Lots of people are saying that controlling food controls the weight, and that exercising is for fitness. I've been here for a while now, but I'm still having a big problem with controlling my eating habits. It amazes me when people keep within a 1200-1800 calorie range, because I consistently log on average 6000+ calories. I look at logs, but at the same time, I'm not really sure what people are eating to keep themselves satisfied until the next meal. I log 3 cups of rice and my allotted calories for the day are all of a sudden gone. I had apple pie and a sponge cake today (not the best thing to have for breakfast) and I have 300-odd some calories left for the other meals. I put in things like bananas and broccoli and they already take up the calories of a proper meal someone else has had. How can I eat so that everything is kept in the 1400 calorie range, without me feeling like my life will end if I have such a small intake? I don't eat out at all, the foods I eat are for the most part home cooked.

For one, smaller portions. 3 cups of rice should be slimmed down to maybe 1 cup. Also, avoid things that have high fructose corn syrup and such. Pay attention to what calories you're getting, you NEED protiens, fats, vegetables, fruits, carbs, etc. Maybe look into nutritional courses.

You can start a fitday or fitnesspal, add friends and SEE what they are eating. Also, if you can get your hands on a dealameal diet from Richards Simmons, this is a great way to learn calorie control while getting the foods you need.

You literally log 6000 calories a day and you lost weight? That's.. interesting. Do you work out a lot? Burn a lot of calories?

This!! Basically it's what calories you eat! Theres some alterations needed to your diet to succeed smaller yet more frequent portions!

Are you measuring your food? Basically I am questioning the accuracy of your food logs unless you are binging every day. Do you consider eating 6000 calories a binge?

All the foods you mentioned are largely made of carbohydrate. Eating fat and protein and limiting your carbohydrate-heavy foods to ones with lots of fiber will help you feel full. Don't just look at calories, look at your macronutrient ratios as well.

How many bananas are you eating? If you're calorie counting you need to be as accurate as possible. So are you using a food scale/measuring cups?

I'd be surprised if you're consistently eating 6000 calories a day with your stats.

would i have to limit myself to 1 cup for the entire day? i like looking at nutritional labels, and do try to avoid products containing things like high fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated oils. i've also got mfp, but the food journals that are visible to me are a bit too extreme for me (i don't know how to tide myself over on an apple, some pasta, and chicken for the entire day, totaling out to just under 800 cals). thanks for the dealameal idea, i'll look into that!

thank you for the tip! so far, from what i've got, i should cut back on the carbs and go more heavy on fats, protein, fiber. but i gorge when i eat, even if i eat with snacks in between. do you have any tips for how to keep that from happening?

i don't measure my food, and my logs might be off, but i don't think it's too off, because i could literally polish off a big bowl of dumplings and noodles, and continue eating like half and hour later.

thanks for the tip on looking at macronutrients!

i'd have 5 bananas in one go, but i don't use a food scale or measuring cups. should i start measuring so that i can assess my intake more properly?

Well I don't think 800 calories a day is good either type in to find your bmi and see how many that gives you minus 500 for a 1lb weight loss a week. Here's what I eat and I stay at 1600

Bfast- 1 cup of mixed berries
6oz of non fat plain Greek yogurt
2 Stevia packets for sweetness

Snack- tropical fruit salad ( this has mixed berries, pineapple, grapes, and assorted melons mmmm)

Lunch - grilled chicken breast salad with avocodo and sweet onion sauce from subway witha pack of crutons

Snack 2- 90 calorie fiber one bar ( it cures that sweet tooth)

Dinner- tilapia with sautéed spinach and portabella mushrooms

Dessert- weight watchers rasberry bar



That's a sample of what I eat and staying under 1600 calories, I feel I eat plenty

thanks for the suggestion! for the salads and tilapia, how big are the portions you eat?

Hmm ok, 5 bananas at once is quite a lot.. is this as a snack or a meal? I'd still say to measure things just so you can see exactly what you're eating. Estimating doesn't really work for everyone. Especially as packets say things like 30g serving, so we presume whatever we serve ourselves is that. The first time I saw what a 30g serving of cereal looked like I was pretty shocked.

I think something else you need to think about is why you're eating so much. Are you eating out of real hunger or boredom or something else? Are you an emotional eater?

