No Self Control

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  • CrazyDaisysMommy
    CrazyDaisysMommy Posts: 472
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    I know how you feel, but in the end, it's about your priorities. You can choose to put the food in your mouth or you can choose to be fit and sexy. If you don't already, spend time on the Success Stories message boards. You will see people just like you who met their goals and they didn't have it any easier than you. You are stronger than food cravings!
  • alliecat40
    alliecat40 Posts: 31 Member
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    I had exactly the same problem until recently I watched a video called "Forks over Knives". The video demonstrates how to change your lifestyle and end food addiction. Today is day 29 and everything is going great. I am losing 2 - 3 lbs. a week but rarely am I hungry or craving sweets like I was.
  • femmi1120
    femmi1120 Posts: 473 Member
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    I was going to say babysteps but since so many people seem to support the cold turkey approach, here's my other advice:

    Research! Find out what's really in these foods and what they're doing to your body and that may at least get you motivated to try giving it up.

    Set a goal: "I will not eat junk food for 2 weeks" and reward yourself for each day you keep it. Make it a cumulative reward. Example: Give yourself 1 penny the first day, 2 the next day, 4 the next, then 8, 16, etc. If you give in, you start back at 0, but if you keep it going, you'll eventually have enough saved to buy yourself a something you've been wanting (not junk food!)

    Find healthy alternatives! Like baked sweet potato fries, lean homemade burgers, Veggie nuggets, etc. The alternatives are usually tastier and more satisfying any way, so you probably won't miss the junkfood.

    Hope that helped, good luck!!
  • exlaxref
    exlaxref Posts: 29 Member
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    My advice: Eat whatever you want, but log it religiously.

    In my experience, seeing the caloric effect of what I am eating keeps me from wanting the bad stuff. Especially when you compare the calories to the exercise it takes to burn them.
  • PJilly
    PJilly Posts: 21,712 Member
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    My problem is food! I can exercise like crazy and that's probably why I don't weight more than I do right now, but I can't say no to all the wrong foods. I love fast food and sweets and cokes. I find myself bored with healthy food and it cost more and takes longer to fix (most of the time). I feel so helpless that I can't say no to all these bad foods!!! Help
    But you can say no. It's completely your choice, and you have all the power. That's not to say it's always easy, but you can do it, and it does get easier. You've gotten some good suggestions about how to go about it. It's up to you if you decide to do it or not. Good luck!
  • cmm7303
    cmm7303 Posts: 423 Member
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    You can say no, you choose not to.

    Ah yes. Well, from someone with a compulsive disorder and a former addict (not food, but know people for whom that is their demon), I thank you for your self-righteous declaration. :) I'm sure that's EXACTLY the kind of helpful advice the OP was looking for.

    OP: Yes, cutting them out completely, for a long period of time, is probably the best. I cut out soda from my diet years ago, and then pizza, and then all fast-food. A few years later, I dropped back into eating fast-food crap (still no pizza or soda) and that was part of what bumped me back up. In the last year, I've learned I can eat pizza, if it's made at home via trader-joes, and I may have one glass-bottled Coke every six months, or when I'm visiting another country, and my options are beer or Coke. :)

    You can do it. The first two weeks will suck, but just clean it all out of your house, and get started.
  • susannamarie
    susannamarie Posts: 2,148 Member
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    I've been able to do much better by gradually cutting it out. I've tried the cold turkey way before then I found myself going on "I don't give a SH@T" binges which was worse off for me. I have cut down to fast food to one or twice a month, I only keep much healthier snacks in the house, I have converted to dark chocolate which I eat a couple times a week to satisfy my sweet tooth. Yeah, I still have the occasional bad days, but those are becoming less and less.

    Yep. When I was going for 0 soda, I ended up going crazy and drinking a case in a couple of days on crazy binges. Not buying it didn't really work either, because the vending machine is right down the hall.

    Restricting myself to 1-2 is working a lot better.

