My food/eating confession

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  • binderde
    binderde Posts: 23
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    I have cheat days too but the logic of I am already over so I might as well make it worth it is not a good idea, if anything if youre going to go over as constant as you are it would better to go over by a small margin a few days rather than a large margin on one day. I know when I get cravings like that is usually if I am bored, so I recommend finding something to take your mind off of the food such as a hobby or cleaning or watching a favorite show or movie, or simply go to bed. Everyone is allowed what I call "Fat days" but to an extent if you are ingesting mass quantities then it seems that keeping track wont help as much. It's like anything it takes practice and a good will, just remember the end result is worth it and also look at how far you have come not how far you have to go.
  • bethanylaugh
    bethanylaugh Posts: 237
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    Luna bars are a great way to get in some "nutritional" calories - they're 170-200 calories a piece, very filling, and have lots of vitamins and minerals, fiber, protein, etc. Try having them on hand and have one in place of your candy bar craving! I keep them around and split them in half ahead of time, it's a great way to keep me from eating junk food while I'm waiting to start dinner :-)
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    I was introduced to the My Fitness Pal website through my nutrition class at my local community college. Basically, we had to sign up and track our food for a whole week as a part of an assignment for that class. Even though I came because I had to, I'm staying because I want to. I think this is a great place to find support and be supportive of others as we all stive to lose weight and become healthier in general. Also, I agree that tracking your food helps a person to lose weight because they have to come face-to-face with what they are eating each day. They can't quite be in denial about it if they are looking right at a list of their daily food/drink choices and the nutritional content of each.

    That brings me to my food/eating confession that I would like advice on. If I know I am going to go over on my calorie goal for the day, I often go quite a bit over. I figure that if I'm going to go over, I might as well go way over. For example, I found out later last night that I was going to be something like 70 or 80 calories over. Then, I decided to eat the donut stick that was sitting right next to me at the time because I had already missed my calorie goal. After that, I grabbed some Lay's potato chips (although I did count out how many I took at least) and a slice of cheese.

    Does anyone have any advice here? I do understand that going a little bit over your calories is obviously a lot better than going way over, but some days, I just can't get over the desire to indulge. I don't know why I think that over is over, so I might as well enjoy some extra goodies anyway.

    Thanks in advance for anything constructive anyone has to say! :)

    The goal is not to stay under your allowance, but to be near it aim for +/- 100 cals of your total. Too far under can have negative side effects and going over is not bad as your allowance has a deficit so if you are over by a bit you are still below maintenance and will still lose weight.
  • Milletp
    Milletp Posts: 81
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    In that situation sometimes I'll have a little something 70-100 then go brush my teeth.
  • lilchicksta94
    lilchicksta94 Posts: 119 Member
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    Heyyy Fiona!! :-) I don't really think that what you're doing is a bad thing as long as you're not doing it every day. When I go grocery shopping I only buy healthy food. When I have a chip craving I reach for the Kellogg chip crisps... 27 of them are only 110 cals and they're delicious. I buy skinny cow ice cream and have that when I'm craving chocolate - they also make candy bars. I tend to be more of a night eater myself... My husband and I put our son to bed and then we sit on the couch and watch our TV shows. Of course you're going to want to snack. Just try not to keep junk in the house. If your husband likes it and wants to eat it then ask him to keep them out of your reach or measure his serving into a bowl instead of sitting there with a bag of chips. Thankfully my husband is doing this lifestyle change with me so it makes it easier. I used to have that mindset though. I used to think, "oh well I already ruined my day might as well eat the whole pint of ice cream". I just feel like when I binge all the hard work I do all day at the gym and with eating is pointless. I'll reach my goal sooner if I stay on track. I also think now when I want to eat something bad and say to myself... well, you already know it tastes good, but it makes you look fat lol but I do feel that once a week it's okay to have a cheat meal. Even Dr. Oz says so :-)
  • nsblue
    nsblue Posts: 331 Member
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    having to maintain until my surgery next week for the last month has taught me alot. splurges, cheats, slipping, falling off the wagon... what ever term you want to call it... can send you spiraling. funny, when in weightloss... i wouldnt touch a smell.... even when emotions ran high n emotional eating was tempting. but somehow in maintenance.... something changed.. n i did taste... n i did gain.. which shocked me that i did... but mostly in that if you do not get ahold of it... it can run rampart.... telling yourself, well i already had one... just today... n then its another day n before you know it you have packed some weight on. once the taste of sweet in your system you feel like an addict n need another fix.. n its endless.
    i know know why diets never worked before for me.... one has to remain vigilent always.. and disciplined as well....keep exercising daily n watching calories n weight.... weighing out if i have treats .....a bit more exercise i have to do ....to burn it off.

    weight is hard to get off... n so easy to mindlessly put back on.
  • rbear713
    rbear713 Posts: 220 Member
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    I employ a little reverse psychology for this conundrum...
    Weight loss and losing weight is a simple equation... calories in vs calories out.

