How to get back on Track?

hiswinburne · November 2015

I did so well for so long and now I have at least 2 binge days every week? It's like my motivations gone out the window... Could someone give me loads of tips to try to help me get back on track, as crappy food is taking over again

KrisiAnnH · November 2015

Unfortunately, there isn't a huge amount anyone can do. And I'm not saying this to be horrible! But you have to want to do it yourself, that's the only place motivation can come from.

That being said, have you considered reevaluating your goals? A lot of the time when people binge a lot it's because they're over restricting. If you allow for treats in your day to day eating, you're much less likely to go all out and binge. Or another approach could be to have one 'treat' meal a week- I try to stick to my calorie goals all week and then once a week will have a meal out or a takeaway (or just something higher in calories), and try to stick to my maintenance cals that day so I know I'm not doing too much damage.

Another approach that works for a lot of people is pre-planning your meals. If you prelog everything, you know you're definitely going to be staying within your goals.

What causes you to binge? Is it because you're hungry or because you cant be bothered to cook? I know for me, a lot of the time I order takeaway etc is because after a long day I really cant be bothered to cook/go get food shopping. You can combat this by bulk-cooking and freezing portions so that when you are tired, all it takes is shoving one in the microwave

christinecoffeebean · November 2015

I think a good start would be to get back to basics. There's always an underlying reason, let's face it...nobody wants to work out for the hell of it and restrict their eating habits. Remind yourself why you are doing this, whether it's for general health, to keep up with your kids....hell, even if it's to look good naked! Reinforce your goal in your head, let it become your inner voice.

Try to exercise first thing in the morning. If you smash out an hours workout you will feel energised and less likely to sabotage the mornings efforts by bingeing. Think of it like "hmm I did a killer leg work out today. Is this piece of cake really worth that effort?" If you must do "cheat food" ( I hate that expression) then make it a cheat meal. Not a cheat day or days...don't reward yourself with food, you're better than that.

Work towards making exercise a routine but don't overthink it! We don't overthink our routines do we? We don't sit there deliberating about whether to have a shower, we just do it cos we have to! Lace up your jogging shoes and just do it! If you really don't feel like exercising, trick yourself. Say "I will go to the gym, but if I feel crap I will just do 10 mins and go home." I guarantee that you won't go home after the 10mins due to the effort of getting there.

I'm a very visual creature so I like to follow likeminded "fitspo" people on Instagram. Get some "fitspiration" and look at pics of clothes you like or body types you aspire to look like.

Overall be kind to yourself. Tomorrow is a new day. Yesterday was crap? That's fine, get back on that horse. You deserve to be the best version of you

girlviernes · November 2015

How long have you been at this? How long were you on track? What was working for you previously?

Want2bthin135 · November 2015

You really just have to make up your mind to do what needs to be done to get the results that you want.

There are days when I eat over my daily calories, but I always track my calories so I have to look at what I ate. I try to cut back a little on other days to help with the overage.

Try to find out what is making you overeat and deal with the issue. "If hunger is not the problem, eating is not the solution"

bmayes2014 · November 2015

I was doing something similar for a long time. Like everyone says - it has to come from within. I'd suggest getting on the forums here daily, maybe finding a "before" picture of yourself you can put on your cell phone or somewhere you will see it every day for motivation, instagram fitness accounts - basically - help and reminders as to why you want to lose weight. Finally, just simply forgiving yourself and DONT GIVE UP! Take it day by day and get back on track

DisneyDude85 · November 2015

I think the keyword is in title: TRACK! Track your calories, eating patterns/habits. See what makes you binge and get off track. A quick glance at your diary shows you aren't actively logging. This data is key for times like this. Maybe you're being too aggressive with your loss goals. Your profile says 31 lbs. Have you thought about putting yourself at 1lb/week or even .5lb/week? This will give you more calories which leads to more food, which leads to less hunger, which leads to less bingeing.

Have patience. Losing weight is a process. Give yourself some wiggle room for trial and error! Good luck moving forward

eliaus3640 · November 2015

I agree with the poster above about tracking. Also, weight loss involves a lot of problem solving and trial and error for coming up with solutions. Here are some solutions I've found that work for me:

1-don't keep any food in the house you can binge on. If you need something go out and buy a single serving size
2- don't let yourself get really hungry. Have a snack with you always and stay hydrated
3-is it emotional? I find a food diary of what I binged on and why is helpful to determine patterns
4-are you eating enough protein? This helps to keep me from getting hungry quickly

Binging isn't failing so try not to blame yourself. Just analyze the issue and see if you can come up with some solutions that work for you

Need2Exerc1se · November 2015

Want2bthin135 wrote: »

You really just have to make up your mind to do what needs to be done to get the results that you want.

This ^^

Ultimately it comes down to what you want most.

brb2008 · November 2015

KrisiAnnH wrote: »

A lot of the time when people binge a lot it's because they're over restricting.

Another approach that works for a lot of people is pre-planning your meals.

What causes you to binge?

I support all of this, you have to figure out why you binge before you can have a plan to stop. I found that 1400 calories a day wasnt enough, and now its a bit higher and I always allow myself a treat at the end of my dinner. Just mentally knowing I CAN have whatever I like helps me resist temptations at other times of the day, looking forward to that treat!

I also pre-plan and pre-log. By doing this Im making very simple rules for myself, once its planned I cant change it (unless something crazy happens. Like we ran out of milk so I had to make a different dinner once, but I still logged the new dinner before I ate it). Pre-logging has really kept my evening snacking to a minimum and I havent had a binge for 10 days! That doesnt sound like long but I havent made it through a whole weekend in months. This past weekend was the first!! I credit it with all of the above, allowing treats, eating ENOUGH each day, and not stressing hard about the scale.

cafeaulait7 · November 2015

When you were doing so well did you take before-and-after measurements or try on clothes you used to fit, etc? I find the tangible results of following my calorie goals to be very motivating! Wearing jeans that had gotten to be too tight to button is just so rewarding

Or seeing bad test results come back good at the doctor's!

If you didn't do it for long enough to have results like that, don't worry - you will! I have a hard time feeling motivated at the beginning because it doesn't feel 'real' enough until I see at least a slight measurement change or similar. I think it's the hard part.

OTOH, if you over-restrict, the hardest part is keeping to it for a long while, yeah. I never take a big deficit because that's so hard!

How to get back on Track?

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