I just 'redirect' my cravings, so instead of thinking 'oh I want a chocolate bar now' I'll think 'hmm what yummy food can I have for breakfast tomorrow'. It works, sort of. I still always give in to my cravings if it's early afternoon and end up with a small dinner most days though.

    But yeah, I think about food way too much.
  • alisonlynn1976
    alisonlynn1976 Posts: 929 Member
    You need to identify other things that bring you pleasure and shift your focus to those (more than one thing, because you don't want to simply trade one obsession for another).
  • nrida
    nrida Posts: 31 Member
    I also suffer this,

    I try to stay busy and aim for a goal/task during times I feel the urge to binge/obsess ....like 2pm. I aim to focus on myself like find new glasses online, clean my room, find a nice outfit.
    Try to focus on doing productive things and taking breaks.

    New habits are key :)
  • chani8
    chani8 Posts: 946 Member
    I had such a problem with obsessing and with binging, too, and now I follow the "No S Diet" (while still counting calories on mfp) and it's helped me so much. I'm getting very normal about food and eating. So check out nosdiet.com, it's free, simple and easy, and even though it's meant for people to not need to count cals, I think combined with mfp, it's totally awesome.
  • mccindy72
    mccindy72 Posts: 7,001 Member
    Rather than "blobbing out" on Sunday, when you get those cravings, get active. Try a few squats or lunges, or get some handweights and do a few reps. Sometimes distracting your mind with activity can help.

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