I need to lose over 50 pounds

Orphebeus
Orphebeus Posts: 1 Member
edited November 24 in Health and Weight Loss
I am an emotional 'binge eater', and need help...advice and support. My worst habit is eating right before bedtime. I have had long term problems with insomnia, and food before bedtime seems to help me to sleep.

I appreciate any help anyone can give, and will help others in return.

Thank you,
Becky

Replies

  • Stacescotty
    Stacescotty Posts: 29 Member
    I tend to eat light for breakfast and lunch and save around 800-1,000 calories for dinner so that I can eat a lot at the end of the day.
  • tomteboda
    tomteboda Posts: 2,171 Member
    I found its MUCH easier to practice self-control at the grocery store for an hour than it is at home all the time.
  • KrisiAnnH
    KrisiAnnH Posts: 352 Member
    Balancing your calories so that you have some left at the end of the day for your pre-bed snack could be a good way to go. It sounds like pre-logging could be beneficial to you- even if its just pre-logging what you know you'll eat before bed at the start of the day, so you can work around it with the rest of your calories.

    Another option would be to find low calorie snacks so your nighttime food doesnt make too much of a dent in your calories. Maybe even replacing food with things like cup-a-soups or a cup of tea could help? If it's the ritual of eating that you're struggling with I find hot drinks often help me feel full.

    As for tackling binge eating, the most important thing is probably to make sure you're not hungry throughout the day- I know it sounds obvious, but I find I'm more likely to binge eat if I let myself get really hungry. Small snacks or well planned, well balanced meals will help you feel full, as will pre-logging or pre-planning your food for the day :)
  • TheopolisAmbroiseIII
    TheopolisAmbroiseIII Posts: 197 Member
    edited September 2015
    Second what a lot of folks are saying.

    1. Set a reasonable goal. Don't try to lose 50lbs at once, and don't set deadlines. Aim for 5lbs down. However many weeks it takes you, you'll accomplish it.

    2. Dont' keep your trigger foods in the house. For me, it's chips and chocolate. If they're in the house, i'll hoover them, and then eat all the cookies, ice cream, cheese, chocolate chips from the baking cupboard.. If you live with other people, sit them down and explain why you have to have a more spartan pantry. I have spoken with my wife who isn't looking to lose weight. I said that if she wanted chips, that's fine, but please eat them at work, or bring home a single serving bag and eat them all. She grew up in a large family without a lot of money, so she's a sucker for a deal, but we had words the last time she brought home a double pack of party sized bags of chips from Costco.

    3. Have inspiration, even if it's unrealistic. Realize you may not ever achieve it, but you can come close. For me, it's Chris Evans as Captain America. He's a little shorter than I am, but to have a similarly sized upper body and trim waist is a goal of mine. I don't expect I'll ever be Captain America, but maybe I could be, like, a moderately good cosplay version of him?

    4. Log all your food that you eat normally for a week. Look back over it. What are some high calorie items you could do without? For me it's McDonald's. I love McDonald's, and I'm not ashamed to say it. Its fatty, salty, sweet food that anyone can do without. I still have it, maybe once every couple of weeks, but I get Coke Zero instead of an extra 200 calories of Coke, and I really like their signature grilled chicken wraps, but you can't have my fries. Once you see where you can cut some calories, do that. Don't try to take on a whole new eating plan from day one. Just modify what you already do. Eat the stuff you like, but less of it. Steer clear of stuff that seems to make you binge (see point 2).

    5. Find foods you enjoy that you find filling and are low calorie. For me, it's carrot sticks. I have about 4 carrots worth throughout the morning. I don't eat breakfast, but that's a personal choice and not a recommendation. I take thyroid meds that are taken on an empty stomach when I wake up, and I'm not supposed to eat for an hour afterwards. This puts me well into my commute to work, where I'll sip a black tea or coffee. I have those carrot sticks in my bag, and I'll start munching them at my desk while I get caught up on email and whatnot. They fill me up, along with the coffee or tea and probably a bottle of water.

    6. Find some supportive friends on MFP. Feel free to add me. However, in my opinion, it's best to steer clear of people you actually know as MFP friends. I know that I was less apt to log accurately on bad days when I had real friends as my MFP friends, out of some misplaced sense of shame. I like the weird collection of names who pop up on my feed, but I don't feel like I need to hide anything from, lets be honest, internet randos that I'll never actually meet.

    7. Save a 10% or so of your calories for after supper. Even if you intend supper to be the last thing you eat, knowing that you're not allowed to eat anything else after supper just about guarantees you will be obsessing over it and slip and then just think "hell with it, I'm already over..". Just before bed maybe have a little piece of cheese or something you enjoy to sop up those last few calories as a ritual to say "I completed the day successfully."

