[newleaf123]

I walk through the store reminding myself that it's not in the store's best interest for me to lose weight, and that I alone am responsible for keeping my best interests in mind.

The proliferation of junk food everywhere you turn really bothers me on an intellectual level. Yeah, it's no wonder there's an obesity epidemic!

[SuperHeroTeacher]

I'm so lucky, my local grocery store has a personal shopping service. I submit my order online and pull up to a reserved spot right in front of the store; my shopper brings the groceries out, puts them in the car and I pay her.

I was a little leery at first - a friend has had bad experiences with Safeway delivery. I have to say all of the produce the shopper picked or me was PERFECT! She may have been even mor picky than me (which is saying something).

I only tried it because I couldn't bear to go shopping my first week on Medifast and your first 5 orders are free. After that orders are free if you spend over $100, or it's a fee of $4.95 for orders under$100. It is so convenient I'll never grocery shop again! Plus, a $5 fee is NOTHING compared to the extra $ I spend on crap if I actually go into the store. Not to mention the 45 minutes it would take me to shop is worth more than $5...

[Roo2]

I guess I am just a Weirdo But I love Grocery Shopping ! Went today to Costco bring my shaker in go over to Soda Machine get Ice and Water and shook up my CranGranata drink as I shopped and walked by the free samples ...as was as fine as from hair spilt 3 ways!

I think it is all about your mindset....dieting is so much a mental game.

I enjoy seeing all the new items ,got my family their favorites Home Run Inn frozen Pizza and the other snacks they like!
I realize food that I can not have in life surrounds us in the world ....it does not scare or bother me ....Cuz my Mantra is this is not for you and I am reprogramming my brain.

Learning to live a new normal is not easy ...but if you are willing to truly commit to the process it becomes a part of who you are
Good Luck,as we all strive to our desired goals,Roo2

[Alyssa Autopsy]

Originally Posted by merilung

I generally don't have an issue with this - we ate 100% organic vegan for so long that I just ceased to see the processed crap as food. Like others have said, I shop around the outside of a conventional grocery store - I hit up produce, meat, eggs, and I'm done. I think the only things I've had to go down aisles for are olives and spices.

I don't mind axing food that doesn't fit in my budget and shopping for the produce that's on sale - no way would I buy raspberries at $3+! I also don't look at the prices of things I don't intend to buy - it doesn't really matter to me if nutella is cheaper than almond butter, since I'm not going to buy it and eat it even if it's a quarter a jar.

well thats the price raspberries are around me... i live in new jersey, ti's expensive here. a single kohlrabi cost my grandmother $2.50 the other day... and we used the whole thing between 2 salads (we eat very big salads with lots of veggies. i usually put a whole tomato and a whole cucumber in my salad)

[merilung]

Originally Posted by Alyssa Autopsy

well thats the price raspberries are around me... i live in new jersey, ti's expensive here. a single kohlrabi cost my grandmother $2.50 the other day... and we used the whole thing between 2 salads (we eat very big salads with lots of veggies. i usually put a whole tomato and a whole cucumber in my salad)

Yup, I know food can be pricey depending on your region - I've lived a bit of everywhere at this point, and it's not uncommon to see them priced at $3+ here in Saint Louis. Personally, I would go without raspberries rather than pay that much for a teeny container and find another produce item that's more affordable. We tend to focus on veggies first, and then buy fruit IF we have money left over and there's something we like that fits within our budget. Produce sales also tend to align with what's in season, so buying what's cheapest often gets you the best quality stuff!

Gardening and farmer's market seconds have also made a HUGE difference in the quality of my diet in really lean times. When we had a little more money, we got a CSA subscription, which was a great money saver as well.

[Alyssa Autopsy]

Originally Posted by merilung

Yup, I know food can be pricey depending on your region - I've lived a bit of everywhere at this point, and it's not uncommon to see them priced at $3+ here in Saint Louis. Personally, I would go without raspberries rather than pay that much for a teeny container and find another produce item that's more affordable. We tend to focus on veggies first, and then buy fruit IF we have money left over and there's something we like that fits within our budget. Produce sales also tend to align with what's in season, so buying what's cheapest often gets you the best quality stuff!

Gardening and farmer's market seconds have also made a HUGE difference in the quality of my diet in really lean times. When we had a little more money, we got a CSA subscription, which was a great money saver as well.

We live in a condo so no garden, and we're not allowed to hang stuff so the topsy-turvy tomato planter isn't an option either. also farmer markets don't accept my food stamps

Originally Posted by SuperHeroTeacher

I'm so lucky, my local grocery store has a personal shopping service. I submit my order online and pull up to a reserved spot right in front of the store; my shopper brings the groceries out, puts them in the car and I pay her.

I was a little leery at first - a friend has had bad experiences with Safeway delivery. I have to say all of the produce the shopper picked or me was PERFECT! She may have been even mor picky than me (which is saying something).

