Sticking to it?

KatieMeadow135
KatieMeadow135 Posts: 4 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hey everyone, I'm having a hard time sticking to my calories and diet as a whole. I can eat really well one day but as soon as I have even the slightest unhealthy thing I'm off and go almost into a binge where I just eat whatever I want. Can anyone give me any tips on how to stop snacking and falling off the band wagon so often. Thank you x

Replies

  • L1zardQueen
    L1zardQueen Posts: 8,753 Member
    What did you pick for a weekly weight loss goal? Sometimes really steep calorie deficits can make one feel super hungry.
  • Seffell
    Seffell Posts: 2,242 Member
    seska422 wrote: »
    It takes practice but you need to work at leaving behind that "all or nothing" thinking. You aren't going to be perfect but you don't need to be. Don't jump in with both feet. Make small sustainable changes over time.

    I aim for 80% of my calories from nutrient-dense foods and 20% from treats. I log things before I consume them so that I can decide if I really want to consume the item and, if so, how much I want.

    This exactly!!

    Start eating the way that you plan to eat for your entire life. Not "just for this diet".
    Eat both what you consider healthy and unhealthy stuff. I don't use "unhealthy" for regular food items. I use "more nutritious" and "less nutritious". Less nutritious is not the same as unhealthy. (Also pizza is healthy if you put ham, cheese and veggies on it, isn't it?) Unhealthy would be something gone bad or spoiled.

    And then as the poster above suggested - eat mostly the more nutritious variety and less of the less nutritious variety.
    This and staying in a reasonable to small deficit is all that is required​.
    Don't overcomplicate things.
  • ohchocoycyoc
    ohchocoycyoc Posts: 3 Member
    I'm the exact same
  • kellyfeb78
    kellyfeb78 Posts: 65 Member
    I pigged out big time today so to make myself feel better for it i went to the gym and burnt off all the calories that I ate, don't beat urself up over it and just start again the next day I think we all mess up now and again
  • Sheisinlove109
    Sheisinlove109 Posts: 516 Member
    Don't diet. I tried that forever, doesn't work for me. Make a lifestyle change. Eat within your calories. Eat balanced. When you want that cupcake or what have you, eat it and get on with it. Make it fit in your goals. Change dinner to chicken, broccoli and some brown rice that day...you get the idea. I don't binge anymore because I don't feel deprived. Of course there will be days when you eat higher calories...fine...work a bit harder at the gym. Be realistic, it's all about balance.

    I've also found sleep helps me with eating better. If I'm exhausted I want to eat/drink for energy.
  • Blitzia
    Blitzia Posts: 205 Member
    For me, it's a combination of abstaining and moderating. I incorporate plenty of treats into my diet and I've also found low calorie meals that I love and look forward to eating - both of these help me stick to my goal.

    But for some foods, I just abstain altogether. For example, with chips, I can't have only one serving. If I eat one serving, I either eat a second serving right after or feel hungrier than if I hadn't eaten at all. So my solution is stop eating chips and stop keeping them around to tempt me.

    So find your balance. Find which treats fit into your goals and leave you satisfied and which foods just make you crave more.

    Aside from that, make sure that your calorie goal is appropriate. If you start out drastically cutting your calories, you can end up on a cycle where you restrict and then binge and still don't even lose weight. You can also try starting slow. Find out what your maintenance calorie number is and eat at that for a few days. Do you feel starved at that number? If not, you can gradually decrease how much you're eating from there.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    That's why logging helps me. I can have something higher calorie and still stay within my calorie limit as long as I make better choices later (and move more so I can eat more).

  • amtyrell
    amtyrell Posts: 1,447 Member
    Plan some space for your favorite treats. So allow space for them in your eating plan.
  • kincharles
    kincharles Posts: 20 Member
    I have found that forcing myself into too strict of a eating 'routine' tends to cause feelings of deprivation/cravings. By having a goal and focusing your primary meals around that goal, and not forcing myself away from the occasional 'treat' I have been able to maintain a fairly decent momentum. If I start to feel like I am depriving myself too much I go ahead and eat something extra (that normally wouldn't be on my food list) and don't beat myself up if I go over my daily intake goals.

    I would suggest to start slow, use the calorie tracker as a basic guide - not as the be all end all MUST do. Failure is part of the human condition, it is learning from that failure that will make you stronger and healthier.
  • vivelajackie
    vivelajackie Posts: 321 Member
    The all or nothing mentality isn't a very sustainable one, like many have said here. Nobody is perfect and we all will eventually "slip up" and eat something that's not the best for our plans. Special occasions, the random meal out, etc. That's fine. Build a bridge and get over it.

    What my husband and I do is bank some calories when we know we're going to splurge. Heck, sometimes we bank just because after dinner, we have no desire to eat more (our intake is still around 1400-1600 out of an 1850 cal day). It adds to the deficit that we can then use on the weekend for bigger meals... In other words, be proactive with your intake. You can still eat tasty things and not have to feel completely guilty if you go over one or two days here and there.

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