Help! Can't stop thinking about the bad foods I'm giving up!

Hi, my name is Kai and my goal is to lose my belly fat by the summer. I've NEVER felt comfortable in a bikini and I just want to look and feel great by the time the summer comes...problem is I workout and eat relatively healthy but im a terrible midnight snacker:( like now for example, all I want is just a huge bowl of ice cream and this is my biggest problem with losing weight, sticking to a diet! Please, any tips on how to stay on track?? It's like the more I deny myself the more I want it! And I'm scared to even take a small portion cause I'm afraid my self-control will shatter at that point - please, need someone to.talk to :/

Replies

  • H_Ock12
    H_Ock12 Posts: 1,152 Member
    If you like midnight ice cream (or any other food), preplan your day and leave enough calories for it at the end. If you're concerned about eating too many portions, try the individual serving sizes.
  • KyleGrace8
    KyleGrace8 Posts: 2,205 Member
    Maybe only buy one pint of ice cream or something like Halo top. That way you can have the whole thing and it won't be so bad.
  • Stella3838
    Stella3838 Posts: 439 Member
    edited January 2017
    Maybe a mind reset can help. I think we get ourselves in a bad place saying this food is good or this food is bad. As long as you can create that calorie deficit, you can have ice cream or cookies or chips. So, they aren't bad, there are just healthier choices. But denying yourself the things you love isn't good either. It will set you up for a terrible binge. I'd say try really hard to just have a serving of ice cream if you want it that badly. Individual packaged servings of treats could be a great solution. Personally, there are times where I have to purge all the treats from the house because my control isn't there. If it's not around I can't eat it. Absolute worst case, dish out a serving and wash the rest of the container down the sink. It'll at least get you by tonight and then you can work on pre-planning treats into your days more often so it doesn't become a thing of desperation, which almost always turns into losing control on portions. Stay strong. You've got a goal, so get after it. Best of luck!!
  • albertabeefy
    albertabeefy Posts: 1,169 Member
    Stella3838 wrote: »
    Maybe a mind reset can help. I think we get ourselves in a bad place saying this food is good or this food is bad. As long as you can create that calorie deficit, you can have ice cream or cookies or chips.
    This is pretty-much true if you're medically healthy. If you insist you don't want to eat things you consider "unhealthy", it's best to just never have them in the house.
  • PrizePopple
    PrizePopple Posts: 3,133 Member
    I like eating at night. So I don't really eat in the morning. Around noon to 1pm my body starts to give me the "hey I'm hungry, feed me" signs and so that's when I eat. I try and pre-log my food so then I know what I can eat. Denying yourself things you like is only going to make matters worse. It's easier in the long run to say "okay, I can have 1 serving of Ben and Jerry's tonight" and log it and be done with it. Better than kicking your own *kitten* when you "slip up".
  • Stella3838
    Stella3838 Posts: 439 Member
    This is pretty-much true if you're medically healthy. If you insist you don't want to eat things you consider "unhealthy", it's best to just never have them in the house.

    And I agree with this which is why personally I never bring things into the house that I know will derail me, but leading a life of complete deprivation usually doesn't work either. It's a matter of determining how you control yourself when you want something that's "unhealthy". I just wouldn't agree to go completely without, but have these things on a rare occasion. Especially if they become an obsessive thought.
  • qsmoss
    qsmoss Posts: 4 Member
    I am also a midnight snacked and I have found it best to save calories so I can have a snack at night. I don't crave bad foods but just a snack like yogurt. Also if you like ice cream I find that swapping for a healthier alternative will help as well as saving calories. Artic Zero and Halo Top run from 150-250 calories for a pint. For myself I usually eat a later breakfast after my fasted workout around 10:30 and try to not eat after midnight. Find ways to make it livable and sustainable or it won't work
  • everher
    everher Posts: 909 Member
    I agree with everyone else denying yourself doesn't work. I've tried it. Over and over and over again. Eventually you'll cave, binge, and then feel terrible.

    My advice? Things I know I will eat too much of I don't keep in the house. Ice cream, for example, I don't keep in the house.

    If I want ice cream I go to an ice cream shop, get a scoop of ice cream, log it, and move on. There isn't a chance for me to binge on it because I don't have any more.

    After a while, smaller portions will seem normal to you. I used to be able to eat a pint of ice cream in one sitting now I feel like a scoop is a lot.
  • emilysusana
    emilysusana Posts: 416 Member
    I plan a treat for every single night. Sometimes it's just a half cup of slow-churned ice cream (110 calories) and sometimes it's something big like my husband's carrot cake (450 calories!). I go ahead and log it early in the day so I make sure I have enough calories for it. Sometimes I'll take an extra walk to buy myself enough calories. If i run out of calories, I still have something small like the ice cream) because 100 calories isn't going to ruin everything. What will ruin everything is if I start feeling deprived. It's worked for 6 months. I don't feel like I'm dieting.
  • kaialexander17
    kaialexander17 Posts: 134 Member
    Thanks guys! You were a big help!