    The way i tweak this equation to help myself stay ahead of the curve and beat the splurge ( I think we all do this from time to time - sometimes I'm just soooo hungry i cant help it - damage control helps, reducing the size of the splurge helps, but those are only for use AFTER you've gone over your goal...

    Try overestimating the portion size of whatever you eat by 10 - 50% (if it looks like a cup, log it as 1.25 cup, or even 1.5 cup - this will make it appear to you as if you've eaten more than you actually have, and give you room to be a little bad, even if your diary doesn't say you have i.

    Also, in regard to exercise, underestimate the amount of cals you burn in a workout by 10 or 20% - if MFP or the treadmill or the elliptical says you burned 300 calories in 30 minutes, log it as 270, or even 240.....

    If you do this consistently you will create a deficit that you cant really see or identify with any real clarity - so your splurges won't hurt so much, if at all!!!
  • AbiNichole
    AbiNichole Posts: 300 Member
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    I live for the end of the day when I click the little "complete entry for the day" button. I always write it down on a white board in my room. I write it down every night and then average the weight and divide it by the number of days.

    It gives me a pretty good estimation of what I"ll lose for the week.

    Example: If everyday were like today you would weigh:
    Monday: 160
    Tuesday: 163
    Wednesday: 159
    Thursday: 162

    Average weight in 5 weeks = 161
    Current weight = 166
    By that logic, I should lose 1 lb. this week.

    Every calorie counts! I only weigh myself once a week so if I go a little bit over one day it's not a big deal. But if I go over repeatedly it starts to add up. If I were you- and I'd gone over by only 70 calories- I woulda put in a 10 minute cardio workout just to break even :laugh:
  • Milletp
    Milletp Posts: 81
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    having to maintain until my surgery next week for the last month has taught me alot. splurges, cheats, slipping, falling off the wagon... what ever term you want to call it... can send you spiraling. funny, when in weightloss... i wouldnt touch a smell.... even when emotions ran high n emotional eating was tempting. but somehow in maintenance.... something changed.. n i did taste... n i did gain.. which shocked me that i did... but mostly in that if you do not get ahold of it... it can run rampart.... telling yourself, well i already had one... just today... n then its another day n before you know it you have packed some weight on. once the taste of sweet in your system you feel like an addict n need another fix.. n its endless.
    i know know why diets never worked before for me.... one has to remain vigilent always.. and disciplined as well....keep exercising daily n watching calories n weight.... weighing out if i have treats .....a bit more exercise i have to do ....to burn it off.

    weight is hard to get off... n so easy to mindlessly put back on.

    WOW~385 lost~CONGRATS!
  • Heaven71
    Heaven71 Posts: 706 Member
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    I was introduced to the My Fitness Pal website through my nutrition class at my local community college. Basically, we had to sign up and track our food for a whole week as a part of an assignment for that class. Even though I came because I had to, I'm staying because I want to. I think this is a great place to find support and be supportive of others as we all stive to lose weight and become healthier in general. Also, I agree that tracking your food helps a person to lose weight because they have to come face-to-face with what they are eating each day. They can't quite be in denial about it if they are looking right at a list of their daily food/drink choices and the nutritional content of each.

    That brings me to my food/eating confession that I would like advice on. If I know I am going to go over on my calorie goal for the day, I often go quite a bit over. I figure that if I'm going to go over, I might as well go way over. For example, I found out later last night that I was going to be something like 70 or 80 calories over. Then, I decided to eat the donut stick that was sitting right next to me at the time because I had already missed my calorie goal. After that, I grabbed some Lay's potato chips (although I did count out how many I took at least) and a slice of cheese.

    Does anyone have any advice here? I do understand that going a little bit over your calories is obviously a lot better than going way over, but some days, I just can't get over the desire to indulge. I don't know why I think that over is over, so I might as well enjoy some extra goodies anyway.

    Thanks in advance for anything constructive anyone has to say! :)

    I try to eat dinner later in the evening which leaves less time to snack. Actually I find that eating every meal later keeps me from snacking. I also try not to sit down much in the evenings and just keep busy, that detracts from snacking as well. Sitting and watching TV will make me hungrier faster than running 3 miles. Idle hands I guess.

    I also do not keep as much unhealthy stuff in the house. Look at the recipe section and find sweets that are not so bad.
    OMG the 3-2-1 cake is awesome! Maybe get yogurt or something? As far as the cheese, laughing cow cheese is a saviour for me.

