[JayEll]

Hey!

"This is the last time" is a game. By telling yourself that, you get to eat whatever item has struck your fancy. And, you probably believe it completely at the time.

I'd say, drop that game! One reason I like calorie counting is that there are no forbidden foods--just numbers I have to account for. So, it's up to me. Am I really going to use THAT many calories for THAT one food? Sometimes yes... most of the time, no.

Oh, I do have trigger foods that I have to avoid--or, if I decide to have them, it has to be in a controlled environment. For example, I never buy a carton of ice cream at the store, telling myself I'll only eat "a serving." Forget it, I'm not that strong. If I want ice cream, I buy a dish or a cone somewhere so it's limited.

And, I count the calories in my daily total. Of course. Although no food is off limits, every food counts.

Also, you didn't say what your target calorie level is, but make sure you're not going too low. If you're getting too hungry, it's even harder to avoid bingeing. Slow weight loss is just fine.

Good luck!

Jay

[the slim me]

I agree with all of the above. Telling yourself something is off limits and you're "BAD" if you eat it, or food is "bad" just makes you want it more. Food is not "bad". Sometimes you might make a bad decision. I love chocolate. I couldn't stay on a diet that didn't allow chocolate. I have one really good piece of chocolate every day with my afternoon tea. I choose it carefully, enjoy every bite!! It's something i look forward to and it takes care of my chocolate craving. You can have what ever you want, just plan for it.

[sm177]

Thank you guys so much for the advice! Reading it now I'm definitely understanding my problem more. I find I always "know" what I should be doing, but putting the plan into action is always a rough time.

I know I'm at a healthy weight but it's not a "happy" weight. I know that if i continued to eat the way I used to I'd be huge in no time. I figure it's easier to lose the weight now (at 20) instead of at 30 or 40. I want to adopt a healthy lifestyle at an early age so I can be smooth sailing for the rest of my life.

Weight training is actually a big part of why I lost weight initially. I've cut down a lot because I feel like my arms have too much muscle and with the fat added on my arms are too big. My main issue is eating. I run fairly often and I'm pretty much active all day everyday. I live downtown so I walk/bike everywhere and my job requires me to be walking for most of the day. My university also has multiple free gyms that I can go to whenever I want. Really, I have NO excuse to not lose weight. I live with my dad that runs 5-6 marathons a year, hes a health nut so my apartment literally only has healthy food, I just eat too much of it.

I now realize my issue really is commitment. I've only been on this board for a few days and it's really helping, you guys are all so amazing! Next time I'm craving something heavily I'll try having a small piece and stopping there, then get right back on track.

[Alpinkatze]

Originally Posted by WarMaiden

This really depends on the individual. I'm not the kind of person who can have just "some" sugary stuff. If sugar is in my diet, I cannot control my consumption of it. However, if sugar is not in my diet, then I am able to cut it out completely and not miss it.

Same here! This very thing has been one of my major problems for the last five or so years.

Also, I'm THE emotional eater, and until last winter, I wasn't aware of this. Then I found out that my REAL problem is not eating, but suppressed grief. I mean, I knew I was grieving and feeling terrible about several losses that have occured in my life, but I never saw the link between that and my drastically changed eating patterns. Now that I'm aware of it, it's actually a lot easier for me to say no. Now I ask myself whether grief is trying to take over control, or whether I'm upset about something or proud of something or bored or whatever, and if I find that this is so, then I force myself to live through the emotion instead of covering it up with food. Because that's what I do (or hopefully, used to do).

Strangely enough, I also find that if I haven't had any bad stuff for a couple of days in a row, my emotionally triggered cravings get much weaker. So I think, for me these two factors go hand in hand.