anyone experienced binge eating due to restrictive diet?

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  • starsomeday
    starsomeday Posts: 5 Member
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    I find that I'm more likely to binge when I don't allow myself to eat what I want.

    For example, if I want chocolate after dinner, but I choose to be 'healthier' and eat oatmeal with fruit instead, the chances are I will binge on chocolate later on. So instead of restricting certain foods, allow yourself to eat what you want, and eat everything in moderation. Such a typical tip, but it does work.

    Also, if you are someone who binges easily, don't buy huge quantities of foods that you usually binge on.

    It is definitely a psychological behaviour, and it can improve over time but it's hard to completely stop doing it.

    Instead of feeling guilty, keep note of your progress.

    My binges used to reach 7000 calories, and tonight I binged and ate 2500 calories worth of chocolate, popcorn and other food. I don't do it often any more, and I don't eat as much as I used to, so even though right now I might feel awful about myself, sometimes I step back and look at the bigger picture and realize that I have come a long way, and will never allow myself to treat my body as badly as I used to.

    My advice: don't restrict yourself.
  • FeebRyan
    FeebRyan Posts: 738 Member
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    I binge, I have binged twice in the last two weeks and had a couple of mini-binges too. I do 2 fast days a week to make up for it and my calories average out at 1500-1750 a day.

    I am trying to teach my body to accept less food and it is hard, I will get there though.
  • Dewymorning
    Dewymorning Posts: 762 Member
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    just eat normally, the binges will stop, every now and again everyone does it without thinking, especially at parties, dont worry we are only human :)

    Yes!!! I'm trying my best to do that but I'm still learning what normal eating even is. Some say 2000, some say 2000 is too much, stick to 1500... I don't even know. :(

    For the average woman, 2000 calories a day is the amount they should be aiming to eat to maintain their weight.

    You have a specialist working with you, who has asked you to eat 2100 calorie meal plan.

    You should take her advice and eat according to the plan.

    You may be best to not even track the calories on MFP.

    If you still find yourself binge eating then discuss this with your doctor.
  • splashtree2
    splashtree2 Posts: 277
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    I don't know if my binge eating is due to emotional reasons, but it definitely started after I relapsed into my restrictive eating disorder. So I'm guessing that COULD be the reason. Ever since I upped my intake, I've been binging a lot less. But I still binge. And I'm terrified that I may never stop binging.

    Has anyone developed a binging problem due to a restrictive diet? And has anyone managed to overcome this problem? And how?

    I did it not in the forms of quantity but of quality like sugar on bread, zabaione, cakes, the matter fir me is anxiousness and at the monwnt lack of sex so of boyfriend, lack if live, that's sucks!!!!
  • Sashyteds
    Sashyteds Posts: 11
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    Maybe you are not getting enough nutrients? Take a good multivitamin every day, and eat half a protein bar at snack times to help stabilise your blood sugar and keep you full. If your body feels deprived it will give you cravings, so eat small amounts every 3 to four hours and try and include more fruit and veg in your diet. On cold days I drink herbal tea with sweetener and it really helps keep the hunger pangs at bay.
  • MyRummyHens
    MyRummyHens Posts: 141 Member
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    Well put it this way, I'm 5'1 and 98lb and I go by my fitbit, which I I have to say I think slightly underestimates my calorie needs. I try not to eat less than 2000 calories on any one day, and my average intake to maintain my weight is 2400 calories per day. If I'm ill or I have an awfully stressful day (like last week) and I end up under-eating I spend the next 2-3 days eating everything in sight in my bodies attempt to catch up.

    As you are not overweight, in fact your in the bottom third of 'normal' BMI wise, I would suggest listening to your body. If it's telling you to eat more and you are under-eating during the week then you do need to eat more. I find things easier to manage if I eat as close to my average calorie requirement as possible every day, and I suspect with your history that this would work out the safest and option for you too.
  • Sashyteds
    Sashyteds Posts: 11
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    Definitely allow yourself some treats. I lost weight despite eating 2 cubes of chocolate and 5 jelly sweets almost every day ... just made sure I did enough exercise to cover the calories.
  • FeebRyan
    FeebRyan Posts: 738 Member
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    I just could not eat 2 cubes of chocolate, I would have to eat the whole bar.

    I have to restrict the food I eat and look for sustenance from other sources.

    Every night I have a Options Hot Chocolate, comes in at 60 calories and it just tastes gorgeous. Because its the only chocolate I have in the house if I DO binge, I will drink three and still have less calories than a bar of chocolate.

    I have replaced biscuits and cakes with Nature Valley oats and nut bars, again if I do binge and eat three I am still on less calories than if I were to eat three kitkats or something.
  • uglyclub
    uglyclub Posts: 83 Member
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    Thank you all so much. I guess the general idea is to start following my meal plan and upping my intake during the weekdays.( I'm not a big snack/treats person, actually. I like eating bigger meals and lesser snacks).

