I can't stop eating bad food.
Opalprincess99
Posts: 88 Member
I think I'm addicted...:( Does anyone else feel the same way ?
23
Replies
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I don't label food good or bad. It is just food. I often see people who try and cut out all the foods they enjoy and then wonder why they aren't successful with weight loss. Weight loss doesn't have to be miserable. Eat the foods you enjoy at a calorie deficit.
Also food isn't an addiction - it is a requirement for survival.39 -
Can't or won't?7
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What exactly is a "bad" food?
Are you still coming in under your calorie goal?
https://tonic.vice.com/en_us/article/zmvwb4/eating-clean-wont-make-you-any-healthier3 -
When I say bad food
..Let me elaborate...*fast food and high sugar foods* ...I thought that was pretty obvious. If you eat one huge thing then you will be starving the rest of the day trying to make the calorie deficit. So I'm curious if anyone else struggles with food addiction (eating too much to compensate for other things ) as you guys clearly don't understand.37 -
I think we can agree that eating human is a big no-no. Therefore human flesh = bad food.
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Choose lower calorie options at the fast food places. Try to eat smaller sizes (small instead of large).
Try making small changes, like a salad instead of fries on one of the days. Sugar free creamer or diet soda instead of regular.17 -
Wannabebeautifulagain wrote: »When I say bad food
..Let me elaborate...*fast food and high sugar foods* ...I thought that was pretty obvious. If you eat one huge thing then you will be starving the rest of the day trying to make the calorie deficit. So I'm curious if anyone else struggles with food addiction (eating too much to compensate for other things ) as you guys clearly don't understand.
You might benefit from pre-planning your day of eating. There's nothing inherently wrong with fast food or even food with high amounts of sugar/carbs. You just need balance. If you want to eat fast food, decide in advance what you want to eat and how it's going to fit in your day. There are plenty of people on this site who eat fast food while still maintaining a calorie deficit, and they're not going hungry in order to do it.
If you feel out of control of your eating, consider seeking help from a counselor who can help you pinpoint where those feelings originate and behavior modifications you can practice in order to overcome them.29 -
Wannabebeautifulagain wrote: »When I say bad food
..Let me elaborate...*fast food and high sugar foods* ...I thought that was pretty obvious. If you eat one huge thing then you will be starving the rest of the day trying to make the calorie deficit. So I'm curious if anyone else struggles with food addiction (eating too much to compensate for other things ) as you guys clearly don't understand.
Why do you eat those foods? Is it because you like the taste? They're cheap? Convenient? You can't cook? You're too lazy to shop/cook?
You choose what goes in your mouth, and you choose what sacrifices you make. You eat high calorie food at the expense of achieving your goals, or at the expense of more food helping you feel full throughout the day.
Many people eat emotionally - I guess that's what you mean by eating to compensate for other things? That's not being addicted to food, that's using food as a coping mechanism. Pretty crap one, imo - it just leads to guilt and negative feelings towards your body which leads to needing more food to make you feel better. Cope with the emotional issues in a different way. Walk, train, go to a boxing class, find a healthy escape... Something other than eating.23 -
Mycophilia wrote: »I think we can agree that eating human is a big no-no. Therefore human flesh = bad food.
Well, we ARE made of meat...0 -
Wannabebeautifulagain wrote: »When I say bad food
..Let me elaborate...*fast food and high sugar foods* ...I thought that was pretty obvious. If you eat one huge thing then you will be starving the rest of the day trying to make the calorie deficit. So I'm curious if anyone else struggles with food addiction (eating too much to compensate for other things ) as you guys clearly don't understand.
Nah, I get it (craft beer is my bad food); I just try to make sure I keep consumption to a moderate amount and run/bike to offset the calories. Other than that, I don't worry about it too much.1 -
Mycophilia wrote: »I think we can agree that eating human is a big no-no. Therefore human flesh = bad food.
That's a cultural construct. It's a cultural construct that I'm happy to share with you, but it's still a cultural construct.19 -
Wannabebeautifulagain wrote: »When I say bad food
..Let me elaborate...*fast food and high sugar foods* ...I thought that was pretty obvious. If you eat one huge thing then you will be starving the rest of the day trying to make the calorie deficit. So I'm curious if anyone else struggles with food addiction (eating too much to compensate for other things ) as you guys clearly don't understand.
