How are the non-dieters doing?

  • A while back, there were a lot of people posting on a thread about giving up dieting in order to stop binging. How is everyone doing? I am having success with not dieting, not binging, and not weighing myself, but unfortunately it hasn't resulted in weight loss I am very happy that i am no longer obsessed with food, and i don't care about a number on the scale either, but i am still upset every morning that my pants are as tight as they are. I might just have to accept that my body likes weighing around 160.
  • I am new to this site & wondered if someone could explain "Intuitive eating" to me. It sounds interesting. Thanks
  • @snoooze
    Intuitive eating is essentially giving up the diet mentality and giving yourself permission to eat whatever you want, how much you want...but ideally only when hungry and only stopping when satisfied. You may even over eat when you start but eventually the novelty of getting your hands on all the "forbidden" food wears off and things go back to normal. I'd google "overfed head" and read that it's a free PDF and if you like what you read go on amazon and buy the 3rd edition of evelyn tribole's intuitive eating book. http://www.intuitiveeating.org/conte...tuitive-eating

    I've been using intuitive eating to give up binging and its helping me a lot i'm about 2 weeks in and I am slowly accepting peace with food! I try to eat only when I start getting the empty hollow feeling when hungry and I usually stop before I get full. I can have anything, cookies, chocolates, pizza... but usually I find myself wanting healthier foods like lean meats and veggies. I've never honored my body this way because my eating disorder ruined me and made me really hate myself. Now I am finding ways to love myself.

    I don't weigh anymore but I can tell in the mirror i've lost weight. Its hard sometimes to eat when only hungry because surprisingly on some days you may only get hungry 2-3 times a day when you just wanna snack and thats what I need to work on. But it's so much better then I was.

    I don't weigh also because I'm doing strength training and idk how much muscle gains will do to the number plus fluid retention and I learned its just better not to weigh yourself because it's going to discourage you and make you want to diet again.

    My normal weight is usually around 140-145 but I'm confident its going to go down in time. Idc how much I weigh I just want to get buff.
  • There is a group here that is called Intuitive Eating you may want to check them out.
  • It's in the general diet plan section.
  • Hey surfergurl I have been meaning to update how things have gone for me since giving up the whole diet obsession thing. I have to say it has gone pretty well although the temptation do dive back into dietary rules. But the payoff has been no more bingeing. Things are pretty erratic; I will go through phases where I'm eating more, and phases when I'm eating not so much. Sometimes I eat alot of healthy food and sometimes I indulge, usually when there is something new I have not had before and I just go for it. I think for me I have turned my attention towards other things in life like projects and doing more activities with friends and family. I think this is crucial. I don't think I could have let go of the food obsession had I not kept myself busy with other things. I think it has also been important not to feel guilt after indulging or try to make up for it. Before when posting on the old thread I had given up weighing myself which was a good move and I'm glad I did. However I have been curious about my weight since and do now weigh myself from time to time more as a confirmation that I don't need to diet. And I felt and still feel I can handle any fluctuations without any psychological damage. And I have definitely fluctuated. My lowest weigh in has been 111 lbs and my highest 118. And everywhere in between. I have learned that a specific number doesn't mean a thing. My weight can easily change by 5 lbs over a single day depending on salt, alcohol, exercise, and many other things. I wonder why I weigh myself at all. It does seem better not to and I think if the number begins to have any power over me then it would be a good indication that I should stop. I'm very happy to not be bingeing anymore, but it has forced me to confront my emotions and other things in my life that I used to numb myself with food. Walking has been a great coping thing for me. I think I will always feel vulnerable to going back to my old ways, and every now and again I miss bingeing and think "what would one time hurt" But I'm pretty certain one time would lead to more. That brain connection would be strengthened and it would then take a lot of work and time to weaken. At least I would know how to go about doing that so I do take comfort in that. Hope everyone else is doing well ))
  • Nada diet here too. I'm continuing to lose at roughly 1-2 pounds a week with our 2 week visitors resulting in a minor stoppage due to so much eating out but I'm back to our healthy eating and am down to 226 today.

    Definitely not the white knuckle ride that I'm used to on diets, or die with a T. I have peanut brittle, cake mix, pasta and the like in the house that have been here for weeks. The peanut brittle (jalapeno PB) is to satiate the rare craving for salty/sweet crunch. One smallish piece does the job.

    I am really looking forward to being under 200# which I haven't seen in over 2 decades. I have a decent shot at it. What a miracle. One day at a time.
  • Going well thanks. I've dropped a couple lbs without trying to - hovering between 118-121 and exercising regularly and enjoying tons of ice cream this week, it's pre-pre-TOM time!