Xena, I think any normal person would BECOME sensitive about weight and food with such overly observant and critical in-laws. I'm sorry you had a stressful time with them - at least it's over for now. CONGRATS on the house!!

I thought the following link might be germane to this thread:

http://www.fatnutritionist.com/index...-nutritionist/

I really enjoy her humour, writing style, and overall message (though as previously mentioned I'm not quite ready to follow it yet).

Freelance

yes, I enjoyed this. Thanks freelance. On another note, I haven't been on lately because I've been so busy. It's that time of year everyone is outside doing stuff and not on the computer so much. I am doing fine but a little bored not being restrictive. Everyday seems so random and I am such a routine person. I don't know. The grass is for sure greener without the bingeing. I just want it all that's all. Also, I've been drinking one too many glasses of wine regularly again How's everyone else been? Southernmavin how was texas?

I think I am addicted to chocolate. I can't keep it in the house because I will not stop eating it. For a while I was buying bags of Hershey's Kisses to keep here to give to my grandson, but I was eating them, so I quit doing that. If I get a craving for chocolate I might buy a single chocolate bar at the register. When it's gone, it's gone. Or I might have a sugar free Hot Chocolate.

Here's a suggestion that was successful for me. I used to work at a job where there were doughnuts brought in every Friday. Instead of sitting there thinking about them all day wishing I could have one, I would put one on my desk first thing in the morning. The challenge was to get through the whole day without eating it. There was something about knowing it was there if I wanted it that made it easier to pass up. Some people would comment "I thought you were on a diet." Or "Is that doughnut allowed on your diet?" My reply was...."I'm not eating it, it's just sitting there." At the end of the day I would ask if anyone wanted it and if not I would toss it.

So maybe you could do that with the chocolate. Just buy 1 small bar and see how long you can keep it without eating it. It might give you such a great feeling of accomplishment knowing that you went the whole day without eating it, and then do it again the next day.

If that doesn't work for you, then you might just have to quit bringing it into the house.

I realize I am quoting an old post, but I just discovered this thread and am finding it very interesting and informative.

The first time I dieted I knew nothing about dieting. I joined an exercise class with friends and just started eating smaller portions, mainly cutting out second helpings. I did avoid sweets and junk food, but paid no mind to calories, carbs, fats etc. I didn't even know what a carb was back then. I lost very well, and kept the weight off for at least 10 years. When I started to gain my weight back I started reading diet books. I have myself to the point where the diet plans are all running together in my mind and I'm not sticking to any of them. My best bet would probably be to try to block out everything I've read and go back to eating all foods in moderation and not having second helpings.

I too am new...and would love to hear some long term success stories. They say the faster it comes off the faster it goes back on, which makes me very nervous with this fast acting plan.
I see amazing results posted here. CAn anyone verify that a year...five years, etc later the weight is still off without adhering to a very restrictive carb diet?
Would love to hear your long term success stories.

Thanks

I think you're asking the impossible if you want anyone to verify that they kept the weight off simply by not restricting alone.

Weight management is more than just restriction or non-restriction. I do not believe anyone who says that they control their weight solely by not restricting their carbs intake. Likewise, I do not believe anyone who says that they never overeat at any point in time - even "naturally skinny" people overeat during meals. They just don't eat for the rest of the day and their version of "overeating" may be completely different from those who are overweight or obese.

As this thread and many other threads have shown, different individuals have different methods of controlling their weight, some methods are easier than others.

For many of us on this thread, controlling our weight through non-restriction is easier because it prevents (or at least, controls) bingeing episodes.

It has been over a year since food controlled my life and just for you , I weighed myself this morning - I was 127lbs and I'm happy with that. I have not felt the need to binge for the past year although my definition of bingeing may be very different to others.

It has been easy in that I do not count calories, I do not record what I eat (I did for a couple of weeks at the end of last month to analyse physical hunger and fullness - I'm only recording generally in the Daily Accountability thread) and I do not have strong cravings or feel the urge to binge. However, I do consciously try to make healthy choices and in this regard, weight loss and weight management required (require) positive action taken by me.

HTH.

Oh, BTW, wanted to let you all know that the IE principle of "stopping when you are full" does not work for me.

I've found out that I like feeling really full (overfull perhaps?) so I mostly eat a big meal once a day, usually lunch, and not much else for the rest of the day.

Interesting!!

Well I am back from our trip to Myrtle beach and it was great but........I am back to restricting food since my return. I did horrible at eating, even though I knew the food was always going to be there, and I was allowing myself to eat it, and times I wasn't hungry. No control at all. Now I am faced with the 6 lbs at least I have put on and hardly anything fits. I can't stand it, or myself. I was doing ok before I left but being completely off my schedule and having so much food thru me right off. All we did was eat and drink and lay on the beach. Soooooo I am back to low carb and my goal is to keep on reading about binging and trying to learn so that when I do phase off, I will be more prepared. I have a wedding in a month and a half, already purchased the dress, I only have 4 pairs of pants that fit and I can't bare to let it go and see what happens especially over summer, when I will be in short and bathing suits. So hoping after this attempt it works and I can one day say the same as veggiedaze and not be affected by food so much. I am trying not to beat myself up, it is what it is...........hopefully one day I will have a better relationship with food.
I have lots to read from here, so I am going back to view. Good luck everyone.

Magical, I have found that I have a hard time stopping when I'm "satisfied" and tend to keep eating until I'm stuffed. I've been that way for a very long time. After I do this I am very uncomfortable and feel terrible. I am really trying to eat smaller meals to avoid that feeling but it's a very hard habit to break.

Carol, are you trying to eat smaller meals because otherwise you'll overeat?

The reason I'm asking is that I've found out that the first part of IE "eating only when hungry" works very well for me. It's just the second part of "stopping when full" that does not.