Oh, I think we do understand. No one will infer that a new community participant's notion of 'bad food' is an organic garden salad of spinach, arugula, and heirloom tomatoes topped with a dash of olive oil and ACV. The point of confusion is that a great many people show up here thinking 'bad' food is bread or beef. Thank you for elaborating. Your use of "bad" is the narrow case of your habit of buying meals from drive-through restaurants. This indicates to me that you are unfamiliar with the practice of cooking. Have I guessed accurately?21 -
Wannabebeautifulagain wrote: »When I say bad food
..Let me elaborate...*fast food and high sugar foods* ...I thought that was pretty obvious. If you eat one huge thing then you will be starving the rest of the day trying to make the calorie deficit. So I'm curious if anyone else struggles with food addiction (eating too much to compensate for other things ) as you guys clearly don't understand.
What makes you think people don't understand? The people challenging your labels of good food/bad food... many of us had these same ideas when we started out. We were convinced that you had to give up certain foods in order to be successful, that you couldn't eat fast food or sweets if you wanted to lose weight. Fortunately, through reading these forums and learning from successful veterans, many of us also realized that food is just food. Some is more nutrient dense, more satiating. That doesn't make all fast food, or all sugary foods, inherently bad.
If you often make choices that put you over your calorie goal in the spur of the moment, prelogging your food may help with that. Choosing foods that are calorie dense because you are struggling with something emotional doesn't constitute a food addiction. That's not actually a thing. But many people do struggle with psychological/behavioral/habitual factors influencing their food choices. Again, prelogging and practicing mindful eating may help you with that.24 -
I understand completely I too struggle with food cravings and even the thought of 1 slice of pizza @ 900 calories and eating brekky would be nudging close to full calories for day! MyFitnessPal has been a real eye opener on how many calories are "hidden" in fast food even chips !!!! Corn chips !! Been craving corn chips soooo bad then feel guilty when I had them5
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Wannabebeautifulagain wrote: »When I say bad food
..Let me elaborate...*fast food and high sugar foods* ...I thought that was pretty obvious. If you eat one huge thing then you will be starving the rest of the day trying to make the calorie deficit. So I'm curious if anyone else struggles with food addiction (eating too much to compensate for other things ) as you guys clearly don't understand.
Try looking at food differently... Instead of "bad/good", just look at their calorie counts.
Eat what you feel like which fits your calorie limit.
I lost 80 lbs eating what I felt like within my calorie limit.
I didn't judge food, and I didn't judge myself or others for food choices.
Some days you feel like a certain fast food. Most days you feel like a sweet treat. You can fit these in without stressing or punishing yourself.
Well done for asking here for help. Good luck.13 -
lisayunghanns wrote: »I understand completely I too struggle with food cravings and even the thought of 1 slice of pizza @ 900 calories and eating brekky would be nudging close to full calories for day! MyFitnessPal has been a real eye opener on how many calories are "hidden" in fast food even chips !!!! Corn chips !! Been craving corn chips soooo bad then feel guilty when I had them
What kind of pizza is 900 cals/slice?
See and I think MFP is a great tool to help figure out how to fit the foods you desire into your day or week. A serving of corn chips is what, 150 cals? You can't make that fit into your day? Maybe your calorie target is too restrictive?16 -
What kind of pizza slice is 900 per? Order a thin crust and control the cheese.
Miss wannabe, I suggest reading Habit by Duhigg to figure out the attraction to some kinds of food.
Is it the convenience? Easy reach after a long day? Social outing? The crisp texture of fries, deep fried satiation, salt, sweetness? Gain insight in to your "why" is the first step in getting control. I made a slow cooker meal this morning because I knew that fast food would be tempting tonight. I am less likely to eat out if a meal is ready and waiting for me. Plan ahead.12 -
Start cooking for yourself. Eat as often as you can at home and learn to prepare your own food. It's very difficult to make "healthy choices" when you smell fried foods sizzling. Don't bring junk food into the house. Cravings are natural if those are the foods you've been used to eating. You have to wean yourself from those and replace them with healthier alternatives. You are doing good to be thinking about the cravings and wanting to change.
I think everyone feels like you do. Cravings can also be hormonal.1 -
Wannabebeautifulagain wrote: »I think I'm addicted...:( Does anyone else feel the same way ?
Do you eat the same things all the time? It's okay to eat the food you enjoy, but perhaps you need to monitor your portion sizes and the calorie content.0 -
Read up on nutrition, start creating and cooking easy and nutritious meals, and discover why you go for "bad" foods. Is it laziness, convenience, emotional, etc. Work on your trigger and change the habit. And as others have said, focus on logging your calories.4
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I feel ya Wannabe, I struggle with it all... the... time... Been that way since I was a skinny teenager. I'd go to a buffet and eat until I was ready to throw up. I don't know why one person is like that (me) and another isn't.
