OMG, I have such huge Chipotle cravings. I feel like they must put crack or some other drug in it to make it so addictive. I've actually been getting a little better lately. I've been to the gym twice this week. Two nights over the holidays I really wanted to order pizza but made a healthier dinner instead. I haven't ordered chinese food and I haven't binged on anything in a few weeks. If anything I'm probably not eating enough calories (it's unintentional). But even though I'm getting over the fast food cravings my weakness is definitely Chipotle.

I was good. Hadn't had it in a few weeks. But I broke down today. I had even weighed myself this morning and saw myself a little lighter. I had hoped that would carry me through the day so that I would eat healthier. But I got those carb cravings really bad and nothing at home sounded good to take the edge off. So as I was shopping for NYE tonight I broke down and got a delicious Chicken burrito. It was so good and now I feel so guilty. On top of it I had sworn that I would eat well because I knew I was going to have champagne and treats tonight. Now I don't want to even go to my NYE gathering because I feel like I should put myself in a prison to punish myself for misbehaving.

The weird thing is that I could go for healthier options at Chipotle but never do. I could get a burrito bowl with beans and no rice. With lettuce as filler. But when I get up to the counter to order, burrito pops out of my mouth and then it goes down hill from there. It's what I like. It's my guilty pleasure.

<sigh> I swear Chipotle contains crack. That's the only reason I'd break down, right? Any suggestions for breaking this one? What are your highly addictive foods?

Chinese food is my crack.

The thing is..I always feel like total crap after eating it, but I totally crave it all the time.

I have never been to Chipotle because I heard the food in there is delicious. So I have avoided walking in for that exact reason. I'm afraid of becoming addicted!

My weakness is McDonald's (Big Mac!) and Italian food. Who goes into an Italian resturant and orders a salad?? No way.

The only way to really overcome it is just not going. When you start feeling those cravings coming to the surface it is SO important to stay put and eat something else even if that something else is less desireable. Which it always will be. But when that hunger is satisfied, so will be your cravings (for the most part).

You know that movie Super Size Me? Yeah, can never watch it. It SHOULD make me feel disgusted about my McDonald's weakness but it doesn't. In the beginning of my journey I had a hard time driving past those golden arches on the way home but the more I stayed away the less I thought about it.

Like any addiction you have to go through withdrawals. It sucks but it CAN be done with determination and desire. And YOU can do it too. I promise. Just make today, the first day of the new year, your day to start!

I have issues with dessert - namely eating candy hours after dinner. Somehow I avoid the temptations of takeout/fast food/eating out type foods because I am too broke to patronize them on any regular basis.

I love chipotle and qdoba. They are incredible and extremely hard to resist especially after a very stressful day. Mexican food in general is a major binge food for me along with Chinese. Sadly I work at a Chinese restaurant 6 days a week... :/

CRACKERS...any kind, any type

Not a fan of Chipotle but loooooove Qdoba!

Mexican food is my crack ;-) Not "tex-mex" but real, authentic, just-got-back-from-the-corner-vendor-taco-stand Mexican! And I LOVE spicy food too!

Chipotle may have more healthfully sourced food than most places, I think, but they're still selling the trifecta of the dopamine effect: sugar, fat and salt. So, yes, it's just like crack. Just like every other restaurant chain on the planet. They make it like that on purpose!

You should read The End of Overeating by David Kessler. Pisses me off how chain restaurants and food processing has so seriously f'd with us! I'm never eating at a restaurant chain or eating processed food if I can help it again! I know some might think that's an extreem, but since I've quit eating out and quit eating processed foods, and all that stuff is out of my system, I feel much less of a pull to go in.

It's the first taste that gets me every time! So I just avoid it all.

Now we do not have those restaurants here, so perhaps I'm missing the point, but how about you cook your own chicken burito?

Whole wheat tortija, skinless chicken, lettuce, onions, beans and whatever hot sauce or spice you want... it is actually a very simple recipe and you can tweak it until it tastes better than fast food.

I did this for many foods I liked to buy out. After weeks of experimenting I found out that whole wheat pita with lean pork and joghurt in certain amounts tastes better to me than the kebab counterpart I used to buy.

If this does not work then perhaps you're not "addicted" to the food, but to the whole package of going out and eating things from pretty stands after shopping or work. Not everyone realises that going to fast food places after work/school/training etc is for some a way to relive the feeling mom's meal on the table when returning home gave us as little kids.

The idea that fast food is convenient is just a logical error that derives from that. It is not convenient to get out of your way to get fast food, or to think about it all day, or feel yourself digesting all day, slowing down on exsersize after fast food, eating less salad because you are full, how much water it makes you drink, how many times you have to pee because of it, how long you will be constipated... the line goes on and on.

Listen to music while cooking. Upbeat music if you feel sad, gentle music when you are stressed etc. Make your table pretty like in a restaurant, learn how to fold napkins prettily online, add a flower vase and clean table cloth etc. Listen to something classic while eating your home-made dish and afterwards have a long relaxing bath, during which you pamper yourself with face masks and a skin massage.

It helps to combine the pleasure of mealtime with other things like bathing afterwards or playing something so you steadily move the pleasure from food to other things too in your mind.

Hope this helps

I've only been to Chipotle a couple times and fell in love with the Cilantro lime rice......and thankfully I have not become addicted to Chipotle as a whole. Taco Bell is more of an addiction for me. At the same time, I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE "authentic" Mexican food (I'm from southern California - born and raised), so I tend to stay away from true Mexican restaurants. Those fresh tortilla chips are SINFUL lol.

I have found a recipe for a healthy replacement for Cilantro Lime rice. It's delicious, I eat it almost every day at lunch time. Its made with BROWN rice, cilantro, olive oil and some salt. Super YUM.

You should try making Skinnytaste's Barbacoa Beef: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2010/04/barbacoa-beef.html

It is SO delicious, and definitely make it with the cilantro lime rice and corn salsa that are linked in the description. I'm salivating just thinking about it!

YESSSSSS!!!!! Thats where I found the cilantro lime rice, I use brown rice though.

This is one of the most thought-provoking, amazing posts I've read in my time here at 3FC. I never print posts, but I might print this one. I had never considered that part of my tendency to eat out is not rooted in convenience, but in the desire to have someone else do something to take care of my needs. Hmmmmm........

All of the things people have said above about breaking the Chipotle addiction is true- but, if you want to indulge now and then, can I suggest getting a burrito bowl with the exact same things you get in your burrito (don't skip rice, no extra lettuce, etc)? It's still an indulgence, but the tortillas at Chipotle are super high calorie, and the filling tastes surprisingly the same when eaten with a fork as it does in a burrito (better sometimes, because you can mix the bites up the way you want). Works for me at least. ^_^

Yeah, sorry. My fault. I know that Chipotle isn't everywhere. It's basically a burrito place, but as far as I'm aware uses very fresh ingredients. It's a very basic menu, but it's just delicious to me. Hence the crack comment. :-)

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. I definitely agree with the one about the burrito bowl although I thought I would have to give up the rice. But you're right that the tortilla is the worst thing (but so good). And they've now introduced brown rice which I haven't tried yet. Not sure about the convenience foods thing. For me I never feel like I'm going out of my way for it. I consider it supplementing the time that I would have spent cooking but with less effort. But I usually only want these types of foods when I'm tired or stressed from work. Otherwise I have the energy for cooking. So I know there is an emotional dependency involved as well. But I'm working on that.

On a side note I think I should just try a different route home from work because my current one takes me right past Chipotle.