How Do You Do It!?!

jillybean

jillybean

Cathlete
How do you allow yourself to have ice cream, candy, cookies, without eating the entire carton, bag, container!?! I am an all or nothing person and this has been my eating plan for like 4 months now: eat clean for 3 days, have a piece of chocolate the 4th day, decide life is over and then binge for a few days. Then the vicious cycle repeats itself. And I have been gaining weight lately. How do you either a.) eliminate flour and sugar without feeling deprived or b.) allow yourself a treat without going overboard? Thank you in advance for your replies!
 
[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON Oct-03-02 AT 02:38PM (Est)[/font][p]I allow myself to eat that stuff just once a week, and I stick to it. On that day I eat whatever I want, and it works for me. I just know I have elected to limit to once a week. I don't feel deprived at all that way. It's a choice, not a punishment. It also helps not to keep "trigger" foods in the house, and when you have planned treats, just buy what you know you can eat, and freeze or hide the rest.

Like tomorow I'll go to the store and buy day-old creme sticks at the grocery bakery section. Then I turn into a pumpkin at midnight, and the leftover donuts, if there are any, go in the freezer.
 
Hi, Jillybean! I don't think there's any real instant epiphany, psychological, physical or behavioral, that can create perfect eating habits, whatever those are. I'll give my $.02 (which I have stated before) based on my personal experience as a person who used to be bulemic (mind AND body) and lived to tell the tale . . .

Food used to be completely an emotional item for me. Good foods and bad foods. Scary foods and safe foods. Too much food and too little food. It was all driven by my head, and I was totally out of touch with my appetite. This was true throughout my teen years, kind of went underground as alcoholism took over, and then reared its ugly head a couple of years after I quit drinking (and immediately lost, then regained a good portion of, approximately 35 lbs.). I quit drinking a few days before my 26th birthday in 1987, and after a couple of years of my body adjusting nutritionally to NOT having gallons of alcohol pumped through it on a weekly bases, I started "puffing up" again. Of course, I wasn't exercising in any meaningful or consistent way.

I've found over the past 10 years in general (when I began to move every day by walking, and them swimming, the Nordic Track, then videos, then aqua instruction while continuing videos) that the more intelligently I exercise (i.e. paying as much attention to strength and muscle mass development as I do to cardio, AND consistently increasing the cardio and strength challenges) the more intelligent my body became, and what I crave for food, both in terms of type and amount, is driven by what I need physically. Without arbitrarily telling myself I can't have this or that 'cause it's bad, or I should have thus and so 'cause it's "good", I am able now to just go with what I feel like having, and Ye Olde Bod knows what it needs and how much.

I do not weigh myself. I don't count calories, fat grams, or measure portions. During exercise, I don't take a heart rate check during my land cardio workouts. I do pay attention to the number of workout sessions I complete per week, and I log strength and cardio performance increases consistently.

I firmly believe that the more attention one pays to developing superior physical capabilities and muscle mass the less conscious "control" one needs to exercise (or exorcise) over one's nutrition beyond the basics. It doesn't happen overnight, however, and it doesn't happen in a linear way. But it can happen, and I am here to say that it does.

Whew! I hope this doesn't sound sanctimonious; I think I'm exceedingly fortunate to have found a way out of food obsession. I hope this helps a bit.

Annette
 
I allow myself one sweet treat every day: an ice cream bar or two "fun-size" candy bars are my most common treats. I used to be a binger but haven't done that for years. I think part of it is getting comfortable with knowing I can have my treat every day, no one will take it away from me. Another thing that may have something to do with it is the sheer volume of candy that resides in my house. We have a deep drawer in the kitchen that is nothing but bags and bags of chocolate candies. With so much there, I know I could never pull my old trick of "I'll just eat all this bad stuff now so it won't be in the house to tempt me tomorrow when I start being good", I know I'd never get through a tenth of it. That may sound crazy, but it's based on a weight loss book I read several years ago that had you buy all your favorite foods, then whenever you were physically hungry you would go look at all you favorite foods to reassure yourself that they were really there and you could really have any of them you chose, then you pick what you want most, eat a small portion of it, and put it all away until the next time your stomach gets demanding. This would probably backfire for some people, but it was very good for me since I grew up with my mom always putting me on diets and trying to keep me from eating many things I wanted. --Karen
 
I know that the food I eat is only in my mouth for a few seconds and then it is a lot of calories to "undo", so I just have very yummy special things very occasionally. I live by the saying "Nothing tastes as good as being thin feels." I also find that smelling evil things can often substitute for eating them.
 
Hi JillyBean--
I am just like you.. all or nothing!!

