my biggest problem

lk14040
lk14040 Posts: 90
edited September 18 in Motivation and Support
My biggest problem is when I eat something that I feel ruined my diet, so I just give up that day and eat whatever and I tell myself that I will start tomorrow. I also have a problem with logging a cheat, so also when I do cheat I just give up because i feel that everything has to be perfect and when its not then I give up that day. The problem is this is a continuing thing, like I do this almost every other day. I just want to get over this feeling that everything has to be perfect, like I have to eat the perfect diet in order to be happy and have a perfect food log. Its very frustrating, but I dont want to give up on this site at all. Any advise?

Replies

  • lk14040
    lk14040 Posts: 90
    My biggest problem is when I eat something that I feel ruined my diet, so I just give up that day and eat whatever and I tell myself that I will start tomorrow. I also have a problem with logging a cheat, so also when I do cheat I just give up because i feel that everything has to be perfect and when its not then I give up that day. The problem is this is a continuing thing, like I do this almost every other day. I just want to get over this feeling that everything has to be perfect, like I have to eat the perfect diet in order to be happy and have a perfect food log. Its very frustrating, but I dont want to give up on this site at all. Any advise?
  • Helawat
    Helawat Posts: 605 Member
    That's my biggest problem as well. I don't have problems with emotional eating, chocolate cravings, or make bad choices at fast food restaurants but I do have a problem with the "perfect food log" if one exists.

    Yesterday for lunch, my boyfriend wanted to have fast-food at a Korean place at the food court at a local mall. This is my favorite place for bulgogi and I had to refuse because I knew that if I had that Korean food, I wouldn't know where I would be calorie, fat, and sodium wise for my day.

    This is how I deal with it:

    If I can't count it, see the nutrition label, or properly log it online then I refuse to eat it. If everything I eat can be logged then I will continue to have the perfect my well maintained food log.

    Don't think that there is something wrong with being in control of your diet. I feel that I lose control when I eat something that cannot be documented and think to myself, "this may undo my entire week."

    The thought of undoing my week of exercise is terrifying and keeps me in tune with my "perfect food log"

    ^_^
  • AJCM
    AJCM Posts: 2,169 Member
    I have the SAME tendency!:flowerforyou:

    I recently heard that as the number one reason that diets fail! The group of dieters who don't react that way are the successful ones in the long run!

    I really try to fight that urge, and if I over do it on one meal, now I'm trying to just fill myself with water and herbal tea for the rest of the day - no more food at all - and then start fresh the next day without any regrets or guilt (I HATE that feeling of waking up in the morning, and then remembering eating from the night before... ugh).
  • poubre
    poubre Posts: 32
    Well, first to cure your problem, you have to cure your inability to log your calories. It creates a lie to yourself. If you go over your calorie limit, so what??? That just means you have to cut it the next day. Does that mean you have to cut the calories for that day AND the previous day? Definitely NOT!!! Like many have said before me, "This is a lifestyle, not a day." If you stick to this 'lifestyle,' you WILL lose weight. It's a natural equation that your body does on its own. I'm sure EVERYONE on this site has gone over their calorie limit. It's natural. But, it's the weekly loss of calories that count.

    One thing that helps me is that when I go over my calorie limit, I just try to tack on a little extra exercise to make up for it. Remember - exercising is all about raising your heart rate and maintaining that raised heart rate. It's not about how much it burns or hurts. You burn more calories jogging at a medium pace for 30 minutes than you do for sprinting for 5 minutes. Moral of the story - exercise for endurance always adding another couple minutes to your workout.

    You should never give up for a whole day =). That just discourages yourself even further. If you've just started, you're going through a natural psychological battle that everyone undergoes (I don't care how successful they are now). You are slowly learning how many calories you ACTUALLY need a day. So, continue fighting the fight and stop giving up on a daily basis. If you do, you will create a bad habit of always doing it. If you happen to grab a cookie that day, ignore the error, log it in your foods, and continue the rest of the day on your "plan."

    I like what Helawat said:
    The thought of undoing my week of exercise is terrifying and keeps me in tune with my "perfect food log"

    The motivation for me not to reach that cookie is to think of how much effort I just spent RUNNING. Do I really NEED that cookie? If so, why did I even go run?

    Good luck and remember it's about good habits. Not a mistake or 2.

    Philip
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