    Find what works for you. I don't keep it in the house anymore, but I have some in my car, so if I want a can I have to go to the car, then it's nasty and warm, so I have to chill it, so ... it's easier to convince myself to have a nice cold glass of water, most of the time.
  • chachita7
    chachita7 Posts: 996 Member
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    My suggestion is to take baby steps... moderation is the key until lil by lil you are able to kick the habit and longings... don't try to deprive yourself of anything... before you know it you won't long for those types of foods...

    I was a fast food junky... but as time passes it just doesn't appeal to me as much - though if I have the craving I give right in so that way I satisfy and then just move on and back on track.
  • Spanaval
    Spanaval Posts: 1,200 Member
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    Deprivation doesn't work for me. If I want to eat a piece of chocolate cake, and eat some fruits instead (Sweet is sweet, right? WRONG!), I'll end up eating the fruits AND the chocolate cake. Instead, I eat a little piece of what I want. It keeps me from overindulging, obsessing over food, and drooling.

    Most important though, is knowing what my weaknesses are, and simply not bringing anything home. Shop healthier, and you won't have any choice but to eat healthier. And healthy food does not have to be bland or boring either.
  • autumnk921
    autumnk921 Posts: 1,376 Member
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    I want to hear some of the advice also....I don't eat out hardly at all but I eat a whole lot of processed/frozen meals b/c I don't have the time or money to make a bunch of homemade stuff...It sux but that is the way it is...So any helpful advice would be great!! Thanks for posting this thread!! :)

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  • TheWinman
    TheWinman Posts: 700 Member
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    I've been able to do much better by gradually cutting it out. I've tried the cold turkey way before then I found myself going on "I don't give a SH@T" binges which was worse off for me. I have cut down to fast food to one or twice a month, I only keep much healthier snacks in the house, I have converted to dark chocolate which I eat a couple times a week to satisfy my sweet tooth. Yeah, I still have the occasional bad days, but those are becoming less and less.

    Yep. When I was going for 0 soda, I ended up going crazy and drinking a case in a couple of days on crazy binges. Not buying it didn't really work either, because the vending machine is right down the hall.

    Restricting myself to 1-2 is working a lot better.

    Find what works for you. I don't keep it in the house anymore, but I have some in my car, so if I want a can I have to go to the car, then it's nasty and warm, so I have to chill it, so ... it's easier to convince myself to have a nice cold glass of water, most of the time.

    "FInd what works for you"

    That says it all. :) We are all wired differently and what works for one my be the opposite of what works for someone else.
  • BreakingOath
    BreakingOath Posts: 193 Member
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    The way I look at it is: What's more expensive, eating healthy and smaller portions or medical bills from all of the health problems junk food will give you.

    Also, eating healthy will mean you have more of a chance of being around alot longer for your family and friends :)
  • AbiNichole
    AbiNichole Posts: 300 Member
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    I used to have this problem- big time. I still have days when I really really really want some crap. Fast food mmm. They key is to not think of anything as "off limits.

    Give yourself a quota- a target for nutrition each day. Mine is below.

    Veggies- 4-5 servings
    Lean Protein- 2-3 servings
    Fruit- max 2 servings
    Complex Carbs- max 2 servings

    I strive to hit those quotas everyday and any days when I have a whole bunch of calories left over OR I just feel like eating it- I'll have a small portion of whatever it is I"m craving. This last week I've had a cookie or brownie almost everyday. Very small portions-usually max of 200 calories. But I never deny myself.

    Restrictions lead to binges. Instead you have to change the way you look at food. Look at food as fuel. And if you want a treat- indulge but don't do it more than once a day. More clean meals than processed meals is the key. :flowerforyou:
  • BreakingOath
    BreakingOath Posts: 193 Member
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    ^^^ Exactly, I used to binge tremendously on all kinds of sweets. Now when I go out to get frozen yogurt or something I eat half of what I used to and I am completely satisfied. You can't deny yourself if you want to be successful.
  • BruteSquad
    BruteSquad Posts: 373 Member
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    You gotta do it cold turkey. You won't crave them as much if you stop eating junk for about a week. I used to crave sugar and fatty foods, including fast food, and someone on here suggested quitting all of it cold turkey and only eating lean, healthy food for a week, and I was really surprised when it worked! I don't crave the junk anymore and I am losing weight not to mention feeling awesome!