I only tried it because I couldn't bear to go shopping my first week on Medifast and your first 5 orders are free. After that orders are free if you spend over $100, or it's a fee of $4.95 for orders under$100. It is so convenient I'll never grocery shop again! Plus, a $5 fee is NOTHING compared to the extra $ I spend on crap if I actually go into the store. Not to mention the 45 minutes it would take me to shop is worth more than $5...

same issue as above, i only have food stamps. that'll pay for the groceries, but i don't have the $$$ for the charge... food stamps are my ONLY income, i'm trying to get onto Disability for my mental illnesses but my hearing date won't even be scheduled for another 9 months.

[merilung]

Alyssa - what area of NJ are you in? Some of my buddies from the co-op I used to work with are heavily involved in farmer's markets coalitions - my old farmer's market did accept food stamps, I could see if anyone there knows of one near you that does! Farmer's markets seconds are often totally free if you go at the end of the day - they'd rather get rid of a case of not-perfect tomatoes than let them rot. Even when I was really active in the organic/natural food scene, I was always learning about new ways to access healthy food - they can be so easy to miss! If you have a food co-op near you, they often take food stamps as well and many will waive membership fees for low income folks. There also might be a community garden near you - they're popping up all over the place these days.

When I lived in a teeny condo I did a lot of container gardening in my kitchen. I started off with free containers (old soda bottles cut in half, big plastic bins that I picked up by a dumpster one time, reusable grocery bags that were on their last leg) though I did eventually pick up some super cheap pots from craigslist.

[Fit dad 2b]

Originally Posted by rodeogirl

I'm a big believer in shopping around the perimeter of the store...

I noticed that the newly built grocery store I started shopping at has gotten a little wise to this. The chips are on a long wall perpendicular all the aisles, creating a "chip perimeter".

[Alyssa Autopsy]

Originally Posted by merilung

Alyssa - what area of NJ are you in? Some of my buddies from the co-op I used to work with are heavily involved in farmer's markets coalitions - my old farmer's market did accept food stamps, I could see if anyone there knows of one near you that does! Farmer's markets seconds are often totally free if you go at the end of the day - they'd rather get rid of a case of not-perfect tomatoes than let them rot. Even when I was really active in the organic/natural food scene, I was always learning about new ways to access healthy food - they can be so easy to miss! If you have a food co-op near you, they often take food stamps as well and many will waive membership fees for low income folks. There also might be a community garden near you - they're popping up all over the place these days.

When I lived in a teeny condo I did a lot of container gardening in my kitchen. I started off with free containers (old soda bottles cut in half, big plastic bins that I picked up by a dumpster one time, reusable grocery bags that were on their last leg) though I did eventually pick up some super cheap pots from craigslist.

we don't have the room for gardening indoor *sweat* there's 3 adults and a cat in this place, we actually just have boxes stacked all over the place from lack of room, and i keep my clothes in piles on the floor because i have no empty drawers to put them in. and the bathroom has 2 doors, but one is blocked on both sides- one side by a shelf, the other side by a dresser, a table, and a bunch of boxes x.x we can barely even cook because of the lack of counter space.

i'm in Middlesex County, i live a few miles from East Brunswick

[shcirerf]

Grocery shopping!

It can be the devil, or you can conquer!

I actually live in a small place, in the middle of God's no where! I garden, I'm lucky, I have 100 acres! And a 3000 sq ft garden.

I raise as much as I can, however the weather sometimes, is not on board with my plans. 2 years ago, we had 6 hail storms, does not do much for the garden.

Last year, I put in 24 mater plants, 20 pepper plants, 2 long rows of potatoes, Zukes, eggplant, summer squash, beets, radishes, carrots, Kentucky Wonder Beans, Cherokee wax beans, okra, a variety of other melons and squash, spinach, several varieties of lettuce, and probably some stuff I don't even remember.

Then, we went from winter to summer! It was 110 degrees here, on June 10? Who knew? Zukes, stalled and died, maters did not set on, all cool season crops, bust!

However, for the first time in a long time, I had a melon crop! Amazing! And the carrots and Yellow Cherokee beans grew like they were on roids! Go figure?

Anywho, if I remember correctly and the rules have not changed, you can buy garden seeds with food stamps. I realize, that not all of us live in a place with a lot of space, but container gardening has lots of options. "Google" pallet gardening. Folks do amazing things!

I'm actually surprised, given technology, that more farmers markets are unwilling or unable to accept food stamps, (around here, aka, EBT card)

There is an app for that. It was discussed 2 weeks ago at a Women in Ag conference, I attended, put on by the University of Nebraska.

As far as general grocery shopping goes and looking for deals, it does not really matter if you live in a small or big area. Talk to the folks that work there. Shop the outside aisles. Rarely does any good come from venturing in to any other place!

All stores put certain things on sale at certain times, depending on outdates. Granted, you might have to go shopping at 5 a.m. on Sunday morning, but the deals are there. This is where, talking to the folks that work there, is a good thing!

[merilung]

Originally Posted by shcirerf

I garden, I'm lucky, I have 100 acres! And a 3000 sq ft garden.

SO. MUCH. GARDEN. ENVY.

I think I just turned green with jealousy. You should totally take a picture of your super huge garden so that I might live vicariously through you!