    Some people will have other suggestions and some people may argue some of the ones I've provided. Pick and choose and find what combination works for you.
  • taunto_
    taunto_ Posts: 91 Member
    You will get a lot of good responses here I am sure. Here are a few tips/suggestions from me.

    1) Be persistent. I lost 55 lbs. I am back to where I started and I regret it. I wasn't persistent. Stick with it at any cost! It sucks starting over again.

    2) Its a long journey. celebrate the little achievements (don't celebrate with food).

    3) build a better relationship with food. We use food for comforting us because for many of us, food is one of the very few things that is reliable and stable. You have to slowly change your mentality. Food, just like any relationship, can be unhealthy if you let it control you. Food is for nutrition and for brightening up your day. Overeating will do you absolutely no good.

    Hope these helps.

    Stay crunchy.
  • leahcollett1
    leahcollett1 Posts: 807 Member
    its do-able i have lost 59lbs more before my bloody all inclusive holiday he he. i also am the type of gal to snack alot before bed time.. i try save the calories up for that time of day - it is do-able
  • Jennak87
    Jennak87 Posts: 112 Member
    I'm a stress eater/ last night eater too and like a lot of people have said, I keep about 200 calories for the end of the night to I can have something good at about 9pm. I always have a slice of wholemeal toast and 15g of nutella (177 calories for the whole snack).

    As for your insomnia and food helping you sleep, there are some foods that actually make you sleepy because they contain the building blocks of serotonin (can you tell I'm a psychologist.. I'm actually putting myself to sleep here.. hahaha). Generally high carb foods will make you sleepy, I'm guessing that's what you usually reach for before bed? But those aren't your only options! Try eating a banana (alone or on on wholegrain toast) or turkey is another good one if you eat meat.

    You can do this!
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    I budget calories for a bed time snack. I like something higher carb than how I eat earlier in the day - makes me sleepy. This is filling and low cal:

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  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    Yoga has helped me with emotional eating.

    How Yoga Can Help End Binge Eating

    One breath at a time, end the suffering of binge-eating

    ...According to Juliano, yoga gives people the skills to stay with what they are feeling, rather than turning to food to escape. People who are obese or suffering from eating disorders have a tendency to dissociate from their bodies -- to choose not to feel what they are feeling when they are angry, anxious, or sad. Often, they turn to food to numb themselves. "There's this sense that I have to feel better right now, " Juliano says. "There is a complete intolerance of what is happening right now." This need to escape unpleasant feelings triggers a binge.

    When you eat to escape what you are feeling, you lose touch with the experience of eating, as well. This is one reason binges can spiral out of control. "You have no understanding that you are full, way past full, into uncomfortable, because you're so out of it," Juliano explains. "You have no connection to what you're eating. You're eating a pint of ice cream and can't even taste it. Or you go to make yourself some toast and before you know it, half the loaf is gone."

    Mindful yoga directly challenges the habit of dissociating from your body and your present-moment experience. "The whole point of yoga is to stay connected to your body. You learn it through practice, through breathing, and through breathing through the sensations."

    Read more: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-science-willpower/201007/how-yoga-can-help-end-binge-eating
  • coachRichie
    coachRichie Posts: 27 Member
    I like to have a snack before going to bed as well.. for me something light works best .. If I eat too much then I have problems sleeping. My favourite snacks are a banana with peanut butter or cottage cheese with a bit of orange marmalade .. last night I had a handful of grapes.
    Do keep track of your foods you are eating throughout the day and try to stay under your calories.
    Exercising is very important as well.. make sure you are doing some sort of exercise during the day.. a minimum of 25 minutes is all you need.

    Coach Richie

  • OhMsDiva
    OhMsDiva Posts: 1,073 Member
    I tend to eat light for breakfast and lunch and save around 800-1,000 calories for dinner so that I can eat a lot at the end of the day.

    I also eat the majority of my food in the evening so I can have dinner and a few snacks.
  • Bshmerlie
    Bshmerlie Posts: 1,026 Member
    If you are having trouble sleeping and food before sleeping helps you go to sleep then eat before you go to bed. I don't see the problem. Despite the myths out there you're body doesn't care when you eat. If you stay within your set calories for the day you will lose weight. It doesn't matter when you eat them. Think of your body as a Hybrid car. It runs on gas (calories) and also has a battery (fat). Does your car care when the gas goes in? NOPE. If it runs out of gas(calories) it will then run on the battery (FAT). So during the day burn more than your gas in your tank and use that battery. That will create a deficit and you will lose weight.
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