Binge eating

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danalevins
danalevins Posts: 4 Member
edited January 2016 in Motivation and Support
I'm just going to try to get straight to the point because everyone seems to want to tell their while life story for simple guidence,lol. I would just like to ask for some knowledge for controlling binge eating. Any advice is very appreciated.

Replies

  • shoobsify
    shoobsify Posts: 2 Member
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    Hey I am also looking for some support and guidance here. I find I do so well all day then late at night after kids are asleep it's so hard not to have some wine or beer and then snack like crazy! I'm really struggling with this. I wish I had advice:-( I need to find some way to stay motivated to stay on track during those late night hours!
  • Oh_Em_Jayyy
    Oh_Em_Jayyy Posts: 56 Member
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    Whatever you tend to binge on, don't keep it in the house. When you have to leave the house and go to the store to get it, it's not as enticing. If you are having an irresistible craving, like for chips or ice cream, just get 1 serving, like a vending machine portion or 1 scoop of ice cream from the local ice cream parlor.

    For late-night snacking tendencies, I will brush my teeth and try to go to bed earlier. If it's too early for bed, do something to distract yourself that you can't snack while doing like taking a bath or some exercise videos on YouTube.
  • RedPhoenix0118
    RedPhoenix0118 Posts: 1 Member
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    Hello there. I struggle with binge eating or emotional eating from time to time. I do eat clean for almost a month, and there's always a couple of days where I get depressed and I just eat a little more than I should. I can recommend a couple of things, but if you believe it's something emotional or even physical, always seek medical help. Here goes:

    1: You're not eating enough during the day. When we want to lose weight or struggle to keep it off (I was almost 200 pounds and I lost 70. I always struggle to keep on track) we tend to not eat enough during the day. The body will obviously want to get the calories it needs later. Suggestion: Eat more during the day and eat lots of veggies and whole foods. You will notice you cannot overeat on whole foods and healthy protein. You will feel satisfied and energized. Your hunger pangs at night should stop.

    2. You're an emotional eater. You want to cope with stress, unhappiness or what's going on through your mind with food. Food makes us feel great, it's a fact. Sugar, alcohol and stuff that's not good for us in high quantities feel great, at the moment. Suggestion: Before going to the kitchen and opening your pantry or fridge, think: "Am I really hungry? Do I need this? Is there a healthier alternative?" Chances are, you're not hungry and you just need to go to bed. The body needs to always feel rested anyway, specially if you have kids. IF you think you're hungry, drink a glass of water, and wait 10 minutes. If you're still hungry, grab something healthy and whole. A fruit, a slice of turkey breast with cheese, a handful of nuts, etc.

    Keep yourself accountable, and ask your family for help, if you can. If that's not possible to you at the moment, write everything down (it also keeps you busy and not reaching for food :P) . Drink plenty of water, exercise regularly and have enough sleep, you'd be surprised what those little changes can do. If you can, get some tests done. It's always good to rule out any emotional or physical condition.

  • krist3ng
    krist3ng Posts: 259 Member
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    I struggle with binge eating too. I wrote a little mantra on my hand that has helped remind me in the past day or two not to binge and to make general healthy choices. (I wrote "learn to say no to your baser impulses" because there are a few different impulses I'm constantly battling, ha.)

    Another strategy I'm trying out is a rule not to eat "easy" food. If I am hungry, I will have to prepare food, not open a bag of chips or whatever. That is useful to me because it makes my natural laziness work in my favor; also, if you're preparing food it's generally healthier; also, I prepare a finite amount of food so it's less easy to binge; and finally, eating real food is more psychologically fulfilling than snacking on junk-- you feel like you are eating a meal.
  • marcelo_templario
    marcelo_templario Posts: 653 Member
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    Hate to be the guy who says this but it is like it is: you crave and binge eat at nights because you haven't had enough nutrients during the day, also, for instance...let's say you had a good breakfast, but you took a late lunch at 2:30 PM, then worked out in the gym...or jogged....at that time of the day your sugar glucose level drops and your guts tent to interpretate this as hungry sensation because of your pancreas...the solution is....well first...will power for not eating but food, but also be bold about your needs and instead of gorging yourself with chips and sweets, to cook some rice with a lotta of onion and garlic, a small piece of jam and why not....one beer....ONE!!!!

    Much better to have 3 whinners or a roast beef than a fist of chips...
  • __Wolf__
    __Wolf__ Posts: 137 Member
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    I indulge my cravings but have learned to do it in moderation.

    I make cookies all the time (without any substitutes). However, I find that by tracking and being mindful (as in, practicing mindfulness), I am able to stop myself at one.

    The best thing is to indulge but pace the indulgence - eat one cookie, for example, then wait 30 minutes. Chances are, your cravings are going to be significantly more manageable.
  • marcelo_templario
    marcelo_templario Posts: 653 Member
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    Hate to be the guy who says this but it is like it is: you crave and binge eat at nights because you haven't had enough nutrients during the day, also, for instance...let's say you had a good breakfast, but you took a late lunch at 2:30 PM, then worked out in the gym...or jogged....at that time of the day your sugar glucose level drops and your guts tent to interpretate this as hungry sensation because of your pancreas...the solution is....well first...will power for not eating but food, but also be bold about your needs and instead of gorging yourself with chips and sweets, to cook some rice with a lotta of onion and garlic, a small piece of jam and why not....one beer....ONE!!!!