The only way I broke the cycle was the trauma of divorce. Beyond that one thing that helped me was lifting. If I ate a double cheeseburger, fries, and a coke then went for leg day a few hours later, I'd just throw it up, lol. Beyond that lifting is hard. After an hour of lifting I go into work. Some guy offers me a donut. I think about the hour I just spent straining and grunting and sweating to try and look better and it's a lot easier to not eat the donut.
Also, fill out your profile. Tell everyone publicly what your goals are so we can help hold you accountable. That's a huge part of how this site works. I LIKE when people friend me and send me messages like "WTF Chris? No log???"6 -
I get what you're saying. It's an emotional eating thing? Yes? I've done it when I was younger. The thing is the emotional boost you get from it doesn't last long and only leaves behind a feeling of failure.
I don't know how YOU can stop, I only know how I stopped. And that was to find something else that changed my emotional state in a more constructive way. That was walking and dancing. And I had to find the time to do these things. It's no use saying you can't fit activity into your busy lifestyle when you know you will spend an hour on your *kitten* later watching TV (which was one of my excuses).
Good luck getting a grip on this.3 -
today on the way to way to work I was going to stop at Wendy's and get a Burger/Fries/Coke..... Then I remembered I had Oatmeal at my desk....by passed Wendy's and had the oatmeal, small victory! Yea me.... you can do it just remember what your goal is, where you want to go.7
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Wannabebeautifulagain wrote: »When I say bad food
..Let me elaborate...*fast food and high sugar foods* ...I thought that was pretty obvious. If you eat one huge thing then you will be starving the rest of the day trying to make the calorie deficit. So I'm curious if anyone else struggles with food addiction (eating too much to compensate for other things ) as you guys clearly don't understand.
I understand completely, and am currently in a horrible binge period. The emotional overeat..2 -
I don't think you're "addicted"...I think you have habits...habits take some effort to make and break.14
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Lacking self-control isn't the same as an addiction. IMHO that's just making the problem bigger by implying it's out of your control / not your fault / not your problem to solve.
Just start making small changes, different choices (foods, portion sizes), learn to cook if you don't already, be more active. It all adds up.
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lisayunghanns wrote: »I understand completely I too struggle with food cravings and even the thought of 1 slice of pizza @ 900 calories and eating brekky would be nudging close to full calories for day! MyFitnessPal has been a real eye opener on how many calories are "hidden" in fast food even chips !!!! Corn chips !! Been craving corn chips soooo bad then feel guilty when I had them
An ounce of tortilla chips is about 140 calories. That's nothing to feel guilty about, just have 140 calories less of something else that day and you're still at your goal.4 -
janejellyroll wrote: »lisayunghanns wrote: »I understand completely I too struggle with food cravings and even the thought of 1 slice of pizza @ 900 calories and eating brekky would be nudging close to full calories for day! MyFitnessPal has been a real eye opener on how many calories are "hidden" in fast food even chips !!!! Corn chips !! Been craving corn chips soooo bad then feel guilty when I had them
An ounce of tortilla chips is about 140 calories. That's nothing to feel guilty about, just have 140 calories less of something else that day and you're still at your goal.
Unfortunately for me, 1 once of tortilla chips is barely enough to get me started
Doesn't mean I won't eat them though! 2 -
janejellyroll wrote: »lisayunghanns wrote: »I understand completely I too struggle with food cravings and even the thought of 1 slice of pizza @ 900 calories and eating brekky would be nudging close to full calories for day! MyFitnessPal has been a real eye opener on how many calories are "hidden" in fast food even chips !!!! Corn chips !! Been craving corn chips soooo bad then feel guilty when I had them
An ounce of tortilla chips is about 140 calories. That's nothing to feel guilty about, just have 140 calories less of something else that day and you're still at your goal.
Unfortunately for me, 1 once of tortilla chips is barely enough to get me started Doesn't mean I won't eat them though!
feelin' ya girlfriend... those free chips at the tex mex restaurant. EVIL!
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janejellyroll wrote: »lisayunghanns wrote: »I understand completely I too struggle with food cravings and even the thought of 1 slice of pizza @ 900 calories and eating brekky would be nudging close to full calories for day! MyFitnessPal has been a real eye opener on how many calories are "hidden" in fast food even chips !!!! Corn chips !! Been craving corn chips soooo bad then feel guilty when I had them
An ounce of tortilla chips is about 140 calories. That's nothing to feel guilty about, just have 140 calories less of something else that day and you're still at your goal.
Unfortunately for me, 1 once of tortilla chips is barely enough to get me started Doesn't mean I won't eat them though!
I mean, yeah. If portion control is harder with certain foods then it may be easier not to eat them.
But for some people, at least with some foods, having a reasonable portion will satisfy a craving.6
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