I'm addicted to junk food!!

Slharrison14
Slharrison14 Posts: 28 Member
I know this sounds really immature for a 35 year old woman to be saying but I absolutely HATE healthy foods and cannot bring myself to eat them. I was raised on junk food and have always eaten junk food. I LOVE food and it is very much a comfort for me and I also have a HUGE appetite. Eating low cal, low fat stuff does not satisfy me at all and I still end up eating the junk food anyway. I never feel full. How do I get past this???

Oh and I don't know how to cook.....at all! I can burn water. My idea of cooking is nuking something in the microwave.

Replies

  • Jessicaruby
    Jessicaruby Posts: 881 Member
    i have always loved healthy foods but also like junk food. i have noticed since i started to eat more clean and healthier foods i do not crave the junk hardly ever.
  • Hello,

    Try incorporating a healthy food with some of the "junk food" you eat. For example if you are eating a hamburger, eat a small salad with it and skip the fries. Each meal eat something healthy with the foods you love. Do this for awhile and then slowly try to eliminate some of the junk food and eat only the healthy foods. Atleast try this with one meal a day and slowly try to eliminate that junk food.
    Just a thought.......
  • ChristineMarie89
    ChristineMarie89 Posts: 1,079 Member
    this was like reading about myself(except in not 35 and i can cook) ive tried to get past it too mayby i can get something from this too lol
  • eillamarie
    eillamarie Posts: 862 Member
    I know this sounds really immature for a 35 year old woman to be saying but I absolutely HATE healthy foods and cannot bring myself to eat them. I was raised on junk food and have always eaten junk food. I LOVE food and it is very much a comfort for me and I also have a HUGE appetite. Eating low cal, low fat stuff does not satisfy me at all and I still end up eating the junk food anyway. I never feel full. How do I get past this???

    Oh and I don't know how to cook.....at all! I can burn water. My idea of cooking is nuking something in the microwave.

    It's a chemical addiction. Try forcing yourself to eat even moderately health for a week. You may find you don't crave the junk as much.
  • beatlemom
    beatlemom Posts: 250 Member
    Find ways to make the junk healthier. Read nutrition labels. Become informed. I don't care for cooking, but I do have a few staples that I make myself that are easy. Eat within your calories and pay attention to portion sizes.
  • sjcply
    sjcply Posts: 817 Member
    I used to be the SAME way, and it is a process that you have to learn. Just take baby steps and dont stop! Drink water exercise and slowly add healthy for non healthy one item at a time.......now I am totally satisfied eating healthy!

    One day at a time! Good luck!
  • kymberlin
    kymberlin Posts: 113 Member
    I am 36. I have always loved junk food. Those little 99cent pepperoni pizzas that taste like cardboard??? Put extra cheese and burn. That was my midnight snack so many nights. I have been on this life style change for almost a year. I still have the worst cravings and I give in a lot. I am reading a book on how to diet better and learn will power. I am pretty sure it is a state of mind and most of it is in my head. Friend me and if I figure it out I will pass it along. But if you get any great ideas please share.
  • Hey, it's the FORMER soda queen here! I was lugging down at least two- 2 liters a day of diet mountain dew, along with chips and other junk. I was addicted to the dew, but then one day, a voice in my head (probably God) said to me, clear as a bell, "give up the soda." So I did. It has been 3 months and I'm eating healthier and drinking only water. I sometimes get an urge to have a soda, but I figure that it is bad for me and why ruin a good thing? My skin is better, my weight is down, and my energy level, even higher than when I was guzzling all that sugar in the dew! My advice to you is: Get rid of the bad stuff, and bring home the good. You will be amazed how your body will adjust to the new food, it is just a matter of getting your brain to follow suit. You can do this. You want to. You've made the first hardest step by starting this program for yourself. You deserve better. Go for it!
  • I know this sounds really immature for a 35 year old woman to be saying but I absolutely HATE healthy foods and cannot bring myself to eat them. I was raised on junk food and have always eaten junk food. I LOVE food and it is very much a comfort for me and I also have a HUGE appetite. Eating low cal, low fat stuff does not satisfy me at all and I still end up eating the junk food anyway. I never feel full. How do I get past this???

    Oh and I don't know how to cook.....at all! I can burn water. My idea of cooking is nuking something in the microwave.
    Junk food has been proven to be addictive:
    http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1977604,00.html
    http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Weekend/junk-food-addictive-illegal-drugs/story?id=9083548

    I have the same problem, and I'm trying to change it. You have to change your habits if you want a healthier lifestyle. It may not be the easiest thing to do, but you will reward yourself with a healthier life.
  • I know this sounds really immature for a 35 year old woman to be saying but I absolutely HATE healthy foods and cannot bring myself to eat them. I was raised on junk food and have always eaten junk food. I LOVE food and it is very much a comfort for me and I also have a HUGE appetite. Eating low cal, low fat stuff does not satisfy me at all and I still end up eating the junk food anyway. I never feel full. How do I get past this???

    Oh and I don't know how to cook.....at all! I can burn water. My idea of cooking is nuking something in the microwave.

    Baby steps, baby steps, baby steps. Your body is going to crave junk food because lets face it tastes delicious...or so you think, until you start eating healthy, reach for that twinkie and realize it doesn't taste as "great" as you thought.

    Also look at the example you are setting for your children. In no way am I trying to offend you but you are reaching out because you are unhappy w/yourself...think of how this affects your children, their self-image, and how what YOU do has an affect on their future. If you don't know how to cook I doubt they can either.

