"Trigger Foods". Ugh. Sometimes self control breaks down and it becomes crazy obvious why I was fat.

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Geocitiesuser
Geocitiesuser Posts: 1,429 Member
edited March 2017 in Motivation and Support
It's been happening more and more lately, and I'm re-facing the reality that I have certain trigger foods I just can't eat.

Over the course of losing 115lbs I have gone off my diet three times. The first time months ago was protein blondies set off my sweet tooth. In a haze of piggery I had eaten 3,000+ calories that day in a blink of an eye. When I came back to reality I threw the box out. The second time a couple of weeks ago I had it real bad, optimum nutrition cake bites again set off my sweet tooth, and in a rage of piggery I ate them all and somehow talked myself into pizza. It took two weeks to take the weight off from that day.

Again, this morning, I see the pattern. It's 8am. With huge shame my food diary is already 2200 calories. A horrific number. Well above my allotted calories and still a whole day to go. What made me snap out of control again? Those damn optimum nutrition cake bites. I ate 6 packages between last night and early this morning, SIX! There is no excuse under the sun ever!

I can only wonder what the hell is wrong with me. I can only imagine that it is sugar in general that drives me insane and sets me down the piggered road. 115lbs and it's like acting like a rational person around food is still beyond me. There are just certain foods I should not and can no longer eat for sanity reasons. I suppose it will always be like this. A fight against some sort of innate instinct that wants me to be fat against my own best interests.

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  • Annie_01
    Annie_01 Posts: 3,096 Member
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    I have specific foods that I don't seem to be able to moderate...I have learned...just don't buy them. I keep a DO NOT BUY LIST in my head. I add to that list if a food becomes problematic for me. Main two foods on that list...Peanut Butter M&Ms and Reduced Fat Cheezits.

    However...if they just happen to find their way in to my grocery cart...I just realize that I am going to eat all of it. I quit lying to myself that I can moderate them.

  • peanutbuttertuesday
    peanutbuttertuesday Posts: 192 Member
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    I have been there too. Anything with chocolate or cream cheese is the danger zone for me. I agree with the above poster that instant accessibility to extra helpings may be an issue. When you buy/ make sweets like that, what if you put it all in the freezer? Then you have to wait to thaw another serving and have time to reconsider. Like I have a bunch of chocolate in my freezer, but it is out of sight and mind, and by the time it thaws I can just eat a better snack. Or, would those cake things be tasty as a topping for nonfat Greek yogurt? Break them up over it, maybe a sprinkle of cinnamon, and it would be more filling so you are less likely to binge?
  • __TMac__
    __TMac__ Posts: 1,665 Member
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    I totally get it. I used to get the giant food service boxes of Cheezits and Goldfish crackers, thinking that it would be good for kids' snacks. The first time I ate all of it over just two days, I thought it was an aberration. The second time, it was concerning. The third time, it's a pattern.

    If I get them at all now, it's in single-serving packets, one for each kid as a treat. None for me, because it just awakens the demon, but then doesn't put it back to bed. I end up binging on other things. The kids are gracious enough to understand that we just can't have it in the house.

