Tips for someone with no self control!

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swoodhouse91
swoodhouse91 Posts: 5 Member
in Getting Started
Hi guys. I was wondering if anyone has any good tips or advice for someone (me) who has zero self control when it comes to food? I'm on a 3 day streak and doing well, but no matter how much I preplan meals I always actively sabotage myself when the opportunity arises. I'm starting to feel guilt and worry which I really don't want to turn into feelings of failure/giving up which always happens. Food seems to have such a hold over me due to a busy lifestyle. Any advice at all would be great!
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  • zoeysasha37
    zoeysasha37 Posts: 7,088 Member
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    My best tip for someone with no self control ~~ get some self control! :-)
    LOL!

    Anyway, what I did was just keep on going. If you slip up one meal, don't let it destroy your entire day. Just pick back up and keep on with your original plan for the day.
    After doing this for a while, it will just become part of your day and routine. So once something becomes part of your daily routine, it's easier to follow and requires much less thought. You just automatically do it.
    So just keep trying, if you mess up just move forward .
  • liznotyet
    liznotyet Posts: 402 Member
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    Three anti-sabotage strategies:

    (1) don't keep binge food at home or in stashes at work or school.
    (2) eating less sugar and sweet stuff (including artificial sweetener and processed flour) sometimes makes people crave less sugar, but it may take 60-90 days to lose the craving, especially if you indulge in (3).
    (3) if alcohol causes you to lose self control, limit it to 1 day a week.
  • BigSpoonSA
    BigSpoonSA Posts: 38 Member
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    How do you sabotage yourself? Do you buy junk when grocery shopping or hit the vending machines at work? If you have a sweet tooth like me, chew gum. It really helps!
  • WorkoutJunkie1
    WorkoutJunkie1 Posts: 183
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    i lack self-control and will power a lot of the times. like for example, i walk into the kitchen and start looking in cupboards and the fringe and sometimes i find myself just snacking. not entire proportions, but snacking is the devil.

    anyway, when that happens, i tend to kind of "punish" myself with an extra 3 mile run. it's not really punishment because I love running, but forcing yourself to do an entire 6 mile run as fast as you can and then take a break for an hour, then do another 6 miles is a pretty workable punishment for me.

    we don't all have the same "punishments." Maybe yours can be a hour on the stationary bike or on the spin bike.

    this way your brain negatively correlates snacking or binge eating with HARD HARD cardio.
  • Cortneyrenee04
    Cortneyrenee04 Posts: 1,117 Member
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    The good thing about all of this losing weight stuff is that you get so many chances every day to make good decisions. You "mess up" at breakfast, you get another chance at lunch and dinner. Thankfully, one good decision generally leads to another so just try to make one good choice. It gets easier- just take it one day or one meal at a time!
  • slynn1023
    slynn1023 Posts: 27
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    First, if it happens, you have to accept it and move on. Just because you have one bad day, don't give yourself permission to give up. One day of not so good eating isn't going to kill you, just like one day of eating really healthy isn't going to save your life.

    When I'm having those stretch of a few days of fighting myself not to go crazy, I get on MFP and read the message boards or I google success stories or inspirational quotes. Sometimes I get so wrapped up in it I forget i was craving something. Also the success stories are definitely encouraging and motivate me to continue.
  • laceygirlllll
    laceygirlllll Posts: 1
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    I work art Haagen Dazs, an ice cream store. The temptation is great but what I started doing was making bets against my coworkers. Any single sample resulted in $20 lost. When money is on the line, it's no joke
  • shai74
    shai74 Posts: 512 Member
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    I spent 20 years not being able to control what I eat. Despite knowing the calorie content of pretty much everything I put into my mouth, I couldn't stop. I'd lose 5kg and gain 10kg. Which is why at 40 I ended up being 50kg overweight, even though I'd been "on a diet" my whole life. I can't remember a time when I didn't weigh myself, and count calories. I'd feel so deprived I'd end up blowing a day, or a week of good eating just because I couldn't keep it under control anymore. I've "started again Monday" hundreds of times.

    After doing this for years, I can say for the first time in my life food does NOT control me. I do not binge at night, I do not spend all day thinking about my next meal, how many calories can I afford, if I save them up can I eat chocolate. I do not eat super perfectly for a whole week and then consume 2000 cals in one sitting because I just can't stop myself. I don't crave sugar, I don't reward myself with junk, I don't even think about it.

    The calories in/calories out crowd, the advocates of "everything in moderation", those who think a sugar donut is fine if it fits in your allowance will disagree, but the ONLY thing that's ever worked for me long term is low carb. And I mean no bread/pasta/potato/rice/grains of any kind/sugar/starchy foods at all. None. 20g of carbs or less a day (mostly from green vegetables and cheese and cream in my coffee).

    I'm not saying you should eat low carb, you can eat potato chips all day for all I care (as long as it's in your allowance, right guys?). All I'm sharing is what's worked for me.
  • slynn1023
    slynn1023 Posts: 27
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    I work art Haagen Dazs, an ice cream store. The temptation is great but what I started doing was making bets against my coworkers. Any single sample resulted in $20 lost. When money is on the line, it's no joke

    I like the idea... I work at Dairy Queen and ice cream is my favorite treat!!! I have a co-worker that is also dieting and cheats often. lol. I think i may propose this idea to her. =D
  • samking247
    samking247 Posts: 4 Member
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    Stay active on this site!!! Add lots of friends, check your news feed often - seeing other people's successes and positive posts really helps keep me moving forward toward my goals.