What I tend to do is to eat more when I try to stop when full because then I'll be looking for food far more frequently than when I stuff myself in one meal. My cravings for junk food also increases when I try to not overeat.

So after experimenting with it last month, I've now reverted to what I think I was naturally doing previously (eat a large meal and not much else thereafter) rather than to try to follow the principles of IE. For me, too much thought process go into trying to get IE right so that it feels like I'm actually on a diet, which leads to a craving for more food.

Magical, your plan sounds like it would work perfectly for me. I tend to like the feeling of fullness (not I-can-barely-move or I-feel-sick full, just full), and when I eat a small portion, I tend to keep looking for food.

There are two main issues that I've realized keep me from doing IE: 1) my social eating schedule is different from my body's hunger "schedule." Mainly, it has to do with my husband (yes, I'm blaming him even though I know I should not). He likes eating breakfast. It's his favorite meal. I, on the other hand, can easily wait until 11:00 or so to eat. If I did that, I really believe I could hold out until dinner to eat, thereby cutting out one meal a day effortlessly. However, because he wants to go out to breakfast between 8:30 - 9:30, I eat then, and then, I want something in the afternoon. (BTW, he doesn't eat until dinner; he wonders why I cannot just skip lunch, too) 2) I don't like the thought of not having food to look forward to. That's pathetic, I know, but there you have it. I am "mentally hungry" if that makes any sense.

well I've neglected this thread for awhile and thought I'd chime in. Some very intersting things being said. I am still doing well with the not restricting and feeling like my OCD has calmed down a great deal. Lately it seems like I am eating much the way I did when I restricted as to food choices, but I'm not really thinking about or even trying. I am almost never thinking about food until right when I'm eating. My conclusion to all this is that non restriction is very good for overcoming eating disorders. I don't think though that not restricting works well for many people when it comes to losing weight. If their higher weight is due mostly to an eating disorder like bingeing, then yes they will likely lose some weight when they stop restricting. It does not mean they will reach a preconceived "goal weight". Also, many people are overweight or at a higher weight than they want to be before the onset of an eating disorder . Therefore, when they stop restricting they will likely return to this weight which they may or may not like.

I think in my particular case that not restricting has not caused me to gain weight and in fact probably lose a very small amount becasue I actually started my non restriction at the high end of my normal weight range. Had I began not restricting when I was at my most disordered eating at around 100 pounds I would have for certain gained to where I am about now. I will also add that before the onset of my eating disorder I was never even remotely overweight. I am thinking now I may fit into the natually thin category. Part of this I am sure is genetics and part is likely due to my food prefrences. Everyone in my family is thin and very lean, and the eating behaviours of my family members vary drastically; some eat practically ALL carbohydrates, and some alot more protein, some are vegans, and some are sugar addicts. Yet we all have similar bodies. I am slightly leaner than my twin (which is apparent because I have more vascularity and striations), but she weighs less.

Also, I really don't care much for junk food at all. I only binged on it from being deprived. When I allow myself to have it (and the initial thrill wore off), I pretty much never want it. Fast food makes me gag. I don't crave sugar. Most of my meals are lean protein, vegetables, healthy fats, and some whole grains usually just once per day. For someone who loves fast food and sugar, they will probably only get to their goal weight by eating a tiny amount of food because these foods are calorie dense and the amount needed to fill the stomach is probably about 4 times higher in energy than the same volume of healthy food. I'm not saying this can't be done. My mother eats primarily toast, butter, and sugar, and is skinny and very lean (she's also very active and lives on a farm). The amount she eats is miniscule. It would never fill me up and would probably not satisfy most people. She doesn't use food to cope with life or an emotional void. She is actually a shopping addict and that is her way to deal with life. Food doesnt' do anything for her. The tiny amount she eats does her just fine and she doesn't restrict.

Also, for people who think Intuitive eating is so easy, it's not. It is a nice alternative to calorie counting but there IS certainly restriction. People eat for alot of reasons other than hunger and to tell yourself you can only eat when you are hungry can feel just as restrictive as calorie counting when you want that cookie but know you just ate a meal and are not remotely hungry. I think Intuitive eating is a wonderful way to go and it is what I am pretty much adhereing to most of the time, but for people who think it is a cake walk, I think they will be disapointed. Whether intuitive eating or calorie counting, you will still be in situations where you want to eat and you tell yourself no.

Also, for people with a weight problem who love crappy food (and are not eating disordered or who feel confident they have kicked their eating disorder for the most part), they probably have to either eat a very small amount of crappy food and never feel satisfied, or find healthy food you really like and enjoy whether that is carbs, protein or whatever. I think people can learn to love healthy food too. Probably after alot of years of only eating crap, it may take time for taste buds to adjust and really enjoy healthy food. The second option seems better to me as eating just a tiny amount of food (when it's all crap) really sucks for satiation. Also, a person that wants to succeed must avoid becoming overly obsessed. When one crosses that line, eating disorders develop and can be very difficult if not impossible for some people to get over. Don't open the pandoras box in the first place. Let yourself have some crap food sometimes if you really want it and don't hate yourself for it. Forget about it and move on. That's my two cents for the day.

Also kelly, sorry to hear you didn't have a great time with food at myrtle beach. I hope things are better now that you are home.

EDIT: I use the word also alot. sorry about that .

I have been debating replying to this thread, but I want to say that although my weight may not be where I want it to be per se, I am SO GLAD that I am no longer on the yo-yo of dieting that I was on for so long! I am also so glad that I am no longer wasting tons of $$$$ on diets for short-term results.

I want to find a balance with my weight, food, nutrition, exercise, etc, and that is something I have been working towards for awhile but I DO NOT think, in fact, I KNOW that diets are NOT the answer!

Take care.