We are pleased to announce that on March 4, 2025, an updated Rich Text Editor will be introduced in the MyFitnessPal Community. To learn more about the upcoming changes, please click here. We look forward to sharing this new feature with you!

Eating Too Much Vs. Too Little

Lady_Grell
Lady_Grell Posts: 103 Member
edited November 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
Hello all. I'm quite new here, but there is one problem that I've had for a long time.

Whenever I try to change my eating habits and lifestyle, I get almost obsessed with trying to lose weight. I find myself thinking that if eating less will help me to lose weight, then eating far less will help me lose more. I know that it isn't true, at least logically. I know that I have to eat enough in order to stay healthy, but I struggle. This time, I'm planning out all my calories day by day, and I'm really putting forth an effort to eat more than I have in the past. It seems like that, in the past, I would go between two extremes of just eating with abandon without a care and a worry for what I'm consuming and practically starving myself. Has anyone else had this issue? If you had, how did you handle it? Other than consciously making myself eat reasonably, is there anything else I can do?

Replies

  • 4legsRbetterthan2
    4legsRbetterthan2 Posts: 19,588 MFP Moderator
    It would be worth talking to a health professional who specializes in helping people with eating disorders. The fact that you reconize this pattern is a huge thing and a great sign.
  • Timorous_Beastie
    Timorous_Beastie Posts: 595 Member
    Planning my day in advance helps a lot with that. I was actually surprised at how much and how "normally" I can eat (I still have pizza, burgers, pasta, and the occasional donut) and still lose weight. I had a lifetime of hearing how much dieting sucks, and realizing it doesn't have to be a painful process was eye opening.

  • wreckzrainer131
    wreckzrainer131 Posts: 33 Member
    I think it's important to look at it like a marathon rather than a sprint. I know that's a cliche but I think people should be planning for their life not how they will look in a bathing suit this summer. Only my opinion and I've only been doing this for a month so TIFWIW.
  • Lady_Grell
    Lady_Grell Posts: 103 Member
    edited March 2015
    The thing is I genuinely try to do it correctly. I'll say that I'm only going to weigh myself once a week, but then I want to weigh myself 3 or 4 times a day and freak out over those little, normal fluctuations. A part of me knows it's irrational, but I still have trouble. I tried to talk to a doctor about it once when I was eating only 700 calories, but she'd just acted as if I was lying because I was 'too fat' to have a problem with eating too little. I'm going to do my best this time. I have a friend in real life who's going to be starting the journey with me. I may have weak moments, but I'm going to do my best to learn and eat better.
This discussion has been closed.

Categories