So, my biggest struggle with weight loss my whole life, is binging. I'm talking about that binging that (for me) hits in the evening. I'm bored, that whole day had been a drag, I'm alone (hubby's working) and I want to eat and eat because IT'S FUN!! I want to eat for the sake of the pick-me-up! Its something to look foward to! Yeah! I don't want to calories count, I don't care about diets, or being healthy or thin...no gosh darn it, I'm going to have a mini party and only me and food are invited....

I'm saying this because while I may not say this stuff out loud before a binge, this is pretty much the feeling....and so when I have tried in the past to not binge, to take away my mini party, to cancel the main event for the night...well, needless to say, its a real downer.
And time after time, even if I work out regularly (which I do enjoy), eat healthy 90% of the time (lean meats? whole grains? fresh fruits and veggies? Through out the day? NO PROBLEM!! As long as I can eat a whole bag of pretzels before bed!! ) I can not beat the binges.

So I manipulated them...

When I'm looking for a binge, I really don't care what the food is, I just want to eat a lot of something. I've always been one that when the binge urge hits, I just forage for whatever and eat it. I started making now, a huge bowl of airpopped popcorn (no limit), but no butter or oil either. I know this isn't a revolutionary idea, but its been working for me.

I think the point is, I am finally after over 10 years of trying to beat this, giving up on never binging again. If I can reduce the number of binges that take place with high calorie foods, maybe it'll help...

I am a binger, or should I say was or hope it is a was :\
My binges were my solace from my inner voice, when the going gets tough, I go eat! and I will eat anything the food doesn't matter as long as I got the feeling of stuffing my face and shutting my internal dialoge out.
And no matter what I try it seems there is no substitute for that feeling for me. So that leaves a hole in my emotions. The last 6 months I have managed to stop most my binging, (down to one every 2-3 weeks) but deep within me I know the binge monster is stilll around and waiting to take control of me again.
I find even low calorie foods trigger me (even when i binge on them i can still move on and keep stuffing my face with just about anything) so I have to stop my binges completely by suddenly making myself very busy, finding a cupboard to clean out, finding some part of the garden to dig, or suddenly deciding I had to go buy something none food just to get me out the house.
And I know I seriously need to sort that out, so far in life it hasn't had any hugely bad effects on me, but I know as I get older I will start doing myself some serious harm health wise if I don't stop.

I don't know what my problem is...i can't stay away from sweets. i literally just had the healthiest lunch...then while sitting alone in the break room...i saw them in the vending machine...Chocolate Chip Pop Tarts. It was all over, there was no stopping me. No matter how hard i tried, at THAT moment eating those pop tarts was more important to me than getting into a bathing suit for my vacation this summer. And while i ate it...it felt soooo good, they tasted soooo good. Now i feel like a horrible person. Chips, soda, junk food like that, i can stay away from...but sweets...forget it. I can't break this cycle and i don't know what to do...i don't know HOW. HOW do i STOP doing this?!?!?

^ I know the feeling! When I go to the grocery store, the candy aisle is calling my name. For a few years my idea of a good, relaxing night has been to curl up with a movie, a big box of Dots or Swedish Fish, and a glass of wine. Of course a little treat now and then is fine, but then there are the days where a "little treat" turns into mass amounts of candy, a pint of ice cream, and chips. If I'm really out of control, once I'm out of the good stuff I'll eat anything I can find like slices of bread. Low cal stuff never does it for me--I always wind up wanting one of my "binge foods".

I know that food coma so well! Sometimes all I want is to get that "high" that it gives me. But, obviously, it's a nasty cycle and I'm working on quitting.

At night, one way I can prevent binges is just to cook myself a real and healthy dinner. Open a cookbook, hit the grocery store, and then make a good dinner. I find the whole process really relaxing, but it's just so easy to go with the candy and wine option instead!

Glamourgirl - Speaking (in this case -actually writing) from my own experiences and from several forms of counseling and seminars regarding binges -here's what I have to offer...

It seems that you have formed a pattern of associating time home alone at night with the opportunity to engage in a binge-fest - BEEN THERE -DONE THAT many ,many times. I am of the belief that bingeing is a habit/addiction that sometimes can be avoided - other times can be redirected - and other times -unsuccessfully given into -just like other habits,addictions.

There are times when your (my) discipline skills are in higher gear than other times and those are the days/nights when I can use certain tools to steer myself away from a binge.

BUT there are also times when no amount of distractions will do the trick. Since falling off the wagon does happen, the next hurdle is to have a plan in place so that the "slip" doesn't send you (me) into a spiral of giving up the weight loss plan entirely.

I would suggest that you plan in advance ( and prepare too) an appropriate eating plan for yourself on the nights you are home alone -including a satisfying snack that is sufficient to ward off a full -out binge -just try including a protein because popcorn alone is so high in carbs that it can stimulate your need to eat -and not just because of hunger. I could eat popcorn or pasta until I was stuffed but an hour later I would start thinking about what to eat next- even though I was full! Then came the ice cream or candy -then the need for salty chips,etc. It got to the point when I planned a pasta dinner, I would automatically buy the "follow-up" foods that I knew I would want so that I wouldn't have to go out at night again to get them.(food by association type of bingeing) -otherwise I would eat whatever was in the house -even if it wasn't what I wanted because of my need for more carbs. Then the disgust would follow for "wasting" so many calories -you get the pix I'm sure...

I know from your other posts that you are "food aware" and know the ''RIGHT" things to do - but it seems that you just haven't( as my friend puts it )"BEEN IN THE ZONE" recently. I've been in a similar place these past few weeks and have been hanging onto my 17lb. weight loss without bingeing but with some off-plan eating. I just think that we have ebbs and tides of discipline, commitments, will power and motivation. Is it possible that you have lost enough weight that you have become comfortable here and lack the will to push forward?

That's what I think has happened to me. The difference this time is that I have remained committed to the process - just not putting so much pressure on the time frame anymore (many thanks to various posters here esp. Kaplods for this insight). This decision though does NOT give me permission to slowly slack off and then give up as I have done countless times before.


I have been in a situation for the past 4 weeks where staying strictly on plan had become quite difficult and will continue to be in this position until April -so I've embraced and enjoyed this maintenance stage for awhile but will get back on plan when I get home.

Just a side note -I never thought I would be able to eat my "trigger foods"(bread,potatoes,pizza) in moderation w/o setting myself up for a binge -but I have been doing just that by combining these carbs with protein and lots of salads/veggies.

I hope some/any of my ramblings are helpful to you -L.

Mine was candy, up to a pound of it per day.

After more than 30 years of candy binges, I finally had to go cold turkey. IT WAS ****, but I have only eaten candy once since April 2005, ironically the one event was after I had lost 100 lbs.

For me, it was important that I stop the binge habit/behaviour seperate from weight loss. So while I was breaking the candy habit, I was eating everything else in large quantities. So despite cutting out a pound of sugar per day from my diet, I did not lose a single pound, in fact, probably gained @ 10 lbs. But when I decided to lose 100 lbs. four years later, I ONLY had to diet and exercise, did not have to fight the binge habit at the same time.

I'm passing this along because I wish I'd figured this out 20 years earlier and had not tried to diet at all until I had stopped binging.

I understand, I had the same pattern. After a stressful day I'd dig in and munch on whatever I could. I felt so guilty! What helped me was journaling like mad - writing how I feel and how I know I'll feel afterwards. I also have people I can call anytime who know what's going on: my parents, brother, grandma, boyfriend, etc. I know one of them will talk with me if I go especially nuts. Anyway, keep going! I'm not there yet either but we'll make it!