[kgb]

Hi, After many years of dieting and binging mostly (low carb diets) I am so confused as to what to eat and what portions. I am also a recovering bulimic so food portions seem like such a difficult thing to judge.

I notice from other posts people follow the WW guidelines or even the zone diet. How can someone suddenly be able to follow a diet now that they are in OA. I am not critizing just confused!

I have found a food sponsor but feel so fat all day long and feel like my physical recovery will not happen. I know I have to trust God and let go, but I am so scared of remaining fat!

Marny, you seem to have lost heaps of weight in a year. What do you eat? And what is a sample of a days food for other people.
Thanks
karol

[srmb60]

Hi! Some folks here use a program called fitday. There will be a link in that profile box over there <<<<<. You can click on it and see exactly what they eat.
It's interesting and enlightening. While you're reading just have a look at a few.

[marny]

Hi there karol-

You ask an important question. How does OA help me to follow a food plan? It's not instant-- it's a process. When on a diet, the diet and the restriction of food are our whole focus. When working the 12 steps in OA, our food plan is only one of many tools that we use. It's not our prime focus.

By using the tools of the program and working the steps, I am given the willingness and the ability to be abstinent and stick to my food plan on a daily basis by God.

I pray, write, read, attend meetings, call other OA members-- these actions help me with my food plan.

You asked what I eat. For my food plan I follow the Zone, but have modified it to fit my abstinence. I eat 3 meals and 1 snack. I don't eat my trigger foods. A typical day for me would be:

8:00 Breakfast 1 cup cooked oatmeal
6 almonds
2 Morningstar Soy sausage patties
water


12:00 Lunch Turkey Sandwich made with:
2 slices Oroweat Lite whole wheat bread
Mayo/Mustard
3 oz turkey
1 oz cheese
1 Apple
1 TBLSP natural peanut butter
1 peach
Diet Coke

5:00 Dinner 2 Jimboys tacos
1/2 order of side of beans
Diet Coke

8:00 Snack 2 slices peanut butter toast
water

[Mabela]

Great post Karol!

I see people asking 'what plan are you on?' and I just want to say, 'the please God help me not eat any binge foods today Plan!'.

Good luck achieving your goals!

[Magic Flute]

Hi Karol,
I just started back on the OA program, however after all the practice I have losing wt, I know the drill and I know how to lose wt but it never sticks. To me it is like saying prayers everyday but you don't go to church and become isolated. That is what OA is to me, my meetings are like going to a Church Service.
I am basing my food plan on calorie reduction. I picked a lower wt, determined how many calories I should have at THAT wt (not my current wt) and I write in my journal everything I eat, the calories and portions. It is funny because I am not even consuming all the calories I allow myself.
Breakfast: Slimfast Drink
Lunch: Lean Cuisine, friut, crackers
Snack-celery+cheese
Dinner: fish or chicken with vege and a Skinny Cow treat.
I weigh in on Aug. 10 I pray it is good news.
Bumps...in the road that's me

[sidhe]

Hmm. I follow a "protein/grain/veg/fruit 3x a day, 1 snack if I need it" plan. A typical day would look like this:

B - 3 egg beaters w/ salsa (what can I say, I'm from Southern California!)
3 links light sausage
1 cup brown rice/barley/bulgur mix
1 cup fruit (an apple, a nectarine, fruit cups, whatever)
**I don't have veggies with breakfast because I just can't stomach them

L - 3 cups mixed lettuce w/ light dressing
salad sprinkles (crunchy but not croutons!)
5 oz grilled chicken
1 c brown rice/barley/bulgur mix
1 c fruit

S - apple
2 T natural peanut butter

D - shepherd's pie made with 97% fat free ground sirloin, 3 cans of mixed veggies (corn, peas, Veg-All) and garlic mashed potatoes on top (at least 5 oz protein)
1 cup fruit

No sugar, no [white] flour. Works for me.

[ODAAT]

I follow the Weight Watchers Core plan which focuses on learning to recognise how hungry you are.

I eat three meals a day based on 'core' foods. I can each as much of these foods as I want, but only if I am hungry. I'm not supposed to feel over-full. As I'm not good at controlling how much I eat, I do measure out a normal persons 'large' portion. As I lose weight, I will decrease my portions.

Core Foods are basically all fruit and veg, lean meat and fish, rice pasta and potatoes. Bread isn't allowed, or anything made with anything other than the above. Skimmed milk and low fat yogurt is allowed.

Breakfast -
60g Cornflakes or 2 Shredded Wheat with 1/2 pint skimmed with a sliced banana.