    ^^ Definitely agree with this. People will say to cut it out gradually but I think that since you're still feeding the cravings you won't completely get over it. Once you stop eating the junk food (just think of how horrible fast food actually is for you! All the fat, trans fat, sodium you name it that's in it should be enough to turn you off) and cut out the sugar -- that means label reading and cutting out items that have added sugar as the first few ingredients or even HFCS, corn syrup or anything like that -- after a week or so you won't miss it and you won't crave it. If you need something sweet have fruit.

    Yes healthy food costs more but it's also so much better for you. It's not processed so it doesn't have any artificial crap in it that's not good for you or that your body doesn't know what to do with and you will feel so much better if you feed your body properly. You'll also more than likely lose weight because it doesn't have any added crap in it.

    I echo both. I quit cold turkey. Last time I got fast food, it tasted terrible (I used to love a double quarter pounder with cheese) and I don't feel good like I do when I eat "clean". I eat burgers, just ones I make at home with lean ground beef. So much better tasting.
    I do go out to eat, I love the smashburger salads. I like the Vietnamese Pho, I will indulge in a curry from time to time. But I skip the fast food. And it started by just simply not eating it.

    edit spelling....
  • mrshbrn
    mrshbrn Posts: 22
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    Most def story of MY LIFE. Esp at "that time of the month"!!!! I will say though I have cut it out before. I wish I could find that same motivation I had before. I cant seem to find it!!!! But Im not giving up either!!!!
  • shirayne
    shirayne Posts: 263 Member
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    try starting off with easy-to-grab healthy foods (cottage cheese, fruit, palatable raw veggies, yogurt). do your cooking in large batches and make them easily accessible (cook a bunch of chicken and cut it up into quick "snack" portions, etc).

    Other than that, to be blunt, you just have to want to be healthy more than you want a double cheeseburger and a coke.

    This ^^

    You have to WANT the weight loss and healthy lifestyle badly enough that the fast food becomes a "not worth it" to you. I haven't had fast food since I started at MFP (January 2012) and I still get cravings for it but I know that if I eat even 1 Big Mac... I'll cave more often. As for it taking longer to prepare, well, this is a lifestyle change. You need to MAKE time for everything you need to do to accomplish your goals. My husband used to make dinner every night because he's home by the time I get home but now, I make dinner because I know what I want and how to prepare it and which ingredients are better etc... I had to give up some relax time to fit this in but that's part of the process. If I want my *kitten* to shrink, I need to get off it! :)

    Good luck!
  • theNurseNancy
    theNurseNancy Posts: 149
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    I would quit cold turkey for a while and then slowly add "treats" every once in a while so you dont feel deprived. This is what I did and I can safely stroll the grocery store and pass up those bad options. I had a terrible cheat meal once after doing this and I felt REALLY bad afterwards (physically). It made me realize that I couldn't do that anymore.

    Plus its not worth the extra exercise to burn off those calories LOL
  • vabrewer33
    vabrewer33 Posts: 185
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    I would have to disagree with the people that say quit cold turkey...I think if you cut out all those things, then when you do get an opportunity you will binge. We can't deprive ourselves of food we want, it is ok to have the occasional piece of chocolate, or a soda once or twice a week. slowly introducing healthier dinners will help-try making one or two a week and see how it can fit into your schedule. Buy better things when you go shopping-if the junk isn't in the house you won't eat it. Good luck!
  • mrshbrn
    mrshbrn Posts: 22
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    I will say that it was easy for me to cut out surgary drinks. I cut out soda a d replaced it with Coke Zero. I cut out my ohh so good Mc Donalds sweet tea and replaced it w/ water. . I still cant get up to 8 glasses of water a day but I average about 3-4 glasses a day.

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