    Much better to have 3 whinners or a roast beef than a fist of chips...
  • johnboy916
    johnboy916 Posts: 52 Member
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    I binge eat Fridays...... I call it "Eat Free Friday"... lets me control my cravings and wants till the next Friday. Good luck.
  • Veryana
    Veryana Posts: 122 Member
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    I have BED (binge eating disorder). Noticed my biggest problems are dieting and eating too small portions and that craving I get when I don't get to eat "enough" of the food I want (which is more than normal portion size). I also noticed that my binge eating stops only after I've had enough of the stuff I wanted to eat or until I was so full I felt slightly nauseous, I don't have the need to eat after certain point of fullness. So I started filling myself with other stuff. I ate normal 300 gram portion of food and then started drinking water until I reached that slightly nauseous feeling required for stopping. So far this has worked better for me than eating huge portions of root vegetables and other low energy things since I didn't want to eat those things, I craved for specific foods. Eating those foods now with lots of water on top of it prevents me from taking more food and stops the need to eat.

    It probably won't work for everyone but give it a try, have 2-3 glasses of water before and/or after you eat that one portion of food. Eat enough and often during day as well, it's a lot harder to resist craving if you haven't eat enough during day :smile:
  • JoshuaMcAllister
    JoshuaMcAllister Posts: 500 Member
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    I think its human nature to crave something sweet and not very good for you. I found when i was being extremely strict with my diet that maybe once a week or bi-weekly I would have an enormous cheat day and by that I mean over-indulging in nachos, tacos, fatty meats, tubs of ice cream, bags of popcorn, with all of this being on the same cheat day. I have however curbed this by adding small amounts of sweet or cheat foods to my daily diet, ensuring that they still meet my macros. I tend to find a recipe for something, say cheesecake for example and try to make the healthiest version, instead of full fat cream cheese I've switched it up to low-fat Greek yogurt, you would be surprised at how many recipes you can change up. Homemade sweet popcorn is also a great one for curbing a sweet tooth. Since I have adopted this I very rarely binge eat or have cheat days.
  • sjscalf
    sjscalf Posts: 3 Member
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    shoobsify wrote: »
    Hey I am also looking for some support and guidance here. I find I do so well all day then late at night after kids are asleep it's so hard not to have some wine or beer and then snack like crazy! I'm really struggling with this. I wish I had advice:-( I need to find some way to stay motivated to stay on track during those late night hours!

    Oh man. I totally do the same thing! I will go all day, eating well (or more often not eating enough) and then the boyfriend and I get off work, and we more often then not end up getting fast food/something quick and simple. And I've put on about 60 pounds in the past year and a half. It HAS to change. I've always had the bad habit of being busy all day and not eating, then binging at night. Anyone is free to add me if you'd like some support, I could use the same!

    One thing I know works and I've done in the past is to meal prep one day a week and make a schedule. You should be eating something small every few hours. Which I'm not throwing stones at a glass house, this is a huge struggle for me too, but when I was going it I lost a substantial amount of weight and maintained it for many years. And don't consume any carbs/starch after typically 5-6pm.

  • Pinkylee77
    Pinkylee77 Posts: 432 Member
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    RedPhoenix0118 wrote: »
    Hello there. I struggle with binge eating or emotional eating from time to time. I do eat clean for almost a month, and there's always a couple of days where I get depressed and I just eat a little more than I should. I can recommend a couple of things, but if you believe it's something emotional or even physical, always seek medical help. Here goes:

    1: You're not eating enough during the day. When we want to lose weight or struggle to keep it off (I was almost 200 pounds and I lost 70. I always struggle to keep on track) we tend to not eat enough during the day. The body will obviously want to get the calories it needs later. Suggestion: Eat more during the day and eat lots of veggies and whole foods. You will notice you cannot overeat on whole foods and healthy protein. You will feel satisfied and energized. Your hunger pangs at night should stop.

    2. You're an emotional eater. You want to cope with stress, unhappiness or what's going on through your mind with food. Food makes us feel great, it's a fact. Sugar, alcohol and stuff that's not good for us in high quantities feel great, at the moment. Suggestion: Before going to the kitchen and opening your pantry or fridge, think: "Am I really hungry? Do I need this? Is there a healthier alternative?" Chances are, you're not hungry and you just need to go to bed. The body needs to always feel rested anyway, specially if you have kids. IF you think you're hungry, drink a glass of water, and wait 10 minutes. If you're still hungry, grab something healthy and whole. A fruit, a slice of turkey breast with cheese, a handful of nuts, etc.

    Keep yourself accountable, and ask your family for help, if you can. If that's not possible to you at the moment, write everything down (it also keeps you busy and not reaching for food :P) . Drink plenty of water, exercise regularly and have enough sleep, you'd be surprised what those little changes can do. If you can, get some tests done. It's always good to rule out any emotional or physical condition.

    This post is spot on! I would also like to add binge eating can be a form of compulsiveness or anxiety, eating is a way to calm the anxiety. I like to deal with anxiety by doing something that lets me get control of my environment like folding clothes in my drawers organizing my book cases. I now don't feel the need to binge eat.
  • VeLisaraptor13
    VeLisaraptor13 Posts: 20 Member
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    I found the book Brain Over Binge by Kathryn Hansen very helpful and insightful. Very useful for BED or bulimia.
  • bellabonbons
    bellabonbons Posts: 705 Member
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    Interesting. When I tell myself no more dieting and convince myself not to "diet" my weight begins to go down. I think that by constantly restricting and constantly feeling the need to diet creates an enormous pressure. If I tell myself I can't have something I want it more.

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