Hiding Food?

Things won't change until you MAKE THEM CHANGE. You are in control of each and everything that you put into your body. Nobody is forcing you to go get that taco.

If I were you, I'd sit down and have a huge heart to heart talk with myself because you are most likely substituting that taco for something else that is not going the way you want it to go in your life.

You have to go cold turkey. They say it takes 21 days to break a habit (but I find it really takes longer). Commit to NO FAST FOOD for at least a month. Then once that month is over, it will be easier to refuse it. But you have to force yourself.....

Either that, or the absence will make you crave it all the more, and them you'll binge on it.

You just need to have that epiphany of calories. If you found out how many calories you can have, and how many were in that fast food, it'd really make you think twice about it. Think of your daily calorie allowance as your currency. If you want to spend 50% of your money on that fast food, go ahead. But...is it really worth it?

Hi my friend!! I think it was very brave of you to post this, that takes a lot of courage. I know you are embarrassed to tell your family, but I think that having their support will help you a great deal. Try to find alternatives, take a walk, drink a large glass of water. Chew gum. Even jumping jacks. And the longer you are on the journey, the easier it will be to say no to those temptations. I have confidence in you, and I know you can do this!

what fast food is cheaper? 5.00 on a value meal that I will not be full from. I can go to a local store and get a fresh baked whole wheat roll , 1 thin slice of turkey breast , 1 thin slice of cheese , free package of ketchup (I don`t like mustard or mayo) , 1 med size piece of fruit and a bottle of water all for under 3.00 plus the exercise of walking threw the store to get each item from each department.

I hate to tell people to cut something out entirely. You can actually get decent meals from fast food joints but you have to be very careful. From McDonald's, a cheeseburger with small fries is 530 calories. Avoid a soda and get a water. That should be enough to satisfy any fast food cravings. Perhaps go with a chicken sandwich and try grilled rather than crispy. There will be times when certain places to eat are unavoidable but it is up to you to make smart choices. Are there better options for dinner out there? Yes, but when you start limiting your options you may run in to problems staying on track. Obviously the healthiest choice would be to cook your meals with fresh organic vegetables and meat, but that is not in the cards for most people. You need to be able to control how much you eat, because even if it is healthy, you can eat too much of it and you will go over your daily caloric intake.

I actually used to stop at fast food places on my way home from work and eat a big meal in my car. This would be in between lunch and dinner. I would sit in my car because I was ashamed to be seen with my supersized meal. If you have the willpower to give up fast food completely right now then great. Remember that this is going to be a long journey and that you need to work on it in stages. What is the good if you cut out fast food completely for a week but have an insatiable urge for it and you go out and binge on the weekend? You have a long way to go before the types of foods you are eating are going to make a big difference. Portion control and limiting yourself to your daily calories will be much more important for you. Of course, well balanced and nutritious meals will be the best but at your current weight, the health risks of being overweight are high and a cheeseburger isn't going to push you over the edge.

I don't want to sound harsh. I am in the same situation as you. You can accomplish your goals! It will take a lot of hard work and dedication but you can do it. Use the resources available to you like MFP and nutritional data sheets from restaurants. I have faith that you can reach your goal and I will be in the same boat working on my own journey to better health.

Fast food, I hate it! .... but really I LOVE it, its my BIG problem, its fast, its easy, its cheap, and lets just be truthful it taste good! Now I know that there is nothing worng with fast food now and then, but you don't weight 400+ pounds eating out every now and then. I feel the guilt after I eat but that doesnt stop me from going the next day and eating it again, I will even hid the bags from my family, NOT that I dont want to share, it that I dont want them to KNOW that I eat all that!!! Sometimes Im not even that hungry I just want to taste of a taco or burger ect, in my mouth. Am I the only one that does this? If you have overcome what are some of your success tips?

Man, oh man. Trip down memory lane. I can relate. I started that when I was a young girl. I'd eat cake mix, etc. Long story short - I ended up switching from food to alcohol, then back to food. Even when I was married I'd hide food from my husband, cuz I didn't want to share. But the other posters are right, it goes deeper than just a love for fast food. Me? It had a lot to do with poor self esteem and trying to be what other people wanted me to be. Tips? It has to come from within. You have to decide and you have to decide it's for you, no one else. If you don't do it for you, it won't work. One day, it just hit me. I was tired of being tired and tired of not being happy. It was transition - doesn't happen over night.

For me personally, food is still a demon that I will forever fight. There have been times, I have slipped back into that mode (during divorce), but I have pulled myself back out again. One of the things I can say is be prepared for people people's reactions. Not all of them will be good and some of them will be harmful. Now, it doesn't bother me, but in the beginning it did.

I can't have a "little" of something,( a little piece of cake, ice cream or piece of chocolate) and I know that. It is a trigger for me in the worst way. I know the "all or nothing" is frowned on, but for me that's the way it has to be. I know that now, so I can avoid it.

Just remember this. YOU ARE WORTH IT!!!!! No matter how crappy you feel after eating/hiding something, pull yourself up and keep going. You can do this!!!

