Why do people think overeating is compensating?

Options
AriesGal329
AriesGal329 Posts: 236 Member
edited August 2016 in Health and Weight Loss
Many times I'll hear the opinion that people who overeat are compensating for something missing from their lives. And we're urged to find "the real problem." Maybe I just really love to eat. I love the taste of food and I don't have to "binge" or even overeat much to gain weight...it's just my personal metabolism. Why is there the idea that there's some underlying problem I'm not addressing? For some people I'm sure there is an underlying problem, but I just don't believe that is true for everyone. Pizza's good, man!!!
«134

Replies

  • formylover
    formylover Posts: 34 Member
    Options
    i don't know but i do admit that when i feel sad or depressed some food make my day less cr@ppy: cookies, macdonald's menu (don't ask me why! i carve it also when i feel nauseous lol) .

    But the rest of the time, i eat pizza, cookies, sushi well because i carve the taste. Well balanced recipes that gives us pleasure once consumed are juste that, pleasure treats (or traps for those that have a hard time being sensible in their consumption).

    Then is you are in a low moment in your life and eating is a way to refrain from thinking about what upsets you then you may be conpensating. If food is an escape. a pleasurable one.

    IF you feel great and you eat pizza , well like you said A good, quality Pizza , genuine french fries etc. are d@mn good, we don't need to be depressed to eat them, just to have good taste buds.

    But then ... eating too much of the tasty foods may make you gain weight and then be depressed if your body image does not please you. well pick up your case lol
  • kristen6350
    kristen6350 Posts: 1,094 Member
    Options
    There's varying of "overeating". If I CI/CO more than 1900 calories a day I'm gonna gain. But that isn't the same for someone else.

    And BTW. Your metabolism isn't unusually slow. You are just eating too much for your body.

    I'm a pretty happy person but if I have a bad day the first thing I want is cake or beer. It's not like I don't love cake or beer any other time, it's just I have less control if I have a bad day. I don't care as much.
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    Options
    Lots of people legitimately comfort eat or eat to numb feelings, some compulsive overeat to the degree that it borders self-harm, some don't know what amounts are right for them, some just have bad habits, but food is also cruicial to our existence, it tastes good and is used as glue in many social settings. You can't get away from food, and we (at least the majority of the people in here) are lucky enough to have plenty of healthy, tasty and safe food available at all times.
  • vespiquenn
    vespiquenn Posts: 1,455 Member
    edited August 2016
    Options
    As others have said, like anything else, it can be an addiction. Once the connection is made that food can momentarily aid in feeling better, many people use it as a support. Sometimes it has consequences, like being in a surplus, and some times it does not, such as gaining no weight. But it has nothing to do with your metabolism.

    With that being said, I am a very logical person. So if I find myself binging, it typically was because I just wanted to eat or I was bored. I also am someone that just enjoys food, and I'm sure you won't find many that do not enjoy eating, but I just never made the emotional connection to it. I'm quite the opposite. I don't eat if I'm upset. But I have had addictions to other unhealthy methods to cope. So it just boils down to someone's coping mechanisms and how they chose to deal with external and internal stressors.
  • Pawsforme
    Pawsforme Posts: 645 Member
    Options
    TavistockToad wrote: »
    lauragreenbaum148 wrote: »
    Many times I'll hear the opinion that people who overeat are compensating for something missing from their lives. And we're urged to find "the real problem." Maybe I just really love to eat. I love the taste of food and I don't have to "binge" or even overeat much to gain weight...it's just my personal metabolism. Why is there the idea that there's some underlying problem I'm not addressing? For some people I'm sure there is an underlying problem, but I just don't believe that is true for everyone. Pizza's good, man!!!

    Actually, from a scientific standpoint you do have to over eat to gain weight as you have to be in a calorie surplus.

    I think you missed the "much" in the OP.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,902 Member
    Options
    lauragreenbaum148 wrote: »
    Many times I'll hear the opinion that people who overeat are compensating for something missing from their lives. And we're urged to find "the real problem." Maybe I just really love to eat. I love the taste of food and I don't have to "binge" or even overeat much to gain weight...it's just my personal metabolism. Why is there the idea that there's some underlying problem I'm not addressing? For some people I'm sure there is an underlying problem, but I just don't believe that is true for everyone. Pizza's good, man!!!

    I can totally feel the difference when I'm overeating because it tastes good and I want to versus when I used to emotional eat. Stick around and you will see that managing stress with food is very common.