[Arctic Mama]

I'm absolutely with Merilung. That stuff is not what I eat. It's not food for me. No conflict, no struggle, no temptation, because I'm at peace with that fact. So I walk past it, tacitly and detached lay observe the labels, take an appreciative sniff and say that 'yes, that's nice'. And then I move on and don't give it another thought.

It's a mental game, and food is only a temptation if you ALLOW yourself to be tempted. Enjoying your current way of eating helps so much, but it doesn't go all the way. Being iron-clad committed to the right choices for your body means there is NO mental wiggle room for justifying things that aren't in that choice subset (and if the occasional treat is in that subset, plan it out accordingly and don't let yourself see that random junk as a viable option if it really isn't).

We get into trouble when we allow ourselves to fall into thinking, consciously or otherwise, that we deserve that treat or could eat it. Then we fixate on it and it becomes 'temptation'.

The solution? Nip that crud in the bud right away by resolving yourself. Then there is no thought, no choice, no hemming or hawwing or imagining how much you'd like to eat it (or how good it might taste and ooooh, wouldn't I love a bite?!). Stop that thought pattern that leads to those desires when you look t junk BEFORE it starts. It takes practice, but in the end it isn't our ability to hold a stiff upper lip while really wanting to give in that makes us succeed - that willpower is finite. It takes reframing the entire thought process, so you don't even start down the path of needing to resist, that will likely prove most successful.

See, I don't need to be strong to turn down a dessert at Christmas, every bread basket, and my previous favorite candy and ice cream. Strength fails. I just know, at the core of my being, that I am beyond the time when I could eat and enjoy those and now do things different, period. End of discussion. Moving on.

And I tell you, it sounds silly but it works brilliantly! Almost like magic, in terms of the great mental burden it can remove from the process of losing weight.

[Alyssa Autopsy]

eh guys im sorry but the advice im getting just isnt going to work for me. first of all, you're telling someone with an eating disorder to stop eating specific things, don't you know that restrictive eating is one of the problems with eating disorders? first you cut out chocolate, then no red meat during the week, suddenly you're only eating things that are 50 calories or less (like half an apple) per every hour because you're afraid to go over. and i seriously don't have the room for gardening.


i don't know if this is the right site for me, because the dieting has triggered me and i've pretty much relapsed. and even the eating disorder site isn't good for me, because of the rules about numbers... i need to discuss my issues full-on, and my ED posts here get locked, and i've already been admonished for my "content" multiple times on the site. i need somewhere where i can ***** and moan about (in the past) being a size 0 and making myself throw up, and now being a 14 and wanting to again. but my posts on both sites keep getting deleted or edited. (case in point, my word has been changed to ***** when all i'm saying is "female dog". I DON'T WANT TO BE CENSORED!)

i think i just need to call my psychiatrist's emergency number once it's a decent hour (it's not even 6 am, my cat woke me up at 5 by attacking my foot =_=) because i. am. freaking. out.

[Arctic Mama]

We're not psychiatrists, we're random strangers on the Internet friendly enough to try and help you out as best we can. If a paid professional is what you need, please do take that route. We are in no way comparable and it's a bit unfair to try and make it so when we're doing this out if kindness and for free.

Nobody here can solve your problems, we can ONLY offer advice. Advice, I might add, that seems to be met largely by excuses (on this thread, at least). You asked a question and got answers, even if they weren't workable. Would it not be slightly more appreciative and friendly to be grateful for help rather than chastise everyone for not being helpful 'enough'?

Similarly, this is someone else's private site, moderated and managed by them and extended to the users as a privilege/courtesy. They pay the bills, they make the rules. While I don't always agree with every moderator decision, it is their right to make them for whatever reason they seem necessary. In the case of disordered eating and related content, if they see something as inappropriate and triggering and remove it, is it not their right?

3FC may not be the right fit for you - if you don't want the (sometimes less than helpful) help of strangers or to abide by another individuals rules. That's perfectly okay! Communities with less/no moderation and individuals who know your situation better and are compensated for their credentials may be just what is needed and if that is the case - may all go well with you!

[Daimere]

eh guys im sorry but the advice im getting just isnt going to work for me. first of all, you're telling someone with an eating disorder to stop eating specific things, don't you know that restrictive eating is one of the problems with eating disorders? first you cut out chocolate, then no red meat during the week, suddenly you're only eating things that are 50 calories or less (like half an apple) per every hour because you're afraid to go over.

I'm sorry you're not getting the answers you are wanting/needing. Honestly though sometimes with losing weight there is a fine line between ED and healthy weight loss. I remember a few years ago there was a thread about it.

I really think books or podcasts from Full-Filled would help you a bit. She used to be a binger. She never really advocates eliminating foods. I used some of her techniques years ago which has helped my binging go down dramatically. http://www.reneemethod.com/fulfilled/. You could find the book at the library (or ask them to get it for you!) or listen to her podcasts. I also mainly stick to the outside of the stores. I rarely go inside aisles and I try to not look around if I do. I'm on a mission for my health. Also they say go to the store on a full stomach. I know when I'm hungry, I add more sugary stuffs to my basket than I normally do.

I still fully recommend talking to your doctor. This is just the internet. They don't know your issues and your obstacles. Your doctor may be the best person to talk to. Although good luck on your journey. *hug*