    I did a stupid thing and weighed myself last night before bed. I don't know why I did it, I guess I was just so curious to see if I'd gained any weight from Friday's binge. According to the scales, I've gained 6 pounds... And I KNOW logically a lot of it's probably water weight and food weight from last night's dinner but I just couldn't bring myself to go above 1200 calories today because of it. I want to go back to my pre-binge weight and start following my meal plan as if the binge had never happened. I feel like crying, what if I don't lose the weight I gained? Oh man. It's probably the anxiety talking right now but damn it..
  • QuietBloom
    QuietBloom Posts: 5,413 Member
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    Thank you all so much. I guess the general idea is to start following my meal plan and upping my intake during the weekdays.( I'm not a big snack/treats person, actually. I like eating bigger meals and lesser snacks).

    I did a stupid thing and weighed myself last night before bed. I don't know why I did it, I guess I was just so curious to see if I'd gained any weight from Friday's binge. According to the scales, I've gained 6 pounds... And I KNOW logically a lot of it's probably water weight and food weight from last night's dinner but I just couldn't bring myself to go above 1200 calories today because of it. I want to go back to my pre-binge weight and start following my meal plan as if the binge had never happened. I feel like crying, what if I don't lose the weight I gained? Oh man. It's probably the anxiety talking right now but damn it..

    What is your goal? Do you need to gain weight? If so, you are right on track.
  • uglyclub
    uglyclub Posts: 83 Member
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    Thank you all so much. I guess the general idea is to start following my meal plan and upping my intake during the weekdays.( I'm not a big snack/treats person, actually. I like eating bigger meals and lesser snacks).

    I did a stupid thing and weighed myself last night before bed. I don't know why I did it, I guess I was just so curious to see if I'd gained any weight from Friday's binge. According to the scales, I've gained 6 pounds... And I KNOW logically a lot of it's probably water weight and food weight from last night's dinner but I just couldn't bring myself to go above 1200 calories today because of it. I want to go back to my pre-binge weight and start following my meal plan as if the binge had never happened. I feel like crying, what if I don't lose the weight I gained? Oh man. It's probably the anxiety talking right now but damn it..

    What is your goal? Do you need to gain weight? If so, you are right on track.

    I needed to gain 3 more kilos, but I'm still not ready to do that. I wanted to get comfortable with eating according to my meal plan first before initiating any weight gain but I binged and messed it all up. Being at my pre-binge weight made it easier for me to face my fears and eat more when I wanted to (eg: on weekends), but now I no longer feel safe. I didn't expect my weight to go up so fast. Ah, I know I sound so whiny, I'm sorry.
  • _Emma_Problema_
    _Emma_Problema_ Posts: 261 Member
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    Probably EVERYONE on a too much restrictive diet as binged.
    How many calories a day do you eat?

    I've still not been able to bring myself to follow my 2100-calorie meal plan every day and only follow it on weekends. On weekdays, I have around 1300-1600 calories.

    I'm just scared because my binges, although they've been becoming less frequent, have been increasing in the amount of calories. Last week I had 7000 calories. And it's really scary.

    Your thinking is backward. According to what your doctor has you on, your weekly total should have been 14700. So you are still far under that, despite what you think are 'binges'. Your body is trying to repair the damage done by your eating disorder, and continuing to restrict your calories (despite what you think) is evidence that you are still in ED mode. Your binges are your body's way of trying to get the calories you need, and are healthy. What is not healthy is the continued restriction. Please talk to your doctor about this. What other kind of support do you have while you are trying to recover? I understand that seeing the calories add up is scary. That is probably why your doctor doesn't want to tracking them.

    My advise, is to step away from MFP and tracking your calories. Or look into joining one of the groups on here specifically for people recovering from EDs.

    Best of luck to you.

    I'm going to second this and add that I really hope you aren't just seeing a dietitian but also are seeking the support of therapy or at least counselling. When handling disordered eating, it really is best to have a support system. Just someone to talk to at minimum.

    And I don't even want to put this in your head, but as a warning, please don't purge after any of your binges. I fell into the cycle of restricting, bingeing, and purging and it is far from pretty.

    Don't track calories for a bit and try to eat mindfully. Listen to your body and how much it wants to eat. Eat when you're hungry and stop when you're full. Easier said than done, I know. That should level you out for a bit and then you can reevaluate what you'd like to do with your body.
  • FeebRyan
    FeebRyan Posts: 738 Member
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    Your body will seek to be healthy, thats why you will put on weight quickly.
  • tracydr
    tracydr Posts: 528 Member
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    If my diet is too restrictive, I can't go very long without falling off the wagon. When I was really strict about carbs, I would have big issues every few months. Weight Watchers was even worse. I finally found MFP! It took me awhile to get used to measuring, weighing and recording everything ( I still don't always record low-cal veggies) but now that it's becoming a habit, it keeps getting easier.
    The hardest part, for me, is learning to throw away special, leftover treats. I'm fine with eating something really special, like molten lava cake, homemade baked goods or a fancy restaurant meal. It's the days and days of leftover cake,bread and fatty foods that causes me to go "off the wagon" and I have a hard time getting back on. This happened on Valentine's Day, which is closely followed by Anniversary, this year.
    I'm finally getting to where I can bear to throw away leftover treats, and it really helps.
  • Dewymorning
    Dewymorning Posts: 762 Member
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    Thank you all so much. I guess the general idea is to start following my meal plan and upping my intake during the weekdays.( I'm not a big snack/treats person, actually. I like eating bigger meals and lesser snacks).

