Well it's day 10 for me of no junk food, which right now I'm classifying as no sugared cereal, candy, baked goods, ice cream, sugared soda, or any other sugary stuff, and fast food. Of course there is other food that is junky, but these are the foods that really call my name and made up the bulk of my calorie intake, and I gotta start somewhere.

So here's what I've noticed over the first ten days.

1. Without junk, I really don't care about food. It's zapped all the thunder out of my eating. All the anticipation and emotional charge around food is gone if I'm not eating those foods. I think that's good because food really doesn't have the power it had over me.

2. I've always felt like I was the kind of person that if I banned something from my diet it would make me want that food so much I would binge on it. Now I'm not so sure. I honestly didn't like the taste of a lot of that food. What I really blissed out on was the anticipation of how I thought it would taste. Yet I know that if I started eating it again in "moderation", the cravings would start up again. It would be very difficult to quit, and I really don't want to start that whole cycle up again, so I think I'm better off banning it.

3. The past couple of days have been more difficult that the first. I feel antsy, like I have an itch I can't scratch. And what I feel more than anything is lonely. I miss that food the same way I have missed friends who have moved away. It's crazy but it's true. I really don't know what to do about that. It's a really uncomfortable feeling.

You go girl!!!

All I can say is keep it up..Don't let the food overpower you, once you feel in control, start with baby steps letting those foods back into your life.

This is what I have found too. I have found an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie, a kind of kettle chip and gluten-free tarts (only 5g of fat and 7g of sugar for a lemon one) that I rotate for dessert with fruit. None of these seems to "trigger" me and they allow me to have a sweet treat without so much sugar I go nuts. I hope you find some stuff that satisfies your cravings without sending you over the edge too.

That said: WAY TO GO THINPOSSIBLE!! I was looking at your tally recently as it climbed and I was thinking, good for her, she's doing it!

That's such a great accomplishment -- you should be so proud. Keep going! You're doing wonderfully!!

Keep it up! You're doing an awesome job. I'm exactly the same way. When I can go a few days without junk food I don't crave it as much. I also missed/had the loss emotions of quitting junk food for the first 20 lbs I lost. I don't feel those emotions so much anymore. I now think of junky foods as friends that did no good for me lol.

That is exactly it! There always is a disappointment for me when I cave in and have somethign that I thought I wanted. It never is as good as you think and in fact, sometimes its not very good at all.

i used to get that with maccy d's burgers but i've found the secret i just make my own burger and add the secret maccy d flavour. tomato sauce mustard and most important raw onion.

Ok, so now you are going to think I'm a real flake, but if you miss that food, write it a letter.

I did this when I was really missing my cigarettes on attempt # 234. I wrote them a "Dear John" letter.

But, if that's going to cause you to obsess too much, then don't do it.

It is OK to grieve what you once thought of as friends. Treacherous friends, but hey. We've all, unfortunately, had a few of those.

Keep going. I'm so encouraged by your efforts!

Good for you! You are doing so well!

I agree on the anticipation thing too. I had it bad, in particular, with having a fountain Pepsi with lots of ice. Now I haven't had a Pepsi in 3 months, so it isn't a problem now.

Congrats!!!

Your #3 is your body detoxing from the crap. It will get better, just ride it out!

That's really awesome! I don't know if I could give it up completely but I'm not so sure about this moderation thing. Something to work on for me! Congratulations!

I have to go cold turkey too - it's the only way I can get free of the cravings. I use tea and tv and the occassional diet drink to offset the feeling of loneliness. Not as good, but it also doesn't have the guilt and regret and feeling blah that junk food inspires.

And sometimes you can reintroduce foods in moderation. I can finally eat normal amounts of cheese if I'm careful, after years of it being a trigger food.