Weight Loss Support Give and get support here!

Reply
 
Thread Tools
Old 11-24-2011, 06:10 AM   #1  
STREET DOG
Thread Starter
 
Kahokkuri's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Nashville, TN
Posts: 406

S/C/G: 231/230/145

Height: 5'8"

Default Not addicted food, but EATING

Had a very strange realization today. I'm sick with a bacterial infection and I'm currently coughing my lungs up and blowing my nose constantly. As a result, I can't taste a thing. And yet! I found myself finishing my lunch even though I already felt a little full, and I ate an unnecessary snack when I got home from work, despite lack of hunger and total lack of enjoyment of the flavors.

Many 3FC users have mentioned addictions to food, but today helped me realize that my addiction is to the act of eating, even when it brings me no pleasure at all!
Kahokkuri is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-24-2011, 06:44 AM   #2  
Leveling Up
 
sontaikle's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: New York
Posts: 3,651

S/C/G: 200+/115/115

Height: 5'3"

Default

First off, feel better!

Being addicted to the act of eating versus actual food was the problem I had. I was a big boredom eater who would just eat for the sake of eating food. I slowly taught myself to savor the taste of my food rather than the actual sensation of eating it.

I mention this on my blog, but I've now come to a point where if I'm craving something (say my favorite potato chips) I can just grab one or two of them, concentrate on the taste, and be done with it. The taste is gone and therefore I'm done. Two chips won't throw off everything and those chips will taste the same whether I have one or one hundred.

It's a big mental game to change your eating habits and it's fairly difficult...but it certainly pays off in the end
sontaikle is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-24-2011, 07:06 AM   #3  
Overweight again...dang
 
twinieten's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Arizona
Posts: 876

S/C/G: 213/160.3/135

Height: 5'5"

Default

I do the same thing! One thing I do that I hate is (I call it "starving student syndrome"), if it's there, and it's free, I'll eat it. It doesn't matter if I'm hungry. It doesn't matter if I'm full. I'm stuffing my face. I eat out of boredom, I eat because it looks good, I eat because it's there.... so many reasons besides hunger. I've been working quite hard to change this. If I'm not hungry, I don't need to eat. Am I eating out of boredom, for something to do, or am I hungry? It is a tough on to overcome.
twinieten is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-24-2011, 08:38 AM   #4  
Senior Member
 
Unna's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Europe
Posts: 535

S/C/G: 170/153/??

Height: 5'9"

Default

Nice post. I am currently facing this issue too. I never thought I had an addiction or an overeating problem.

I totally do. A lot of times I just grab what is in the kitchen and eat it. For no reason. Its not mealtime. I'm not necessarily hungry. It is somewhat of an unconscious act - I'm not exactly thinking about it. Like driving a car. You just do it.

Autopilot eating. I'm working on learning how to turn autopilot off.

Last edited by Unna; 11-24-2011 at 08:41 AM.
Unna is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-24-2011, 10:27 AM   #5  
Senior Member
 
lin43's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 1,669

Default

I understand what you mean. My big demon (lately) is wasting food. I had conquered this some years back, but it seems as if the tighter money gets, the more I hate wasting food. Like, today, I believe we will have far too much stuffing, and stuffing is my favorite holiday dish. Before I got to your post, I was actually having a mental "conversation" with myself to talk myself out of overeating that stuffing because I know even after we have leftovers tomorrow, there will still be some left. It's not cheap to make, so I am trying to be logical by saying to myself, "So, if you eat it all and gain weight, THAT will make you feel better than throwing it away??" Also, there's the rarity of it. But I say to myself, "I can actually make this anytime during the year I want. I just need the ingredients, which are very easy to come by."

It's a constant battle, isn't it?
lin43 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-24-2011, 01:41 PM   #6  
Pain Is Fuel
 
Mimzzy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Canada
Posts: 406

S/C/G: 180/176/118

Height: 5'5

Default

I hope you start feeling better soon!
I understand what your talking about. I have been doing a lot of thinking recently about my relationship with food and like you I come to the realization that I simply enjoy eating. It really doesn't matter what I am eating as long as I am eating something! It's extremely bad for me at night while watching TV even if I'm stuffed from dinner I still want to eat. I have actually started going for walks with my dog and going out for a random drive's at night to avoid wanting to stuff myself.

It's hard but realizing the addiction is one of the first steps to beating it!
Mimzzy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-24-2011, 04:00 PM   #7  
Senior Member
 
juliana77's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: California
Posts: 659

S/C/G: 285/211/165

Height: 5'6"

Default

Wow, thank you for posting this. This is kind of a lightbulb moment for me. I have never been a picky eater. But that is exactly it... it is the act of eating that does it for me. Even now, I would much rather eat small amounts 6 times per day than 3 larger meals. I am going to work on being more conscious of enjoying the taste of my food, that is a good goal.

