shaking the "never enjoy XXXXX food again" feeling

rockinright
rockinright Posts: 241
edited December 19 in Motivation and Support
I do let myself have treats, just to get that out of the way.

However, even the last time I lost weight in 2010 (I lost 40, then fell off the wagon), even at the end when I was "used to" eating better, I STILL craved the bad stuff. All that talk that my tastes would change was not true for me.

How do you shake that feeling of despair that comes from knowing you can never really enjoy a particular thing again like you used to? I do have treats, but it seems like I'm just "teasing" myself when I do it, since I limit the portions and all that.

Replies

  • Shannon023
    Shannon023 Posts: 14,529 Member
    You can still eat the foods you like, but just in moderation. :flowerforyou:
  • sleepytexan
    sleepytexan Posts: 3,138 Member
    I would look at your own story here: the "last" time I lost weight . . . fell off the wagon.

    I would venture a guess that you would have greater success, and make this your final time of losing weight if you do not make unrealistic demands on yourself to avoid particular foods forever.

    You simply cannot do it. One day you will binge, you will gain, you will give up, and you will be back on the yo yo.

    Eat what you like; plan for it in your calorie allowance. Extra piece of cake? Extra spin class.

    blessings.
  • runfatmanrun
    runfatmanrun Posts: 1,090 Member
    You can still eat the foods you like, but just in moderation. :flowerforyou:

    This. People need to realize this.
  • stylistchik
    stylistchik Posts: 1,436 Member
    Why not find "healthier" versions of "bad" foods. Turkey burger with low-fat cheese on a whole wheat bun instead of the regular cheeseburger. Thin crust pizza with lots of veggies and a little less cheese instead of stuffed crust pepperoni. There are lots of recipes out there and sometimes it's just fun to play in the kitchen and tweak recipes.

    ETA: I love giant portion sizes. Most people do, but if I want a LOT of food it's going to be a LOT of vegetable soup, or a GIGANTIC spinach salad with lots of different tastes and textures to make it satisfying. For sweet treats you can make them at home using substitutes like unsweetened applesauce for butter/oil and less sugar to make them slightly less unhealthy. Everyone is different and you have to find what works for you. Good luck!
  • ZoeLifts
    ZoeLifts Posts: 10,347 Member
    How do you shake that feeling of despair that comes from knowing you can never really enjoy a particular thing again like you used to? I do have treats, but it seems like I'm just "teasing" myself when I do it, since I limit the portions and all that.

    I read a double meaning in this statement, in that rather missing the taste of the food you crave, you are missing the way you used to eat it, like with total abandon until you are so full you could burst? Correct me if I am wrong on this because it may just be semantics!

    In any case, you do not have to deprive yourself of anything, you just have to limit how much you have. My husband's birthday was on Saturday and I bought a small cake for us to celebrate. I didn't deprive myself, I ate some cake! I didn't eat very much, I set a limit to how much and when I would enjoy a piece.

    If you are banning foods you crave, then yes, you will fall off the wagon again, not because you gave into that one craving, but because you have set up your mind to think you will fail if you have what you crave and you might as well give up after that. If you have a bad for you meal, do better the next meal. If you have a bad day, do better the next day. If you have a bad weekend, start over on Monday with better food. You don't give up if you mess up, you don't deprive yourself forever of what you love to eat, you just be sensible about it so you do not crave it because you have banned it.
  • Hypoxic_81
    Hypoxic_81 Posts: 6 Member
    I'm with cbcbrass98 on this one. I think there is a kind of attitude adjustment needed. *Please don't take that the wrong way!!* Don't look at it as "I can only eat this much if I want to lose/maintain weight", try looking at it as "I can STILL eat this in smaller portions and lose/maintain weight".

    If you're looking at it as a restriction, you'll always be discouraged and want to quit. This probably sounds bad but when I think of how I used to eat, and how often I ate bad things or overly large portions of "bad" foods...I actually get grossed out. I'm happier now with the smaller portions knowing that it can be incorporated into a healthy eating plan and that I don't need to feel guilty about it afterwards.

    New here so if that came across the wrong way, I apologize!!
  • rockinright
    rockinright Posts: 241
    You can still eat the foods you like, but just in moderation. :flowerforyou:

    That's true, but sometimes eating a little is like teasing myself, and I am almost better not eating it at all.
  • rockinright
    rockinright Posts: 241

    I read a double meaning in this statement, in that rather missing the taste of the food you crave, you are missing the way you used to eat it, like with total abandon until you are so full you could burst? Correct me if I am wrong on this because it may just be semantics!

    In any case, you do not have to deprive yourself of anything, you just have to limit how much you have. My husband's birthday was on Saturday and I bought a small cake for us to celebrate. I didn't deprive myself, I ate some cake! I didn't eat very much, I set a limit to how much and when I would enjoy a piece.

    If you are banning foods you crave, then yes, you will fall off the wagon again, not because you gave into that one craving, but because you have set up your mind to think you will fail if you have what you crave and you might as well give up after that. If you have a bad for you meal, do better the next meal. If you have a bad day, do better the next day. If you have a bad weekend, start over on Monday with better food. You don't give up if you mess up, you don't deprive yourself forever of what you love to eat, you just be sensible about it so you do not crave it because you have banned it.

    I mean a little of both, actually. If I have a small portion once in a while, sometimes it feels like I'm just teasing myself.
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