What works for me is to just not have those tempting foods in the house. If I want something bad, I will have to go to the store and get it, and most of the time I can talk myself out of that, bec. I am too lazy to go get it! However, my husband is a junk food junkie so he is always bringing in the doritos and candy bars much to my chagrin!!

But most of the time, I struggle too!!

Lynn
 
You know, you got to find the trick that works for you. Sometimes that means finding the right system for your situation. I keep hearing in other posts about moderation or the one day a week eat what you like. That probably works almost all of the time, but there are individual like myself that can't have just one. You never tell an alcoholic to just drink a little drink each day or once a week...I'm the same way with food. I'm better off never eating sugar and it seems that the more time that passes, the less I crave anything. I haven't had icecream or a candy bar's, etc. in over two years now and I don't even think about them. My family eats the stuff once in a while, but it doesn't attract me anymore. I find it hard to remember what it tastes like. I had incredible food addictions prior to this and NEVER could control them. As Janice pointed out in an earlier post, also, find out how sugar affects the system, be educated on the effects of food. I look around in the grocery store and see huge people loading their carts with junk and that does it for me. Thin does feel better than that cookie.

And...Mogambo, never heard that before but it works for me too. (just smelling the food is all I need now).

Just a few thoughts, Briee :)
 
[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON Oct-03-02 AT 08:32PM (Est)[/font][p]I know lots of people say that diet is 85% of successful weightloss and exercise is only 15%. That's good for people who can actually keep up with it. Great too for people who want fast results. That wont work for me. You tell me I can't have it and I'll be thinking about it ALL day. ALL night. So my approach was to not really care how long it took to lose the weight and to try to eat sensibly. In 3 years time, I'm down to 132 lbs at 5'4"
and that's better than being 180. All my clothes from last fall slide off now. I have to buy stuff every time. In three years my sister has gone back to Jenny Craig, WW and Bernstein a total of 5 times. She would be at goal weight and bounce back each time. So has my niece. They say exercise takes too long. I'm 132 lbs but take up less space than the average 130 woman. It is true that weights do good things for you. I eat ice cream, rice, chocolate. Bread. Life is too short not to enjoy a good Hagen Daaz,my friend. It might take me longer to get to my goal weight...if I eat what I want...who cares as long as in the long run I manage to arrive?
If you diet ... you do it all day, if you exercise...its an hour to 2 hours tops and you're done.
 
I can so relate to this one. The curse of the sweet tooth. I think as I get older I am getting more and more towards the beleifs of Aquajock. If you don't hold all your value in how you look, what you eat does not become so important anymore. I get like that..buy a half gallon ice cream...eat it all within 5 days....cry to my husband about how fat I am now....SWEAR I will never buy it again and I will be good next time.... But guess what?? Two weeks later I am at the store again and break down.

Nowadays I focus on performance and strength, rarely ever getting on the scale. If I feel I am getting a little pudgy, I up the cardio or eat a little less, but I will probably still have the ice cream.

Don't feel so bad. Think about how healthy you are even with all that ice cream in you!!:)
 
I don't deprive myself actually. I allow myself 1 treat a day. Usually mid afternoon. It may be a cookie or half of a Hershey Bar. Somedays I need it ,somedays I forget about it. I tried to allow myself a free day once a week and it didn't work for me.
This way I don't get those cravings I used to. I also don't eat after 7:30pm which has helped a lot. I brush my teeth and say "goodnight" to food.
Be strong and stay focused- Susan
 
Jillybean -

I have trouble with a sweet tooth also, and like to eat A LOT!

I've lost 40 lbs. over the last year and a half, and generally have had something sweet to eat every day. Most days, I try to satisfy myself with a smaller sweet (I like the Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches a lot, for 130 calories). Then on the weekend, I feel like I can have one or two larger desserts.

For me eating sweets makes me want to have more; so then I fill myself up with a small bowl of Fiber One cereal mixed with a little of another cereal that I like better (lately it is Kashi Go Lean Crunch).

This is what works for me. I think the key is trying to find the lowest calorie option that will satisfy you most of the time. Then occasionally, go all out and have that cheesecake or whatever! We do have a lot of candy and other stuff around the house for the hubby and kids - I try to turn a blind eye to that stuff. I also journal my food intake often because if I don't, I'll tend to keep eating. I try to stop myself around 2000 calories every day, then use the Fiber One trick or microwave popcorn if I'm still hungry.

Hope this helps!
 
I stopped binging or eating a lot of forbidden food when I changed my attitude towards them.

I simply allow myself to eat a bar of chocolate or ice cream when I really want it. I don't substitute. If I want Vanilla ice cream and we have only chocolate - I don't eat eat it.

As soon as I allowed them in my diet, I don't crave them anymore. In the beginning, basically the first day, I had a bar of chocolate but that's it (about four weeks ago).
 