    I also found that after a few weeks of 'clean' eating the cravings really do start to go away, it's like an addiction; when you first quit or cut back it's all you can think about but the longer you're away from it and the more healthy options you surround yourself with, the farther away it seems until you only think about it in extreme trigger situations.

    Personally, I was kicking serious *kitten* until I quit MFP about a year ago thinking I could do it on my own, that was a big mistake. I didn't realize how much I needed the support of people in the same boat as me, and more importantly people who had already been where I was and beat past it! I love seeing successful people on this site, helps me believe that we can all do it!
  • donna1432
    donna1432 Posts: 87 Member
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    what triggers the self control is it emotional eating? are you an eater due to boredom? the truth is YOUR are in control of your self control I NEVER bring bad stuff in my home.. if I want a treat like say a bag of chips I will stop get a small bag of lays and that will be my treat ..not cheat but treat give yourself a day for a treat.. say thu nights you have that ONE thing your mising but say its ice cream dont bring a bucket in the house but go to the ice cream parlor have a small frozen yogurt :D then you dont feel like your punishing yourself and you have something to look forward to
  • trogalicious
    trogalicious Posts: 4,584 Member
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    My best tip for someone with no self control ~~ get some self control! :-)
    LOL!

    Anyway, what I did was just keep on going. If you slip up one meal, don't let it destroy your entire day. Just pick back up and keep on with your original plan for the day.
    After doing this for a while, it will just become part of your day and routine. So once something becomes part of your daily routine, it's easier to follow and requires much less thought. You just automatically do it.
    So just keep trying, if you mess up just move forward .
    yuuuuuuuuuuuuuup.
  • slynn1023
    slynn1023 Posts: 27
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    i just thought of this too... i buy the 90 cal snack bars (whether its fiber one, kellogg's, or quaker), and if i feel i absolutely need to have something i grab one of those and slowly pick at it. i make sure to take a long time to eat it.

    Also if you like pomegranates, they take awhile to eat. :)
  • figfighter
    figfighter Posts: 16 Member
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    This may sound sadistic, but i've found that if i have the time if i can just take the item im craving and put it in front of me, or stand in front of it in a store, or carry it with me while i shop i can pay attention to the experience of my emotions, and the addictive behaviors all surge through me and then eventually ebb..and go away and after doing that a few times, i started to see that i didn't NEED it. I could have the feeling and then let it slowly..pass.

    this sounds like a really good idea
  • marywells1420
    marywells1420 Posts: 8
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    my number one tip is don't buy food that makes you lose self control. I have no control when it comes to chocolate or chips so those foods don't enter my house.

    my second tip is to prepare food ahead to binge on. When I get bored I tend to eat. I try and keep things like carrot or cucumber and greek yoghurt in the fridge so that I can grab them to snack on instead of grabbing something unhealthy. I also chew chewing gum if I still feel unsatisfied.

    there are of course days where nothing go to plan and I try not to beat myself up over it.
  • figfighter
    figfighter Posts: 16 Member
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    I love all these tips of not bringing food in your house that you know you shouldn't eat. Are you the only one living in your house? That doesn't work for me.
  • Hockey_Winger
    Hockey_Winger Posts: 1,164 Member
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    I will echo a few things already mentioned.

    If you have a particular weakness or triggers, just don’t keep it around.

    Dieting is more about portions and what you eat, and not just starving yourself. Starving just make you hungry with makes the whole thing harder.

    Find ways to portion control, I was having an odd craving for ice cream one day. I like ice cream and all but it’s not a big deal to me normally. But that day it was driving me up the wall… was trolling the ice cream case at the grocery store, swearing to myself when I came across some mini-drumstick cones. Only 100 calories? What the heck, had one, craving covered and that way I am not sitting there later with the rest of a tub of ice cream.

    Find alternatives, my diet is a higher protein one. I have some protein diet snack bars that I actually like the taste of. That way, if I want to dig into something I shouldn’t, I go get of those. Again cravings covered and actually got in something that is better than the alternatives. You don’t have to use protein bars, is there a fruit that you like? Or a veggie?

    The longer you eat healthy the more you will enjoy eating healthy things. May sound odd now but a bag of baby carrots in the fridge makes a nice snack.

    I have no self control either, so I make sure I control everything else I can. :P
  • donna1432
    donna1432 Posts: 87 Member
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    No but the entire family deserves to eat healthy... my grandkids come over and they know they can have fruits and healthy snacks and my husband used to want to eat bad foods ( hispanic with tons of sodium) and he adjusted to the healthier lifestyle and LOVES the feeling of it.. so thats why we say don't bring it in and by the time your willpower is strong enough that you could reintroduce it your family wont want it WIN WIN
  • donna1432
    donna1432 Posts: 87 Member
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    Shlynn although those are healthier alternatives they really arent its the same crap just smaller size.. look at the ingredients and a great app to use is fooducate its free and you can scan your foods.. those 100 cal pack are soo deceiving
  • figfighter
    figfighter Posts: 16 Member
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    No but the entire family deserves to eat healthy... my grandkids come over and they know they can have fruits and healthy snacks and my husband used to want to eat bad foods ( hispanic with tons of sodium) and he adjusted to the healthier lifestyle and LOVES the feeling of it.. so thats why we say don't bring it in and by the time your willpower is strong enough that you could reintroduce it your family wont want it WIN WIN

    So do you just tell your partner who is also an adult and shares a home with you that they can't being their food home and keep it there? I don't understand how that works.

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