    I think it is very sad that our society considers "hamburger helper" a home cooked meal or these poor overweight children w/heavy parents not even having a fighting chance because they are fed obesity in the form of boxed foods and drive-thrus.
  • Slharrison14
    Slharrison14 Posts: 28 Member
    thanks for the advice. My approach to my diet so far has been to eat the same things but smaller portion sizes and I definitely cut WAY back on the snacking (pre-diet I was eating a half a bag of oreos or chips at 3 in the morning)

    I am staying within my calorie allowance every day but it is leaving me REALLY hungry

    I do drink a LOT of soda but it is diet coke-no sugar. I drink about 80-100 oz of diet coke a day. I am just now starting to try the water. I had 36 oz today of water with crystal light hunger satisfaction stuff in it.

    Its really hard to change something I've been doing for my entire life but I am trying. Thanks for the support!
  • sister_bear
    sister_bear Posts: 529 Member
    First of all, don't try to reinvent your universe. Take this on one thing at a time.

    Look at your favorite junk foods and ask yourself what you can't live without. Start looking at what you can substitute and what you can eliminate. Do it one thing at a time.

    Look at how you're eating these foods also. Portion control is critical. We don't buy the big bags of chips because one of us will eat the whole thing in one sitting. Chips are sparse, but when we get them, we get the individual bags so at least it's portioned out for us.

    Cheese stays. Cheese is my go to snack. I've eliminated quite a few things I used to much on and substituted out some with granola bars. Eventually my tastes started to change and I'm finding I don't like some of the foods I used to live for...

    As for cooking, get a crock pot. Crock pot cooking is painless. You dump stuff in it, put it on low, and it's ready when you get home. There are tons of good crock pot recipes and you can even find some on this website. You might also look at lean cuisine and stuff like that. It's high on sodium, but they're still a better option than some other choices out there. Many folks on this website have had success by eliminating their fast food with a lean cuisine.
  • carey1932
    carey1932 Posts: 55 Member
    A dear friend of mine who had to change her diet because of cancer told me something I will never forget. She had to give up processed sugar foods as they actually "fed" the cancer.

    She said, "Your body will scream for these foods. Let it scream. It will eventually stop"
    It was such a simple yet right on the money statement.
  • Slharrison14
    Slharrison14 Posts: 28 Member
    no you didnt offend me. You are correct. Part of my reason for making these changes is bc yes i am passing this on to my kids. I have four kids (well three teenagers and an 8 yr old) and they do often mirror my behaviors and two of them (the girls that are 12 and 13) are overweight. We are working on the exercise together doing zumba and going to the gym as well as using the fitness games on the wii but when it comes to food, I am setting a horrible example! we eat Mcdonalds, Burger King, Sonic, Little Ceasers ALL the time
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,423 Member
    I know this sounds really immature for a 35 year old woman to be saying but I absolutely HATE healthy foods and cannot bring myself to eat them. I was raised on junk food and have always eaten junk food. I LOVE food and it is very much a comfort for me and I also have a HUGE appetite. Eating low cal, low fat stuff does not satisfy me at all and I still end up eating the junk food anyway. I never feel full. How do I get past this???

    Oh and I don't know how to cook.....at all! I can burn water. My idea of cooking is nuking something in the microwave.

    I can understand the lure of comfort foods, for me it's not burgers and chips but chocolate and cakes that I turn to when I'm sad or angry or alone.
    Well done for recognising that this is a problem, it's not going to be easy to change a lifetime of eating habits, but if you WANT to do it you WILL.

    First of all, stop thinking that you have to eat low calorie "diet" foods to lose weight. You don't.
    You can eat reasonable portions of real food and lose weight, really you just have to start by taking in less calories and if you have been living on junk food this shouldn't be hard.

    Next, stop thinking and saying "I can't cook". Maybe no one has ever taught you but you're grown up and obviously pretty inteligent, so google some easy recipes, ask a friend to show you or find a cooking class.

    It will mean a bit of work and learning but you CAN do it!


    Next think of something you like to eat - like chicken
  • THANK YOU for not getting offended! KUDOS to you for trying to make a healthy lifestyle change!!! DON'T GIVE UP!!! I was addicted to McDonald's for a good year!:sad:

    Then I just decided enough was enough...haven't been back since.
    Not to say I will not splurge but these foods ARE addicting...that's why they're billion dollar companies.

    What helped me kick my Dorito nacho cheese and oreo fix is portion control. I buy the snack packs or pre-package in sandwich bags and if I absolutely cannot kick the craving (two weeks strong)...I grab a snack pack.
  • I was the same way. You wouldn't catch one vegetable in my mouth at all and now I eat it daily.

    Experiment! When I started working out I started with Bikram Yoga. After leaving my yoga sessions I did not want to eat anything unhealthy. I worked hard those 90 minutes I didn't want to ruin it ya know? So I started by trying salad. YUCK not my cup of tea. Then I moved on to spinach. Now that I can stomach. I cut out meat from my diet (hamburger, pork chops, hot dogs, sausages) and only eat chicken and fish. I changed the way I eat chicken too. I only get breasts that are boneless & skinless. I stopped eating pasta and now I substitute the noodles with spaghetti squash. I have to have garlic or onion in almost all my major meals. OH and that no sodium garlic & herb seasoning. Eating healthier has been a process for me and it took a little bit for me to stray away from the foods I enjoy most. Mind you I eat whatever I want at least once a week. I gotta keep my sanity and my body thanks me for it :)

    Chicken Breasts w/spinach & garlic has helped me so much. Don't cut everything out all at once it's going to take time. Baby steps :D
  • gandydancer
    gandydancer Posts: 171 Member
    I have the same problem and hope I get some helpful answers from your ost...For example today I had m & m peanuts and crackers, for dinner a salad with shrimp, red peppers, pineapple, little cheese, hard boiled egg, and a few tortellini..ate half, I actually dislike food as well but give me junk anyday, not good I know.
This discussion has been closed.