Congratulations on the successful habit change. I am for one don't really like cakes, hate ice cream (how can you eat something that cold) and don't have much of a craving for chocolate. I have 1 or 2 biscuits no more I just don't really want them and try to stick to things like hobnobs.

Again I don't crave I even carry sweets with me and forget about them (there for when I get peakish and I'm out travelling).

Babs
 
Hi Jillybean! OH NO you really have to cut out that refined sugar!! I'd like you to try eating a lot more protein and fiber in your diet. These 2 components, believe me, will take all of your sweet tooth cravings away. You'll be sooo full from eating every 2 hrs. that you won't want to or desire any sugar. Try it. Kathy
 
I have had lots of problems with this too. I am still trying to change my habits, but what has worked for me so far is :

1. I don't keep the truly tempting stuff in the house - if it's so delicious I can't help myself, I try not to keep it around. Mostly the desserts that I make from scratch fall into that category, so the world has had to go without my homemade desserts for now. :)
2. I buy dessert-type stuff and snacky stuff in little containers (i.e. pudding cups or little to-go things of Pringles). Yes, it is more expensive that way, but not as expensive as it is for me to eat it all at one time! :)

Good luck and I hope this helps. I do think it helps to recognize why you're doing what you do. For instance, being fat enables me not to deal with my deep insecurities and fears. Why do you think you binge?
 
If I have a trigger food, I don't keep it in the house. ( My kids know if they want ice cream, they have to out for it)

Other than that, portion control is more important than any thing else!!Nothing is forbidden IF you can keep it to a reasonable portion.

I am a WW lifetime member, and when I want to get back to realistic portions,if I have strayed, I go back to counting WW points.
A good rule of thumb is to remember you don't want to be 100% full ever! Strive to be 80% full after a meal and go on to something else.
Am I always like this ? Certainly not, but most of the time I try to be.

I do believe in a eating vacation day occaisionally, but not on a regular basis. For Instance, I am going to a formal affair with my husband tomorrow. I will have a few drinks and maybe even dessert, if it is worth it.


Take time to enjoy those who matter most to you & do all things in moderation :)
 
Protein question and comments to Jillybean

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON Oct-04-02 AT 11:04AM (Est)[/font][p]What if you don't like most forms of protein? The only protein that I basically eat is low-fat/nonfat dairy and peanuts and/or peanut butter (fattening!). Sometimes I'll have a veggie burger with dinner.

Jillybean - wish I could help, but I have the same problem. I've had every eating disorder - anorexia, bulimia, binge eating and compulsive overeating. I have two theories and don't know if either is correct. One is that food/body image/weight is used to cover up underlying emotional issues. It's always easier to shift your focus to food when there is something deeper that is upsetting you. The other theory I have is biological - that there is some mixed up signal in the brain causing the urge to eat or messing up willpower. The reason I believe this is because when I was pregnant, the urge to binge or overeat was just about gone and, when I did feel the urge, it was fairly easy to get back in control. Two weeks postpartum, I started eating everything in sight again. Also, when I started binging years ago, my doctor put me on Prozac and within a week I had no desire to binge anymore. The effects eventually wore off and I went back to my bad habits and started binging again and stopped taking meds.
Wishing you lots of luck - I think you have done really well with your recovery and find your posts are very inspiring to me.

Erica
 
Hi Jillybean,

I too, am an all or nothing girl. I think the best thing to do is not to keep 'naughty' foods in the house. And my Mother always used to say, if you fancy something sweet, brush your teeth ! And it works too !
I always find that by writing a shopping list before going to the Supermarket, it helps you stick to what is on your list, and not be tempted to shove sweets into your trolley.
I think Honeybunch's idea is the best though, and I think it would work, have a blow out one day a week, and be good the rest of the week. Therefore, you are not depriving yourself, and it probably won't make much difference to your weight. I am trying to follow Honeybunch's idea, my DH (who is also on the clean eating plan) and I plan to have a take-away (my downfall ! :9) and wine on our blow out day.

Hope this was of some use,

Anna
 
Hi,
I haven't posted for a long time,just lerk once in awhile but I thought I would jump in here.

Iam an all or nothing person also, put a 12oz bag of M&M's in front of me and I will eat the entire bag.

What I do is I buy the little boxes of sugar-free pudding (Jello brand). There is instant and also the cook and serve kind. I make them with 1% milk. No sugar, no fat and they really help me with my sweet craving. I sometimes top them with a little no fat Cool Whip.

My body knows it is not getting any sugar but I have my mouth fooled into thinking it is getting something sweet.

Anyway, this is the only thing that has worked for me. I can't do the 'I will have one piece of chocolate today' because that starts a several day binge. I have to completely stay away from sugar.

Good luck,
Susan
 
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