100-calorie packs have been a saving grace for me. Last weekend at Costco, my husband looked into the cart and said, do you realize how much money we are wasting on portion control? Nope, it's not wasting to me. When I first tried them, I told myself that if I binged on them, I would never buy them again. It has worked. Unbelivable that I have a jumbo box of 100-calorie packs, including rice krispie treats, that I eat ONE AT A TIME.

hi naturelady, i'm going to suggest a slightly different tactic. it doesn't sound like you're eating because you're hungry. it sounds like you're eating because you want something from the food that food can't give you. what's missing in your life? are you lonely or bored? what would you be thinking about if you weren't thinking about food?

i find that when i get sucked back into using food (as opposed to eating food) the one thing that gets me back into balance is exercise. even if the idea of working out is the least appealing thing in the world, once i start moving, i start feeling better.

HTH!

Hmmm. I'm a gum chewer.
Fruit makes me more hungry, especially apples.
Everybody is different, so you've just got to find something that works for you.
A big help is to not have binge foods around/in your house.
Good luck

I try to binge on vegetables. Not starchy white potatoes, or vegetable chips, but the real thing. Even if I really don't feel like doing any more prep work, I make a giant salad, or cut up fresh peppers to dip in hummus, or carrots and broccoli in fat free dip. you really do feel full afterwards, and at least then you aren't depriving yourself in case you actually were hungry. also, the water thing is a big thing, i heard somewhere that you should be drinking half your body weight in water per day. i don't know about you, but for me thats lots of water!

What if you started small. Start with your next meal. Eat one less thing than you normally would. For example, if you have a sandwhich with chips, skip the chips or eat only half and the chips. The next meal, if it's something like a hot meal, eat the meat, veggie and just half the starch. If you snack, eat only half of whatever it is. Don't try a "diet" per se and don't change your food yet to low fat/carb/cal foods. Just cut back the smallest bit every day for a week.
This small goal is amazingly easy and so empowering. After 3 days or so I think you'll feel what I did... that I DO have control.
All the best-
Keri

I also have a big problem with eating and eating and eating.
It's like my belly never says its full and i think that is what i am trying to feel, like i'm full.

Here is what i do to stop eating:
#1 - realize that i want to only eat 1 portion, it's really important that i know i want to only eat 1 serving so i have to be vigilant, be aware
#2 - like someone else said, pre-measure everything into correct portions, like chips or nuts, when i buy them, i divide them out into baggies.
#3 - eat slowly, always telling myself, i'm stopping after this one portion
#4 - once i have finished the one serving or the one plate of dinner or whatever it is, i start drinking a bottle of water, & keep drinking the water until i get that full feeling
#5 - be proud of myself that i didn't overdo it this time and tell myself that i won't overeat next time either.

Also, i agree with the others who said that when you eat high protein and high fiber it helps to keep from being hungry.

Oh, and I'm writing this as much for myself as i am for you.

I've been binging this weekend... :/ but the most important thing is to just STOP and pick yourself up and start over. Don't beat yourself up over it, just move on if you fall

Another tool that I have found useful is one I got from a TV show (I cant remember the name but it was on Bravo this summer and the guy was a motivational weight loss coach from London) is to put your fork down between each bite and count 30 times. It gives your brain a chance to catch up with your body to signal its full. The group he had on the 6-8 week show didnt give up any of their favorites; all they did was use his hints and they all lost weight.

Another hint that I got awhile back that seemed to work was to not only downsize your plates to trick your mind into seeing fuller portions but to downsize your utensils too...believe me, it takes a lot longer to plow through something when you are using a baby spoon to eat it!

I have also heard that eating with you nondominant hand works but I havent tried that one yet.

Not sure if anyone actually responded to this.

There are a couple of things here:

One is that bananas are pretty high in calories. They're one of the highest calorie fruits, volume for volume. They're also high in sugar, which means they have a high glycemic index (GI), if you're trying to keep track of such things.

I love bananas, but I generally don't eat more than 2 or 3 a week, if that. Not because they're "bad" but just because I would rather allocate the calories elsewhere.

Do they cause constipation? In some people, yes, in others, no. I have never had a problem that way with bananas, but then again, I've never eaten several in one day, so maybe that might have something to do with it. I think this is one of those personal things. Bananas are part of the BRAT diet that dr's recommend for kids when they have diarrhea (brat = bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast), so that might be where the constipation issue comes from as well.

Is there ever too much fruit? Yes. You can have too much of anything. There are a lot of people who have a pretty healthy life style, don't eat a lot of junk, and are still overweight. Because bottom line is, if you eat 5000 calories a day in fruit, you're going to gain weight.

However, having one apple as a snack, or one banana, or whatever, isn't going to hurt you.

I would recommend adding some protein to whatever snack you have, as combining protein and fiber will help keep you feeling full longer. So if you have a banana, add some peanut butter. Or have some cheese with your apple. Or something of that nature.

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