Sometimes when I drive by a McDonalds or Burger King and I am by myself, I can feel the pull of the car in that direction! You're right, it is easy and fast and I love fries! I have had to turn the stereo up in the car and not look in the direction to avoid making the pit stop! I had to quit cold turkey. I tried to go in and order the better choices (salads, etc.) and it didn't work for me.

It's a battle, but you can make it if you really put your mind to it. I am cheering you on!

..."I can feel the pull of the car in that direction!"
I know this topic is serious, but this made me laugh!!!

ok there's a lot of good advice on here, but here is my 2 cents and what worked for me. I TOTALLY understand where you are coming from. The Beck Diet Solution is a book, a 6 week long program to TEACH you EXACTLY how to deal with those types of situations. It is a cognitive therapy program to RETRAIN you how to want to eat healthy, and answer back to those sabotaging thoughts. It has changed my life, I did the whole program 4 years ago and have kept off all the weight, and continued to lose, now I am using MFP to help me track more of the fitness side of things and it also is a useful tool that compliments the book VERY well. All you need is the book - I recommend the first one (its pink) rather than her newer book - the beck diet for life - I found it easier to follow, and a GOOD diet buddy that will be there though the hardest times and you can call as you are cruising past the drive thru tomorrow thinking "no thanks, I'd rather be thinner "

)) good luck!!!!
L

Honey, I'm going to be honest with you. You are talking about an addiction.

EXACTLY what I was going to say!

Hiding food is a big red flag. It is like the druggie, or alcoholic who hides evidence of using. I babysit for an alcoholic, she hides the booze and carries the bottles out in bags until they can't be seen.. And to top it all off, she hauls the bottles off to work and throws them away so her mother can't find them in the trash. It is a serious matter which resulted in her wrecking her car, totaling it, breaking bones and ending up in jail. Thankfully she did not have the baby with her when it happened. But addiction to food will have the same result. You may hide it now, but what happens when it has some major affect on your health? It will be something that you won't be able to hide. Perhaps a heart attack, diabetes, glaucoma, high blood pressure, etc.. Or how about death? Who can hide it?

I hate to say it. You have to go cold turkey. Eat healthy whole foods, no sugar, no bread for three weeks and you will hate the taste of fast food. It cured me of my candy and bread addiction. I cannot even stand the smell of fast food or treats anymore. Good luck

Fast food, I hate it! .... but really I LOVE it, its my BIG problem, its fast, its easy, its cheap, and lets just be truthful it taste good! Now I know that there is nothing worng with fast food now and then, but you don't weight 400+ pounds eating out every now and then. I feel the guilt after I eat but that doesnt stop me from going the next day and eating it again, I will even hid the bags from my family, NOT that I dont want to share, it that I dont want them to KNOW that I eat all that!!! Sometimes Im not even that hungry I just want to taste of a taco or burger ect, in my mouth. Am I the only one that does this? If you have overcome what are some of your success tips?

Nope... honestly I dont do this and havent because of knowing the quality (or lack-thereof) to begin with. Its very easy to overcome this but that is only 10% of the problem, the 90% is you.... you have to want to end this addiction (from the sound of it)... Make your own Taco beef..... then learn how you can make it even healthier perhaps using ground turkey or ground chicken?

You have to have a reality check that fast food is not good food - no matter what junk they put in it to make it taste good... Personally, I cant get my car window up in enough time from the nasty STENCH of fast food.. makes me want to hurl right there in my car.... its not pretty! LOL!

Go out and find a copy of the book "Chew on This". It tells you what is really in the "food" served at these places. It is rather disgusting and when you find yourself thinking about that fast food meal and then think about what it really is (fecal matter, rendered beef fat and more "good" stuff), the resulting upset stomach will be enough to help you drive away from the place.

From the description of the book:
"In the New York Times bestseller Chew on This, Eric Schlosser and Charles Wilson unwrap the fast-food industry to bring you a behind-the-scenes look at a business that both feeds and feeds off the young. Find out what really goes on at your favorite restaurants—and what lurks between those sesame seed buns.Praised for being accessible, honest, humorous, fascinating, and alarming, Chew On This was also repeatedly referred to as a must-read for kids who regularly eat fast food. Having all the facts about fast food helps young people make healthy decisions about what they eat. Chew On This shows them that they can change the world by changing what they eat.Chew on This also includes action steps, a discussion guide."

Go out and find a copy of the book "Chew on This". It tells you what is really in the "food" served at these places. It is rather disgusting and when you find yourself thinking about that fast food meal and then think about what it really is (fecal matter, rendered beef fat and more "good" stuff), the resulting upset stomach will be enough to help you drive away from the place.

^Thanks for this! Looks very interesting!^

There are lots of great answers in here that worked for lots of people... The hardest part is finding what works for YOU. For me? It was a financial issue as well as a health issue. Here is what worked for me.

We tracked our finances one month. I mean tracked EVERYTHING, to the penny. After the month was over we categorized everything so we could properly assess where we were spending our money. Fast Food was a staggering portion of our finances (and of course our calories). We had no idea we were spending so much on horrible quality food.

So my advice for you... track what you spend, track what you eat on MFP, and compare the logs after a set period of time. Once you have all the data in front of you then you can make a rational real choice on the matter.

Best of luck to you! Have a blessed day!