    I did a stupid thing and weighed myself last night before bed. I don't know why I did it, I guess I was just so curious to see if I'd gained any weight from Friday's binge. According to the scales, I've gained 6 pounds... And I KNOW logically a lot of it's probably water weight and food weight from last night's dinner but I just couldn't bring myself to go above 1200 calories today because of it. I want to go back to my pre-binge weight and start following my meal plan as if the binge had never happened. I feel like crying, what if I don't lose the weight I gained? Oh man. It's probably the anxiety talking right now but damn it..

    What is your goal? Do you need to gain weight? If so, you are right on track.

    I needed to gain 3 more kilos, but I'm still not ready to do that. I wanted to get comfortable with eating according to my meal plan first before initiating any weight gain but I binged and messed it all up. Being at my pre-binge weight made it easier for me to face my fears and eat more when I wanted to (eg: on weekends), but now I no longer feel safe. I didn't expect my weight to go up so fast. Ah, I know I sound so whiny, I'm sorry.

    You did not mess up.

    Repeat that to yourself a few times.

    Then take a big deep breath.

    And start your meal plan.


    Also, you might want to chuck the scales.
  • QuietBloom
    QuietBloom Posts: 5,413 Member
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    Thank you all so much. I guess the general idea is to start following my meal plan and upping my intake during the weekdays.( I'm not a big snack/treats person, actually. I like eating bigger meals and lesser snacks).

    I did a stupid thing and weighed myself last night before bed. I don't know why I did it, I guess I was just so curious to see if I'd gained any weight from Friday's binge. According to the scales, I've gained 6 pounds... And I KNOW logically a lot of it's probably water weight and food weight from last night's dinner but I just couldn't bring myself to go above 1200 calories today because of it. I want to go back to my pre-binge weight and start following my meal plan as if the binge had never happened. I feel like crying, what if I don't lose the weight I gained? Oh man. It's probably the anxiety talking right now but damn it..

    What is your goal? Do you need to gain weight? If so, you are right on track.

    I needed to gain 3 more kilos, but I'm still not ready to do that. I wanted to get comfortable with eating according to my meal plan first before initiating any weight gain but I binged and messed it all up. Being at my pre-binge weight made it easier for me to face my fears and eat more when I wanted to (eg: on weekends), but now I no longer feel safe. I didn't expect my weight to go up so fast. Ah, I know I sound so whiny, I'm sorry.

    You are not being whiny! :heart:

    But - do you hear yourself? You want to get 'used' to the eating plan before gaining the weight you need to? There is no getting used to the plan without putting on some much needed weight. Either you eat according to the plan and gain weight, or you mess around with binging and restricting. and not getting any better.

    GAINING WEIGHT IS GOOD. It will happen quickly in the beginning because you are likely quite dehydrated and also your glycogen stores are depleted. Once you rehydrate and replenish your glycogen stores, the gaining will slow down.
  • nomorebingesgirl2014
    nomorebingesgirl2014 Posts: 378 Member
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  • kikimilabutterfly
    kikimilabutterfly Posts: 139
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    YES, my worst mistake when I was younger was being addicted to eating only 400-500 calories a day then becoming a bulimic and exercising along with it
    I dropped weight quick... Well It's been 2 years since I have purged or restricted under 800 calories but I've had a-lot of problems with binging especially at night when no one see's me and I can "sneak" food well Ive been doing pretty good about not doing it but
    since I had a doughnut at dunkin' donuts on the 4th it set me off.. so I'm going to get myself on track tomorrow! Honestly I hope your not doing this because it leads to addiction, you look really good but then your body deteriorates and once you get back to a 1200-1500 calorie diet you gain weight back quick and it messes everything up or at least it did for me an now I have to struggle even more..So it's not a solution the best way to lose weight is the slow tried and true method exercise and a clean diet with adequate kcal consumption. Now
  • Psychdoll74
    Psychdoll74 Posts: 16
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    I'm glad I'm not the only one. I used to think I was the only person who did this.

    Not that I want anyone to have this issue, but at least I feel a little more normal reading these replies.
  • kikimilabutterfly
    kikimilabutterfly Posts: 139
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    I'm glad I'm not the only one. I used to think I was the only person who did this.

    Not that I want anyone to have this issue, but at least I feel a little more normal reading these replies.
    nope your not alone thousands of people have this..

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