Hello everybody!

I am proud to announce that I was two days binge- free!
Ok, I am still not the "Queen of Healthy eating and suitable portions", but I havenīt binged yesterday and the day before yesterday.
Even though it was a lonely weekend, a bank holiday today and an upcoming exam next Saturday (PANIC!!). Until this moment I survived all critical moments.

So, I am very unsecure about a topic: I know from several OA- People that they are doing food journals to monitor their eating or food plans.
But I am not sure if I should do that. I know that it can be helpful, but itīs focussing on food again. I am feeling so "diety" doing this. What do you do?

Have a wonderful day,

Kate

I do keep a spreadsheet of every bite I take, plus a section for notes on how I feel, physically and emotionally, and a section for daily weight. At the end of a month or so, I can look back and say, Here I was on my period, Here we were travelling in the car for two days, Here was when I was angry about such-and-such... it helps me get a handle on when and why I eat so that maybe I can make a better plan for next time I face that situation. If I can make a plan while I'm feeling rational I can (sometimes) make better choices when the need to feed hits.

Good luck and keep us posted!

-Lala

Kate, I hope things are still going well for you! (sorry... I only just saw this post...)
I HAVE to journal. It's one of the requirements of the program I'm doing, and while I hate doing it, I know it's key to my success.
I know what you mean about "focusing on food", but that's what I need to do. It's when I DON'T focus on my food that I eat. And eat and eat... I do it without thinking, you know? It's so important that I pay attention to what I'm putting in my mouth.
I'd love to be one of those people who only eat to live, but right now, that's not where I'm at. I'm just such an emotional eater.

I am just starting, but I am finding that my journal is my friend. Putting it in writing makes me SEE it and realize what I am doing. It has really helped me. Right now I am just writing what I eat... not worrying about counts calories, fat, carbs or anything like that. Just seeing it in writing is doing wonders.

Congratulations on your binge free days!

Currently, I'm using Fitday to record my food intake, but I'm trying not to put too much focus on it. I have a loose plan of staying between 1200-2000 calories per day, while also keeping my saturated fat low and my fiber and protein high. I find that if I obsess over exact calories, then I start eating when I'm not hungry just because I can. You know, the whole "well, I've only eaten 1100 calories today and my goal was 1600, so I guess that I can eat two candy bars now" mindset. And then inevitably, two candy bars turns into more ("one more would still keep me under 1900 cals!") and then the rationalization starts ("Or maybe I should raise my goal to 2500 today and then eat 1000 tomorrow") and I start binging, even though I wasn't actually hungry in the first place. So I'm trying to follow my hunger instead while also keeping track of what I eat. I know that if I stopped using Fitday, then I'd start underestimating my food intake. This way, I stay honest. So I journal as an afterthought without letting it control me (if that makes sense).

Hi everybody!

Thanks for your replies!

I am trying to do a food journal since Sunday, to monitor my patterns. I have decided not only to write down my food, but when I got up, fall asleep, exercises, feelings, day good/ bad....
I hope I can see a pattern which behaviour triggers binge eating for me and which behaviour helps me with my depression.

And I realized that I already have something like a food plan: I have to cook lunch, so I plan all the meals for the week at Saturday because of the shopping. Breakfast is the same thing 6 days a week, so it´s just the Evening meal "unplanned".

magnoliafan, I gave up calorie counting....I made the same mistakes you make, mostly I stayed with 1200 cal for a few days, and then I count down my calorie intake dramatically. Last time I ended with 300 cal per day for a few weeks and it ended in a huge, huge binge....It´s that all or nothing thing with me. Counting calories is really diet for me, and when I am dieting I want to loose as much weight as possible in a short amount of time.

Kate

Ive found that my journal has kept me binge free since the end of march. I use it not to focus on my food, but to basically keep track. All I use is a little dollar store notebook that I carry with me EVERYWHERE in my purse.

Good luck to you!

I journal every day, exercise and foods, My goal is to eat three meals a day and planned snacks. I've been eating about 1500-1800 a day. I find this is a good number and I'm not starving. When I gain more control and the scale moves, I'll lower my calorie intake. It is interesting to see how stress effects my eating patterns.

I journal every day, too (multiple times a day actually) about exercise, food, and feelings.

It help me not only see patterns, but it gives me something tangible to do that feels like "contributing" to my success. Alot of losing weight has to do with patience, and I've always stunk at that. I need the extra outlet of the journal (and this forum!) to keep myself happily engaged in the process -- versus feeling frustrated and spinning out of control.

I journal my food and exercise every day. If I have a week when the scale doesn't move, I look back and see if maybe I ate more than I thought. My trouble is not really binging, it's more that I just love food and can eat too much of even the right foods. I also log my weight twice weekly when I weigh to see if I can see a good downward trend. I started this 10 months ago when I got on program and it helps keep me motivated.