HELP- How to have self-control when it comes to food?!?

Congratulations! Knowing one of your key challenges is the very first step in finding a new way . Once you develop a new mindset it really all begins to change quickly and before you know it you become a new you.

I have lapsed for some time, but this is not my first rodeo and I am back in the saddle--and believe me I have learned from mistakes. With this being said I still fight the same battle, I just have a better set of weapons now so feel free to add me and we console each other on the OMG I just at a whole pizza moments--because they happen to the best of us, but those in it for the long haul just try harder the next day. I have done everything the wrong way before and I have done some things the right way before and now IA am putting it all together into the final master plan and having fun doing it! In my wise fourties I have found the following things helpful in sticking with my plan and they are working :

FIrst, exercise and log your meals HONESTLY--even when you fail you learn. The harder you work out, the more you realize how important it is to fuel your body to support your work and honestly to be less hungry. Even if you consume 1,000 calories more than you should your first few weeks you will start to see patterns (example I was drinking fat and calories in huge amounts in my coffee) and now I see that I am not getting enough protein. My best successes now are coming from wisdom from earlier failures. Understanding YOU and what drives you is important.

Don't starve and don't give up everything. Pick a treat night and while you cannot binge excessively that night you feel less deprived to know that ice cream sundae is right round the corner. Never, ever be hungry--keep snacking because when you are both physically and emotionally hungry you binge.

Find something to solve the emotional hunger--sitting in front of the television often leads to a bag of chips and a gallon of ice cream. The lonely comes out and the bored comes out and so do the fat cells. Try doing something else-reading, going to bed earlier, joining a chat group on line, focus on a hobby...anything to interrupt the food pattern. I have found after working out at night that just playing a mindless video game upstairs after a long day keeps me out of the kitchen because I am too lazy to go downstairs.

Always have food with you that is healthy stashed away. It is easier to avoid stopping at the drive through when you have a fast lazy solution with you that you like.

Drink water--it really does make you feel fuller ( and I hate drinking water but it does give you something to do with your mouth)

Portion out your food in advance. It is a royal pain to take a bag of popcorn and put it in baggies by serving BUT when your food is already measured out you have knowledge and control of what you are eating. A huge bag of something and I have just one more until that huge bag is gone.

Have an emergency stash for when you really cannot help yourself--with healthier options-- something sweet (dark chocolate or fruit), something fatty--like lowfat cottage cheese, something salty like pretzels, and something spicy like wasabi peas. They might not be exactly what you crave but they will help you through.

It's really hard and I haven't cracked yet. All I know is that things are improving with time. If you slip up on one day log it all of it - then draw a line under it and start afresh the next day. Sometimes now I'm impressed when I say no - other times I have no willpower, but I'm sure it's getting better. Practice makes perfect.

What are you eating? What are you craving? You likely don't have enough will power to stop yourself from eating if you're leaving every meal hungry. I don't mean that to say its a fault I think you have in your personality; its just not possible. Will power is a muscle and like a muscle, it need rest. If you are constantly exercising it, it will break down and you will fail. You don't need more will power. You need to find a way of eating that doesn't leave you so hungry that every time food presents itself you are tempted to eat it.

I'll normally eat well balanced healthy meals but then after I'll crave chocolate, crisps, biscuits basically anything in the cupboards....

Healthy balanced meals isn't very specific. I would suggest as others have though, don't keep that stuff in the cupboards. Better yet; clean out your cupboards. Just in general, its a good idea to eat as much fresh, whole, unprocessed foods as you can. You'll feel more satiated. Some obvious exceptions; potatoes, rice, onions, stuff that hasn't been messed around with too much. Also, all the things you want sound fatty (especially if the biscuits are a buttery type). Eat more good fats at your meals. Listen to what you body is telling you. Have some eggs, avocados, olive oil, fatty fish like salmon etc. Also, if you must have those chocolate is the best option. Go for the darkest bar you can buy (at least 75%). Trust me, you wont eat more than a modest portion because its just too rich.

I believe in order to feel good about yourself and love your body again is to find whats beautiful about you now and let that fuel you to be better. In my opinion, if you hate your body, you will do drastic things to get to a place of acceptance again which can actually do you more harm than good. Getting fit takes time, but who wants to take that kind of time when they hate being in that position, right? So find whats wonderful about you today and let that put you on the path of building better sense of self along your journey.

As far as the self control, ask yourself, what is your why? Why do you want to do this? Why is it important to you? Connect with that everytime you feel yourself wanting to wild out in the kitchen. Of course, many of us are here becaue we've been there before, and the one thing I did was just remember what my goals are, what's important to me health wise, and where I want to be and how I want to look and feel. It's that "why" that keeps me in check, helps me roll past the fast food joints and keeps me in line in the kitchen. Hope this helps. Best of luck to you. :0) \o/

The first thing is to remember that it's not possible to "never want to eat bad again." Moderation is key. Eat healthy 90-95% of the time, and allow yourself a treat the other 5-10% of the time in reasonable amounts.

Accountability helps. Aside from MFP, I've taken to using Instagram as a support and accountability tool. My Instagram account is for my health, fitness, and clean eating goals. I post pictures of what I eat, exercise (including pics of the great outdoors during my hikes/runs), etc.

I'm inspired by others' healthy food pics, and I tend to stick to healthier choices most of the time because I want to post healthy food pics.

I also break my meals up into smaller meals. Some people feel better eating more at one sitting and going longer between meals, but I'm a bit obsessed with food, and for me, I find it's easier to be able to eat more frequently.