| eating away.... |
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I've been having this problem for a while, I just keep overeating and eating ... it's like a food addiction. My season ended a week ago and I've taken time off and since then I've been overeating every single day. I tell myself today I will eat healthy but then I cave in and buy donuts, etc. at the many pastry shops around here and end up feeling sickenly full every night. I have willpower in the other aspects of my life (running for example), but I don't know what it is when it comes to food... I eat it because it is there, because I like the taste. I think this overeating is one of the things holding me back running wise and I need to kick this somehow... I'm really shy too, so I'm afraid to open up to a nutrioninist or something... no one in my real life knows how bad of a binge eating problem I have. I know I'll probably get a lot of flack for this on here, but does anyone have similar stories/similar problems? Is there anything I can do , any mental tricks, etc. that could help me somehow? |
| you're not alone |
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I have it too. Basically, it sucks. My weight fluctuates anywhere from 150 to 170 pounds given the week. (Yes, given the week. I can easily gain 5 or 6 pounds on a big binge) I think it's based on the extreme-ness of my personality. Eat right and run or binge and sit on the couch. All or nothing approach - it can be a great asset or detriment. Typical tricks include: - drinking lots of water - eating a spoonful of peanut butter to curb appetite - write down how you feel after a binge (chances are you feel guilty and disgusted with yourself, write that down and look at it next time you think about it bingeing) - when you think you're going to binge, go exercise, this temporarily curbs appetite - THIS IS THE BEST TIP: keep yourself busy. be around people. it's easy to binge when you're sitting at home with nothing to do. get out there and interact with people (introvert or not - get out there and be social) - coffee tends to curb appetite but it's kind of a crappy habit to get into - buy things in reasonable portion sizes. obviously, it's extremely easy to eat a whole bag of chips or a whole pizza if you're a compulsive eater - if you screw up and binge, just start again fresh tomorrow. nothing is irreversible that's all i can think of for now. good luck. oh and buy a scale if you don't already have one. it's just a good tool to keep things in check and in perspective. |
| you're not alone |
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PS - i'm a 5'11'' 17 min 5k guy (just thought i'd mention it since this is a running site and not an ED forum.) |
| morte vaughm |
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i struggled with this on and off for some time until it turned into a full fledged eating disorder. Wasted 2 years of college running... Take care if it before it gets out of control. Are you getting enough FAT in your diet? Healthy fats are GOOD. One of the best tips that helped me out, was eat BIG in the morning. make it your biggest meal. Aim to be very full, and eat alot of carbs and fat- even if it is some junk (doughnuts cookies ect, that way you don't feel as if you are limiting yourself to certain foods) then taper throughout the day (regular lunch, small dinner- if at all, and snack on fruit and nuts in between meals if you have to.) until about 5-6 where you stop eating completely. Post your email if you need someone to talk to. |
| J.R. |
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The worst things to eat are donuts, as they will put weight on you fast. I don't even eat bread, because of the salt and flour. I could eat a loaf of bread in a day no problem at all, and would keep gaining the pounds... arghhh no way. Instead of food like that, focus on raw veggie salads and fruit. For example, chopped cucumbers, zuchinni, nopales, tomatoes, peppers (if you like them), and drink plenty of fresh pure water. Watermelon is delicious. I can eat a whole watermelon every day, plenty of ripe bananas, plenty of water and lose weight. |
| eating away.... |
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That's the thing, I've read up a lot on nutrition and I know what foods are good and what aren't and I've removed a lot of the junk food from my house. I set out on a plan of eating healthy food and sometimes I can follow it... but sometimes, something just makes me go and buy that pastry in the shop. Yesterday I went and bought 3 pastries through the day (ate healthy besides that...), and I don't even know what made me buy the last 2 because I wasn't even hungry. When I write about it like this it sounds like you could just say "Hey don't go into the store!" and when I look back at it it seems so simple but when I'm in the moment it's like a literal addiction. I've even tried keeping a bunch of vegetables around, but at a recent gathering even when I brought vegetables/healthy stuff to eat on my own, I caved in to the chips and cookies that were there and gorged myself on them. It's getting really out of hand and I'm worried at future repercussions health wise, never mind how I'm sure it is holding me back in running. |
| lenny |
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When my eating habits become undisciplined I count calories. There are several smartphone apps that make it easy. If you record everything you eat you will think twice before scarfing down those pastries. I don't do it year-round, but stick to it for a few weeks a couple of times a year. That's enough to keep me on track. |
| eating away.... |
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Thanks, I have been "too lazy" in the past to do this but I started today and so far I have finally been under my calorie requirements. I am shooting for a 500 calorie deficit each day and do feel a bit hungry, but maybe that's because my body was used to more food because I kept overeating. We'll see how this goes. |
| me tooo |
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i suffer from the same problem you described. i see a therapist (psychologist) who helps me with the emotional reasons behind it. if you can afford seeing a therapist, seek one out for eating disorders, specifically binge eating disorder, BED. it is a DSM-IV recognized disorder. good luck! it sucks. my weight has fluctuated from 165 to 245, for 16 min 5k to couch potato.... |
| pr100 |
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If you binge it most likely means that you've allowed yourself to become too hungry because you've not eaten enough. Eat a big, nutritious breakfast. Eat a big, nutritious lunch. If you eat good stuff in your main meals then you won't get so hungry through the rest of day. |
| dfsdfbfbrdb |
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I had gotten into the habit of eating donuts fairly regularly and it packed on the pounds quick. Once I realized that a single donut has about the same calories and more fat than an entire bacon egg and cheese on a bagel I cut them out entirely and have since lost a few pounds. |