    I do have a recipe for homemade Cheezits, which are different enough that I don't want to binge on them, or after eating them. I've only made them once, though because they're a pain. My daughter will sometimes make cheese crisps (literally piles of shredded cheese, baked until crisp), and I can deal with those OK.
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,182 Member
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    I'm not quite ready to accuse saltine crackers and tortilla chips of being my kryptonite, but salted carby crunchy snacky things are a common feature of my occasional days above my goal. I managed to keep under my earned calories yesterday, but it was a close run thing. As far as that goes, 4 oz tuna with black pepper is also featured on my food diaries of my 2 most recent over-days. I'm conflicted on a solution.
  • mollylautz
    mollylautz Posts: 25 Member
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    I do the same thing. Pretty much any type of cereal is my trigger. I could easily eat a whole box of Frosted Flakes or Captain Crunch. I mean, what adult only puts 3/4 of a cup of cereal anyway?!?!
    I never buy cereal. I just can't have it in the house.
    I think that identifying the behavior is half the battle. Having a plan to deal with it is the challenge!
    No shame in discussing these moments. We all have them! You're doing great! 115 lost??? Amazing!!!!
  • starfruit132
    starfruit132 Posts: 291 Member
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    It's fantastic that you acknowledge the situation. I think many of us have trigger, comfort foods. It sounds like you have found a "protein-heavy good for you snack" that has become a trigger. Stop buying them if you can. Switch to one that has a little less sweet taste but all the protein. Or, if you really, really want a sweet - get one bakery style blondie/brownie, and plan for it/count it ahead of time. Meantime, you are doing great, so don't get discouraged.
  • wendyron3
    wendyron3 Posts: 91 Member
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    Trigger foods always lead me to a binge (especially ice cream). I listened to a speaker today say that to truly get over an addiction you have to get it out of your life. That made me think that this is how I am with sugar. Do you think removing the triggers from your life would help??
  • Annie_01
    Annie_01 Posts: 3,096 Member
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    wendyron3 wrote: »
    Trigger foods always lead me to a binge (especially ice cream). I listened to a speaker today say that to truly get over an addiction you have to get it out of your life. That made me think that this is how I am with sugar. Do you think removing the triggers from your life would help??

    IMO...

    Removing something such as all sugar from your life is virtually impossible since sugar is found naturally in a large percentage of most foods. Instead of looking at "sugar" focus more on the individual foods that are hard for you to control. If ice cream is hard for you to control then take a look at ways to manage it. Perhaps only buy single serve containers...one at a time. Eat it only while you are out of your home...make a special occasion out of it. Maybe for a while...eliminate it out of your diet.

    I tried moderation on some of my "trigger" foods. It worked with some of them...but sadly not all. So for now I just don't buy them. I am not sure if I will ever be able to have them in the house and not overeat them.

    I know that there will be some people that say...moderate...but I had to ask myself...was it worth going through the struggle to moderate those foods. I chose to eliminate for the time being. Losing weight and keeping it off was more important to me than being able to say that I successfully moderated some food.

    That's just me though...I decided to pick and choose my battles.
  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
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    out of curiousity - prior to these binges - have you been including comfort foods you enjoy in your eating plan or ignoring them totally?

    I find I do much better overall, if I include fun stuff at least 2-3 times a week and I just make it fit into my daily calories
  • Geocitiesuser
    Geocitiesuser Posts: 1,429 Member
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    ^ It's just certain foods that set me off, and if they do I remove them from my diet. Maybe one of the artificial sweetners they use or how much they use. Otherwise I avoid eating too much "fun stuff" because it doesn't fit my macros or my goals usually, so it's eaten sparingly when in social situations. Otherwise I'm more than happy to eat clean 90% of the time.

    No more ON cake bites for me :)
  • StealthHealth
    StealthHealth Posts: 2,417 Member
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    I have found that for me having too steep a deficit is a likely route to binge eating. In the past I believed that I had trigger foods, but I can eat all of those without a problem when I'm on (or close to) maintenance calories and when on a bulk eating these trigger foods does not lead to me eating or wanting to eat more and more.

    I found this revelation liberating in that it freed me up to allow myself these foods, in moderation and with control, whereas the only other option would have been to abstain forever.
  • BrunetteRunner87
    BrunetteRunner87 Posts: 591 Member
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    I can't eat only a few cheese twistie things, I have to eat a whole bag. Then I might get another bag later.
  • potero44
    potero44 Posts: 3 Member
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    Oh my goodness do I get this!! For me Starbucks cold brew with sweet cream… And of course I always asked for extra sweet cream! I was doing three or four of these a week for a while blowing half my paycheck! Really it makes no sense to spend the money on them and spend my calories on them. My other trigger would be chocolate, specifically peanut butter cup type chocolate. I recently cut way back on sugar, and after just a couple of days of doing that I felt like a new person. So I know I need to do it anymore permanent way.
  • amuslimahh
    amuslimahh Posts: 15 Member
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    Same here.

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