    OH and don;t forget POPCORN, best low calorie snack ever!!! Make it on the stove though so you can control the salt and oils/butters. I love mine with a little popcorn salt and hot sauce. It gets me through those rough evenings everytime.
  • _VoV
    _VoV Posts: 1,494 Member
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    If this eating occurs late in the day, try logging it for breakfast the next morning. The thought that you are stealing calories you need for the next day can be just enough of a psychological downer to stop the uncontrolled eating.
  • ampa916
    ampa916 Posts: 189 Member
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    I always do it like this: If I am going to eat over I have to exercise more, so the more I eat, the more I have to work out. I don't like working out. I understand it's benefits and do it daily but I don't like it, so for me it is a mind game which one do I hate more, eating my junk (cause usually if I am going over its not for veggies, it's for like...pizza) or exercising.
  • GroupXZ
    GroupXZ Posts: 196 Member
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    It might sounds weird, but I feel guilty when I go over my calorie intake. What I do to make sure I am really never hungry at meal time, I snack!!! Also if you exercise A LOT you have so many calories.... ugh, I wasn't able to go to the gym today :sad:
  • Birder150
    Birder150 Posts: 677 Member
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    I am a decades-long binge eater.
    I can't see your diary so I don't know the calorie allowance you've set for yourself but what has FINALLY worked for me is to raise my calorie level.
    I no longer feel that need to overindulge or over-focus on food.
    I have not had a binge in 3 weeks which I can't emphasize enough ... it's a miracle!

    My calorie level is set to 1930 for a 1 lb per week weight loss and I've set myself to 'lightly active'.
    This has changed the whole game for me.

    I know this doesn't answer your question for over indulgence in the moment but it may be something to consider for the bigger picture.

    I re-started on Feb. 20/12 at 259.2 lbs and as of today I've lost 8 lbs painlessly and almost effortlessly.

    The other obstacle that has gotten in my way for DECADES is impatience. I wanted results yesterday and thought that by eating 1200 calories per day would get me there faster. That has only ever led to binge eating for me and consequently, failure at weight loss.

    N=1
    YMMV.
  • firedudecndn
    firedudecndn Posts: 25
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    You can't think in terms of daily intake. You have to consider it as a long term trend. Just like being under by 100 calories one day doesn't mean you're going to lose weight, being over doesn't mean you'll gain weight.
    I do the same thing you do. If I'm going to be over I make sure I'm way over, the challenge is making sure that it is only 1 day and doesn't turn into several days of being over.
    No one day of being over or under will make any real difference in your weight loss or gain just like no one workout will make any difference in your fitness.
    BUT!!! The accumulative effect of many caloric splurges or deficits or workouts over a long period of time will have a significant effect on your weight/fitness.
    Think of it another way; imagine your caloric intake as a averaging chart. If you look at it in a week; that splurge looks really bad, in a month it looks better but over 100 days it's insignificant. Especially if you maintain your discipline 99% of the rest of the time.
    Don't fret over a single event. Make the trend of less calories your default and the occasional day over is a non-event.
  • moonspells
    moonspells Posts: 126 Member
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    I just started on here 2 weeks ago and I have a challenge going with my fiance that if either of us goes over our calories, we miss out on girls/boys night for the month...so I am extra motivated! lol But what I do when I find that I'm over by a bit, is take the dog out for a walk or go do some sort of exercise to make up the calories. Then I don't get that guilty feeling of "failing" for the day...or even worse, the feeling of then going WAY overboard (which I can totally relate to, believe me!).
    Hope this helps and good luck! :o)
  • Lib_B
    Lib_B Posts: 446 Member
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    i've had the same issue in the past. my most difficult time is at night after the kids are in bed. and for me, it didn't matter what the food was. keeping "treats" out of the house wasn't enough...if i'm headed toward a binge, i could eat a brick of cheese or any other food i can lay my hands on (i have a REALLY effed up relationship with food that over the years has included closet eating and purging). so now what i do is just go to bed. even if it is only 9 PM, i brush my teeth and head to bed. it keeps me out of the frig. :)
  • WinWinGo
    WinWinGo Posts: 99 Member
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    Someone else ITT said not to keep junk in the house, and that's legit. Apart from that, don't worry about too much about going over the calories, and don't think of it as an excuse to indulge. If you're gonna go over by 70-80 or even a hundred, go over, then stop. Binging will just undo all your hard work.
  • Wendysworld13
    Wendysworld13 Posts: 225 Member
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    It sounds to me like a compulsive eating disorder. There are some great books out there to help you gain control. It is very common. Try looking at that and see if this makes sense to you. If you fit the bill - then you have a direction to go to work on the issues and solve the problem.
    Also, make sure you are eating your calories for the day - you should be satisfied at that point and won't have the urge.
    Good luck.
  • JeannieP1234
    JeannieP1234 Posts: 4
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    I just started here, I'm new, but I have dieted before. One thing that has helped me stay on track is on the weekend have one meal that you don't have to record, indulge on that meal and reward yourself for all the hard work you have done over the week and don't feel guilty about it. Just make sure it's one meal, one time, once a week. Hope this helps!

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