Lunch -
Stuffed Beef Tomatoes or Peppers with 1 steam bag rice 30g sliced ham, spring onion and parsley

Dinner -
A range of things, usually some sort of lean meat or fish with rice and veg. Or I make a shepards pie, spaghetti bolognase etc.

Snacks -
I'm allowed to snack on fruit, but only if I really need to.
I also drink 6-10 pints of water a day.


For me, the not binging just clicks when I cut out any trigger food. I cannot have any sweet food (no ice lollies, jelly, yogurt or other low fat treats) or any bread. I can have white rice, but do have brown pasta. I find that once all my triggers are out of my system and the fridge is free from trigger food, it is so much easier.

It says somewhere in the Big Book that it is the alcoholics grand obsession to find a way to drink in moderation. Like with drinking, I've had to accept that I cannot eat in moderation - I have to practise abstainance.

If you are unsure what to eat, please see your family doctor. He will be able to refer you to a dietician or a nutritionist who will explain what is healthy for you to eat.

Best wishes

[kgb]

> Hi everyone thanks for your response. I am in Australia and it*s really
> exciting to meet over COE on the other side of the world. I am feeling
> better today. I am trying to attend at least 1 online meeting a day
> which is really handy especially because I have a 3 year old daughter
> and husband and trying to get out of the house after working all day is
> really hard. I am attending one face to face meeting each week which
> really good. I am willing to let go of my WAY/Will and doing what feels
> uncomfortable at the moment, believing that if I let go of the physical
> side and focus on the spiritual and emotions side and eating balanced
> and doing some exercise it will all fall into place. I know that I can
> not control my self and having a food plan and a sponsor and using the
> other tools I have a way out and a way to get through the next 24 hours.
> I know that my will/disease will only lead to death. I believe that at
> the end of all addictions is death (that is unless we get help and
> arrest our disease on a daily basis). I am also looking at my thought
> patterns and how what we focus on expands and focusing on the positive
> and recovery will mean I will attract more positive and more recovery.
> If I start feeling like a victim *poor me, I have a disease I will never
> be skinny, I will never loose the obsession, what is the point* will not
> get my anywhere except for more binging. Most of the time I have to find
> the positive of the smallest things and confess things like, *thank you
> God for giving me this car to drive to work, and for giving me a good
> job that allows me to use the internet blah blah*. Even though I feel
> like a dork, I figure that it is better then pulling my self into
> depressive thoughts of *I hate this traffic, I hate going to work, I
> hate the people I work with blah blah*. It is in our gratitude for the
> smallest things we open our selves up to receive more. I know God
> loves me (for me it is the Christian God) and I know he has a good plan
> for me and that he wants me to have a good life of joy, peace and
> abundance and all is possible if I BELIEVE. Sorry for the long
> post.Karol

[ODAAT]

Karol, can I ask what online OA meetings you use? I'm aware of a few AA chat rooms, but haven't found an OA meeting.

It was lovely to read your post, you sound so happy and positive. A great idea to share what we tend to eat too.

[kgb]

Good morning all,

www.therecoverygroup.org has the online meetings you just enter through the "door to meeting" tab. The meetings are run every 3 hours.

I am greatful for the peace I have in between meals. The biggest fear I have is of staying fat. Looking over everyones food plans I can easily say I am undereating. I am freaked out eating carbs!

The last diet that really screwed my head was Dr Cohens Diet. I lost heaps of weight before I went o/s last year. When I was O/S I was so scared to eat anything. I purging everything that wasn't allowed on the diet. I really screwed my mind up with fear of getting fat. When I got back to Australia I couldn't sustain the diet anymore and kept on binging and purging.

I have put on 15kg and am so embarrassed to see people. I have functions coming up in the next couple of months. I know everyone will look at me and think "well that weigtloss didn't last". I feel like such a looser. I just wish I stayed at 67 kg, which for my height of 5.1 feet isn't skinny but is comfertable. I haven't weighed my self but I am guessing I am around 82kg (1kg equals 2.2pounds) not sure what that works out in pounds.

In every other aspect of life I am successful. I wish I had sought help when I was 67kg. I always hit bottom once I am so big that nothing fits me and I just can't take it anymore. I know I am not the biggest person in the world, but in my head I feel like a monster.

I know that being thin does not solve all my problems but it does sure make life easier, especially going out and facing the world.

I intend to join the gym in the next week. I figured that working out will make me feel healthier and now that I am eating a well balanced plan I have more energy to work out.

Regards
Karol