I hope you feel better soon!
juliana77 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-24-2011, 04:11 PM   #8  
Junior Member
 
Idil's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: UK, Bristol
Posts: 3

S/C/G: 96kg/77kg/68kg

Height: 1.63cm

Default

Hope you get better soon. Try to drink lots hot beverages.
Idil is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-24-2011, 04:36 PM   #9  
Senior Member
 
hatgirlie's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 265

Default

Yes, I am in the same boat with the same problem...eating addiction. What I want to know is why all of us have this eating addiction and why others don't!?
hatgirlie is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-29-2011, 01:17 AM   #10  
STREET DOG
Thread Starter
 
Kahokkuri's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Nashville, TN
Posts: 406

S/C/G: 231/230/145

Height: 5'8"

Default

Thanks for the well wishes, everyone! Looks like the bacterial infection is cleared up; in any case, I can taste again.

I'm trying really hard to keep in mind what I realized last week and I like Isis21's idea of distracting myself by doing something physical. I usually just try to fight the desire to walk back into the kitchen one more time, but it certainly seems like leaving the house entirely would be helpful (as long as I don't take my wallet and end up at a convenience store)!
Kahokkuri is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-29-2011, 01:39 AM   #11  
Senior Member
 
indiblue's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Africa
Posts: 1,699

S/C/G: 134/126/under 124

Height: 5'2.5

Default

I'm the exact same way. I love putting things in my mouth, as weird as that sounds, and I love eating!

I curb it by:

1) Not starting eating until 12 PM or 1 PM (intermittent fasting). I can't explain how but not permitting myself to take that first bite until the day is half-through keeps me from nibbling all day long.

2) Drinking 2 cups of coffee very slowly throughout the day, including reheating each very frequently so they stay piping hot and I can only sip them carefully. Having something for my mouth to do when I'd rather shove food in it helps a lot.

3) Eating LOTS of veggies, which are low calorie and can take forever to eat. I like eating huge, huge salads (out of a mid-size mixing bowl!), 2 beets, a big bowl of mashed cauliflower, and pepper and tomato salad all afternoon. Seriously. And it all comes in at just around 300 or so calories, plus with tons of nutrients. Much healthier than snacking on pretzels or pretty much anything else, and it satisfies my need to eat.
indiblue is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-29-2011, 02:25 AM   #12  
Senior Member
 
rubidoux's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: San Diego
Posts: 482

S/C/G: 214/ticker/130

Height: 5'1.5"

Default

I think I'm addicted to a lot of things about food and eating.

Eating, though, is definitely one of them. Intermittent fasting helps me a lot with that, too, indiblue. Somehow it is a lot easier for me to just get into the habit of not eating than it is to get into the habit of eating frequently but not much. Somehow, during my fast periods, which are from around 7 or 8 pm until somewhere between 3 and 7 pm the next day, I just don't really think about food. That feels so much better to me than fantasizing about my next snack or meal, how far away it is, how much I get to eat, what I'll choose. I used to spend a lot of time thinking about food.

Another thing I'm addicted to is feeling full, maybe even over-full. I think most healthy people think it's a bad feeling to be over-full, but I find it comforting somehow. At least for the last 20 years or so, I have had a fear of being deprived of food. Like, I almost go into a panic if I'm home at night and realize there's nothing in the house to eat. I kind of wonder if the reason I feel comfort from being over-full is the same reason I find it comforting to have a full pantry. But actually the fasting has helped a lot with that, too. When I only eat once a day, I tend to not eat to that over-full point. I don't know why that's true. I don't restrict my mealtime portions at all. (If I have a snack earlier in the afternoon, I do try to keep that smallish.) But I don't want to over eat. And I think I'm even starting to feel like the empty-tummy feeling is kind of comforting. I associate it with taking care of myself and losing weight and being proud of what I've done.
rubidoux is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-29-2011, 03:43 AM   #13  
Back at It!
 
Jojo381972's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: China
Posts: 942

S/C/G: 238/220/170

Height: 5'4 1/2

Default

Mindless consumption is what I call it. Bingeing always feels mindless.
I also like the idea of going out for a walk or exercising to replace the need to overeat. Eating slowly and not in front of the tv has helped me savour and enjoy my food so that I can feel when I'm full - rather than gulping down the food to feed whatever emotions I am trying to numb at the time.

Drinking a glass of water before a meal helps me eat less as well.

Last edited by Jojo381972; 11-29-2011 at 03:48 AM.
Jojo381972 is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Related Topics
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Not enjoying food anymore Coondocks 100 lb. Club 18 08-26-2010 11:51 AM
Topic 4 - Emotional Eating Meg Rethinking Thin - a book discussion 62 07-24-2008 08:09 AM
Not New Anymore but still losing tropicalfreeze Support Groups 428 10-06-2004 11:27 AM


Thread Tools

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off



All times are GMT -4. The time now is 08:31 AM.


We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.