    I very much doubt that you have a slow metabolism - it's easy to gain weight from just regularly overeating a little more than you expend.
  • coreyreichle
    coreyreichle Posts: 1,039 Member
    Options
    lauragreenbaum148 wrote: »
    Many times I'll hear the opinion that people who overeat are compensating for something missing from their lives. And we're urged to find "the real problem." Maybe I just really love to eat. I love the taste of food and I don't have to "binge" or even overeat much to gain weight...it's just my personal metabolism. Why is there the idea that there's some underlying problem I'm not addressing? For some people I'm sure there is an underlying problem, but I just don't believe that is true for everyone. Pizza's good, man!!!

    Because, it usually is. Food hits the reward centers of the brain, so it's an easy way to use food as an emotional crutch.
  • LokiGrrl
    LokiGrrl Posts: 156 Member
    Options
    I also love food and it's not an emotional thing. My terrible habit is eating when I'm bored.
  • TR0berts
    TR0berts Posts: 7,739 Member
    Options
    Pawsforme wrote: »
    TavistockToad wrote: »
    lauragreenbaum148 wrote: »
    Many times I'll hear the opinion that people who overeat are compensating for something missing from their lives. And we're urged to find "the real problem." Maybe I just really love to eat. I love the taste of food and I don't have to "binge" or even overeat much to gain weight...it's just my personal metabolism. Why is there the idea that there's some underlying problem I'm not addressing? For some people I'm sure there is an underlying problem, but I just don't believe that is true for everyone. Pizza's good, man!!!

    Actually, from a scientific standpoint you do have to over eat to gain weight as you have to be in a calorie surplus.

    I think you missed the "much" in the OP.

    I think the point - and I could very well be incorrect - is that "much" is irrelevant. So, of course, if you overeat at all, you gain weight.
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,426 Member
    Options
    I am not an emotional eater or a binge eater. A lot of people with lifelong weight issues do have emotional issues to address but definitely not every overweight person.
    I gained weight because I ate too many calories for my activity level. It was easy to do... eating the equivalant of one extra cheeseburger a day over time. Lost weight when I ate the right number. I don't have to work on anything other than that.
  • nickisa28
    nickisa28 Posts: 116 Member
    Options
    I was one of those people who was guilty of 'comfort eating'. I had a very stressful job that I wasn't happy in so would 'relax' on my day off by catching up on my to that I didn't get to watch all week with tons of junk food!! but it wasn't the sole reason for my weight gain. These were some others:
    1) I worked in catering-around food all day and my staff would suck up by bringing me larger portions of food and endless latte's!
    2) I was used to always having an active job and being able to eat what I want because running around a restaurant for 14 hours a day will definitely work it off! But when I moved into a field based role, it didn't make me eat less but sitting in meetings or in my car all day meant I was no longer working it off.
    3) my lifestyle changed with this new role...not eating all day because I spent it jumping from town to town, it was easier to go to the drive through or order a takeaway when I got home late. I would prefer to get an extra half hour in bed than eat breakfast so would grab some junk from the services on my way to work instead.

    So yes I agree that that it isn't always emotional eating. Everyone is different...my sister always loses weight when she's stressed or unhappy because she doesn't feel like eating and I think my brother in law is overweight because he isn't educated enough in healthy living.
  • sunnybeaches105
    sunnybeaches105 Posts: 2,831 Member
    Options
    So you stopped overeating, are in complete control, and are losing weight then? Very good.
  • mygrl4meee
    mygrl4meee Posts: 943 Member
    Options
    I personally believe for someone to be 100 or more pounds overweight that emotionally there is something going on. Big differences between being 30 pounds overweight compared to someone who needs to lose 100 and up pounds.
  • LokiGrrl
    LokiGrrl Posts: 156 Member
    Options
    mygrl4meee wrote: »
    I personally believe for someone to be 100 or more pounds overweight that emotionally there is something going on. Big differences between being 30 pounds overweight compared to someone who needs to lose 100 and up pounds.

    I'm curious to know why you think this.
  • sunnybeaches105
    sunnybeaches105 Posts: 2,831 Member
    Options
    LokiGrrl wrote: »
    mygrl4meee wrote: »
    I personally believe for someone to be 100 or more pounds overweight that emotionally there is something going on. Big differences between being 30 pounds overweight compared to someone who needs to lose 100 and up pounds.

    I'm curious to know why you think this.

    Are you also curious about why people might think alcoholics and drug addicts have emotional issues? These are all evidence of self-destructive behavior, and often used as coping mechanisms. It's why many of us see fat acceptance as a movement encouraging denial.

Categories