Well, you ate it, and that's the end of it! Now you move on. Probably you did learn that it's not as fun as it used to be. And hopefully, you won't be "triggered" into wanting to eat more.

As for what I think about it, two words: Everything counts.

It counts whether you count it, weigh it, measure it, and calculate the calories--or not. It counts whether it's a dish of ice cream or a tub. Your body doesn't care whether you think you deserve it, whether you're having a hard day, whether it's Thanksgiving, etc. It just does what it does best! If you eat more than you burn, the excess gets stored as fat for later. Voila!

I eat what I want, but I pay attention. I know that some foods aren't worth it, even if I like them a lot, because it leads to my wanting to eat more of them, and more, and... So, those foods are under heavy restriction.

Today I went for a mile walk at the mall. My friend wanted to stop and get frozen yogurt at this "by the ounce" place at the food court. This was perfect for me. My fat-free frozen yogurt with some strawberries, a spoon of chopped peanuts, and a drizzle of caramel topping came to 150 calories. Tasted great. It was all I needed to be satisfied. And, it was limited! I didn't have a whole carton of the stuff sitting in my freezer.

After awhile, you learn how to judge these things. You don't have to be exact to know when you're within bounds.

Even when I indulge, I pay attention.

Jay

Yup, our bodies keep an accurate journal, whether or not we do.
This is a very big key for me. When I decide to have a so-called indulgence, I need to do so in a VERY controlled setting. I've had similar indulgences such as this one. Had there been more in the cup, I would have eaten it. There would be no leaving it over. Had there been a tub of it in my home, I'd be going back for seconds (or thirds, fourths and fifths ). But by having it in a pre-determined portion, I'm safe - and satisfied. To me, this is setting myself up for success and an *intelligent* way to have a splurge. I don't have to *worry* about putting the brakes on, the brakes are built in.

A Chinese food buffet - no way in double hockey sticks would you ever catch me at one of these places. Why throw needless temptation in my face? Needless temptation of a very big magnitude.

I think I want to print this out & plaster that on my fridge...

I think it's totally okay to allow yourself indulgences here and there. Especially if you've been doing good for a long time. It can even help your weight loss believe it or not. Our bodies get complacent after a while when they are in a routine and your weight loss will halt. Doctors suggest taking a weekend off and splurging on things you really love and enjoy and not to worry about calories. This shocks your body and gets you going again.

Most of the time if I have an off day and I eat a whole bunch I usually feel gross and I'm like why did I do that. It's really not worth it. Now if I were to have a piece cake or a cookie or a burger (and not overeat) it wouldn't be as bad. The reason I eat better is so I can feel good about myself and treat myself to the little indulgences every now and then.

The only thing I can say is ..I hear ya, I feel ya and I support ya. There is only one person you have to answer to at the end of the day.. keep looking forward

I don't have an opinion about this either way but Maggie i am glad that you posted because it has helped me to identify an action that I could not describe to others that don't understand this battle of losing weight.

That is the term for binge vs. indulgence.
Mentally i knew the meaning of the words but emotionally it helps me to see the difference. I have been a member of the "clean your plate" club for as far back as I could remember on top of being in the "2nd helping" club. Eating until it hurts. I never realized it before but that was bingeing! I just thought it was eating until your full but there were many times when I'd eat past full all for the sake of habitually being a part of the "clean your plate" club (anyone remember their mom's telling them to clean their plate? lol).

I once read a book talking about eating until you were satisfied then stopping and I applied that technique back then but this is a very interesting topic and a revelation for me to know the actual difference between full and bingeing. Thanks for bringing this to light That's my two cents now I'll go back into lurkdom lol.

WOW! i love both of these points. Very informational thanks guys~!