I really can't stand when I just start out on losing weight! (I'm so happy this will be my last time to "start" to lose weight!) All I find myself doing is thinking about food and when I'm gonna eat. I know this will pass. Maybe I should plan out what I will eat and when for tomorrow and it will help me out. I'll try it and see.

I have got to make time to get my walk in today. I don't really think making time is the problem, it's just getting out there and doing it! Ok, I will go for my walk at 1:30 today....that's not too far away so I better go!

Oh, any helps on the thinking of food all the time thing would be great if anyone knows of anything.
thanks

When I first started, I DID think about food all the time. Planning didn't really help...I was still thinking "Ok, 30 minutes until I get my orange...15 min....10 min...." etc. Planning does have other benefits, though...namely, keeping you from diving headfirst into a pile of cookies when you get hungry and you didn't have a snack planned. So I advise planning what you're going to eat and when...just don't expect that it'll eliminate the food-on-the-brain you have going now.

The thing that DOES help is the thing you're planning on doing already - exercise! So get out there and do your walk...it'll put your mind on your body and the fantastic scenery, rather than on food.

Other than that, know that it is going to get better...soon your planning/tracking/eating will take up less brain space.

Hey there! I'm just getting started as well, so I'm in the same boat as you! Food on the brain-- ALL THE TIME.

It also doesn't help that one of the girls who lives down the hall from me has a mother who is EVIL. Evil in that she's the nicest person on the face of the planet. She takes requests from her daughter's friends, then bakes up a storm and sends her daughter back to our res with tupperware containers full of M&M cookies, lemon squares (because she heard they were my favourite, eughh!!!), banana bread covered in icing and nanaimo bars. How can I NOT think about running down there and holding out my hand??

For the first time though, I've found something that makes me stop in my tracks. This forum!! Every time I think about grabbing a chocolate bar from the vending machine or skipping my gym time, I think about... the 10 lb competition to lose 10 by Feb 10th.. and my little ticker, sitting on having lost a measly 2 lbs with plenty to go, or all the people who have thrown in their support for me.

While I'm not sure I've got much advice to help you not think about food at all, my advice is to find yourself that motivation, that one thing that makes you stop in your tracks regardless of your cravings.

I wish you tons and tons of luck, and hope to see you around much more!

I wonder if there is something about us, as a group, that makes us particularly interested in food. Besides being on a diet or being hungry, I mean. I really enjoy preparing my food. I spend a lot of time on it, and sometimes, it seems like I am ok as long as I am busy making a fancy salad or thinking up what to do for dinner. As soon as I run out of food-related tasks, I want to eat.

Gail - I notice that too! When I'm feeling particular snacky, I go INTO the kitchen (seems counterintuitive, I know) and do food prep...prepping for dinner, making coffee for the next day, gathering up my snacks for tomorrow, whatever. It helps me to NOT eat to be thinking about food.

Mandalinn82, thta's a good idea about the prep. Put my energy into making something healthy and preparing for the future. I think about food all the time and its become and addiction so I know how you are feeling but maybe my addiction can help keep me on track.

I find this happens a lot for me too, and meal planning helps, sometimes.

The other thing that helps me is distraction - I tell myself that I will focus on XYZ task (tidying, sending email at work, playing a computer game, a quick workout, ANYTHING) for 15-20minutes and then reassess. Usually at 20mins I go "huh, what was I thinking about before?", but if I'm still thinking food, that usually means I'm legitimately hungry, and I search out a healthy snack.

When I first started my diet I thought about food all the time...mainly the things I couldn't have anymore. It made me sad...almost like mourning the loss of a good friend. Took a while to get over that...I think seeing my weight start to go down helped.

What I have done all along is to plan out my menus for the day...usually the night before. I enter the menu into FitDay & tweak it to make it work. I also try to do as much food prep ahead of time as I can so when it's time to eat, I am ready to go! So I guess I still think about food all the time, just in a different way!

See, I wasn't someone who ever thought much about food until it was getting to be mealtime or someone else was eating, or I was feeling munchy. Basically I didn't pay attention--just ate whatever, whenever, mostly high calorie foods. Munchy? Tense? Have a few handfuls of nuts. Dinner time? How about a couple bowls of chili? And so on.

When I started trying to lose weight, I found I had to pay attention. How much? How many calories? How often? What is it? When is it? What's my plan? Is this on it or off it? Do I have any extra calories? Do I need more protein? and so on.

So what you may be feeling as obsession may simply be the result of paying attention more than you're used to--thinking about it, instead of mindless eating, which was what I used to do.

Jay

I think it is all about psychology! I found that when I am at home (which has lots of foods) I am very tempted to go to the snack bar (not the fruit tray) to eat ;> The way I deal with it is to drink the tea that I like, whether it is green tea or fruit tea. They are all low in calories and filling ('cause you are drinking liquid). Most of all, they are very satisfying. I find that Japanese green tea (the one with baked rice) is particularly fulfilling. It is a healthy solution because it has lots of antioxidants that is good for our body. It also increases metabolism which helps to lose weight.

Another way that I deal with my cravings is to choose a low calorie alternative to what I crave for. For example, I would choose gelato instead of icecream because gelato contains 70% of air and so is a lot less fattening than icecream. I would reward myself for small bits of goodies if I behave well at other time. Cutting down on carbs and have more protein and fiber intake works for me in losing weight too. Oh, and remember, don't eat 4 hours before you sleep!