Portion control can be difficult at first but making small changes is the first step I think.

Good luck

the bananas would be for a snack . i'll get a food scale then so i can measure out how much i'm eating. i think i eat out of boredom and stress. do you know anyone who's eaten similarly to me, and if you do, did that person make a change, and how long did it take before they got on track? thank you for the advice!

Try the Chicks in Control forum, lots of help and support from lots of understanding ladies.

Try not to stress too much, being here and trying to figure it out is a great step in the right direction. Small changes at the start.

I'm a total boredom eater too and I'm prone to binging when I'm feeling bad/drinking. It still happens sometimes but I'm mostly in control. I realised that I just have to stick with it and it's not always going to be easy and sometimes I will over eat and binge but it's not the end of the world.

I really try to pay attention to my body now and not eat unless I'm actually hungry. I get migraines if I skip meals so if I feel a little headache coming on I know I'm actually hungry. Sometimes in between meals I think I'm hungry but if I drink a bit of water or have something small it satisfies the feeling. Before I always would have just eaten another meal or whatever I felt like with no regard to the portion size.

It's your body so you'll have to find what works for you. Can you do anything about what's causing you stress?

What about exercise? Doesn't have to be a crazy gym routine but exercise is great for stress and good mental health. Do you live a fairly sedentary lifestyle? Can you add in a bit more walking?

Maybe even taking up yoga and deep breathing, these things can go a long way.

Your portions are too big. Cut down on the portions. Eating 1400-1500 calories a day isn't going to harm you.

Meal plan idea: (1500 calories a day)

Breakfast: 400 calories
Snack: 100 calories
Lunch: 500 calories
Snack: 100 calories
Dinner: 400 calories

Go on Google and search for these things to get an idea of portion size:
- "500 calorie lunch ideas"
- "500 calorie dinner ideas"
- "400 calorie breakfast ideas"
- "100 calorie snacks"

If you feel hungry in between meals, drinks a large glass of water or two, as it will suppress your appetite and its good for you.

Also, I think you need to remember to eat for nutrition, as opposed to satisfaction. I know we all want to have a cheat meal and eat our favourite apple pies, chocolate or whatnot, but it's all about moderation, portion size and control.

Five bananas is one **** of a snack. They vary depending on type and size, but you're looking at up to a thousand calories just there, and there's also the sugar in fruit to bear in mind.

You say you don't want to be "feeling like [your] life will end if [you] have such a small intake" - that right there sounds like your big issue here. The reason other people manage on a much lower intake is they've spent time adjusting to far smaller portions - when one banana feels like plenty then you don't get upset about the fact you can't eat five. A big reassessment of what constitutes a reasonable portion is needed, as well as a change in how you view food - its primary purpose should be to provide adequate fuel for your body, not to get you through boredom, ease emotional moments, or relieve stress.

One thing that's helped me a lot in terms of portions is serving the evening meal on a smaller plate. It tricks the brain into thinking there's still plenty of food, if the food to plate ratio doesn't change. As for being hungry half an hour after eating, I don't know what to suggest to help you deal with that as it's not something I've had trouble with myself, but it's likely largely a learned habit, rather than an unchangeable aspect of your physiology. It will take time and effort, but you can unlearn that habit.

As for your last question - how long does it take to get on track? - obviously that's going to vary from person to person, so I can only tell you my own experience. I'm four months into the new diet, and I've gone from, presumably, 3000+ calories a day (based on being 255 and 5'9 and still gaining), to ~1000 a day (excluding the occasional biscuit). I eased into it by allowing myself one bit of junk per day, but after the first month I'd cut that out and was perfectly happy on the much lower intake. So it's certainly possible to adjust very quickly, though whether it will prove so for you, I couldn't say.

Best of luck getting this all sorted out and getting back on track!

I think you're wanting someone to tell you how you can eat all of what you're eating and still lose weight? Hmm well that's the thing with dieting, you need to reduce what you're already doing for things to start to take effect... And like what em123 said drink lots of water! I drink atleast 60-90 oz a day you have to try to drink water, it flushes toxins out of your system and hydrates you

I might add you have to have the desire to want to change, and the will to follow thru... Without that it's much much harder to wake up every day knowing you must stay on track..