I just finished reading 'Breaking Free From Compulsive Eating' and the author suggests that if you give yourself permission to eat those "bad things" you deny yourself during your diet, they gradually lose their hold on you. I can say, personally, that my cycle is this:
Do really really well. On top of the world!
Have a snacky day. Try to keep it under control.
Give in and eat a bunch of junk food - "Might as well enjoy it since I've already messed up. I'll start over fresh tomorrow."
Gain a few pounds in a few days that it takes a MONTH to lose.
Slowly get back on track.
Repeat.
I'm intrigued by the idea of making a list of the "bad foods" that I don't eat when I'm 'being good' and eating one whenever I have a craving - or even introducing them into my diet, maybe once a week, so that they stop being such a huge treat rarely enjoyed and start being ordinary. Since it's planned and allowed, it shouldn't send me into a downward spiral. It might slow my loss a little tiny bit, but heck, not as much as a four or five day sugar free-for-all that happens at least once a month.
But it also seems a little dangerous and scary. "Eat a cupcake whenever I have a real craving for it? Just like that??"
Just wondering if anyone has experimented with this!
Yes, that's exactly what I'm doing now! If I have a craving, I eat a little bit of whatever it is I want. I'm still working on not feeling guilty, but it's working! I'm losing weight at about 1-2lbs a week...slower than I'm used to, but I feel so *much better* this time around. It feels like a lifestyle, not a diet.
I think the best way to manage that kind of thing is to strongly have in place that those things aren't allowed in the house. Plan out your treat for something that is either a single serving or something you have while out. That way there isn't more available for just in case you have a hard time with the temptation to give in and have "just one more." It's a slippery slope that obviously most of us can't handle. I've done this in the past, and it's worked for a while, but there is always usually an event or something that triggers me sliding right back into consuming a lot of junk.
I actually gave up sugar about a month ago. I decided I need to break it's hold over me if I am ever going to get anywhere. I will eat sugar again someday, but not until the addiction is good and broken. Honestly, when it's out of your system, you stop craving it. And if you do have a slight desire for it, it's easier to ignore or answer the craving with other forms of food that cancel out the craving. It's working great for me, I'm finally seeing real weight loss for the first time in years, and I just plain feel better. I know it's not for everyone though. If you think you might benefit from giving up sugar, you can research ketogenic diet if you've never heard of it.
I've done sugar breaks before (my longest was 3 months, I think). Even now I like to bake with raw honey instead of sugar, if I can. But for me personally, making a certain food off-limits doesn't work. I can do it for a while, and then I start missing my old favorites and end up majorly going off-plan. My trigger isn't a certain food, but a feeling attached to a whole group of foods: "I ate 'x', shouldn't have, plan is blown, might as well enjoy myself." If I can somehow learn to eat 'x' when I really want it, I'm convinced that it will lose its mystique and I can eat 'x' moderately from time to time, and healthily the rest...the old 80/20 split. Kind of like a 'normal' person.
I'm both afraid to give myself permission to try it and afraid not to try! But I have to find a way to make it work for me. To get myself used to it, I'm going to make a list of "forbidden foods" and schedule in two per week. I don't know if it will work, but I've got to find a way to stop that downward spiral once I go off-track. As a friend of mine would say: "Head games!"
I've tried giving myself little allowances like you mentioned and repeatedly failed (i.e. gaining more than losing over time), but I am also slowly realizing and coming to accept that I am a food addict. My brain won't let me have just a taste - 1 taste leads to 1 serving, leads to all of it; in my case, my "it" is bread.
For me, giving myself permission to have "a bit so I stop thinking about it" just does not work at all. I am really an all or nothing sort of gal. In my mind, I compare it to being smoker trying to quit- and I am an ex-smoker so I know this is truth: You can't have just one smoke and move on. You either smoke or you don't. Period.
One encouraging thing I can speak to is that I 100% cut sugar out of my diet 6 years ago and I haven't had any sweets in all this time. I don't even have cravings for sweet treats anymore; it took about a year of being very faithful in not crossing that line, but it worked eventually. So now I am currently trying this with flour (I'm on day 3... what a champion! heh).
I really hope that what I experience is not the same for you because it sucks super hard. But if any of this does ring true, then I would encourage you to not give in since you know as well as I that there is no such thing as a 'little' treat.
I definitely see your point and agree about the addiction part. I've been to OA before but just wasn't successful with marking certain things off-limits. I am an all or nothing person too, but I saw a therapist for food issues a few years ago and she encouraged me to strive for moderation and balance. I just didn't try it at the time.
I admire your success with going no-sugar! It's tough to quit. Truthfully, sugar doesn't have quite the handle on me anymore, not since my sugar fast. I'm more of a carbs girl. Anyway, this is just an experiment. Deprivation doesn't work, gotta try something new. If eating things not normally on my plan starts to trigger me, I'll just have to go back to the old method (sigh). But I do hope this is something that works. It's definitely worked for some people and I just hope I'm one of them!
I hate to keep harping on it, but one of the biggest problems people don't realize is that foods are loaded in sugar. Even ones you might not expect. So your carb problem might actually still be a sugar problem. I just watched a really great documentary that someone recommended to me. If you have Netflix check out Fed Up.
I've had this problem, as well. When a food is off limits I tend to crave it more, it sucks! I read a book about habits and really suggest fighting those cravings and replace it with a healthier option more times than not. But, if you do this please schedule it into your week.. for example, if you are having a coffee with a friend on Sunday morning, schedule that treat when you are in a good place of mind. Make it an enjoyable experience and not a guilt fest. Aka. Don't have this treat in the privacy of your bedroom where you can binge lol
Hope this helps!
TooManyDimples, I will check out that documentary! I'd heard about the strange places where companies hide sugar. Aren't the McDonald's salads even sugared? I do a lot of my own baking so I can control content, buy sprouted wheat bread (Ezekiel), and try to stay away from white flour (use almond or tapioca flour when I can!). I eat a lot of peanut butter, though, and I know mine (Jif) is loaded with sugar. My goal, really, is to eat as few processed foods as possible. It's the only way to be really sure!
FitBritt, that's a great idea too. And I do that. I have a recipe for chocolate muffins (made with raw honey, pumpkin, unsweetened cocoa, and SOME 'real' chocolate chips) and peanut butter cookies (make with raw dates and peanut butter) that are amazing and totally satisfy my cravings. "Atypical" treats are definitely going to be scheduled in my new plan!
The way I see it, there really are no "bad" foods. There are foods that are much more calorie dense than others, or foods that taste good yet don't provide much nutrition, but none of them are necessarily forbidden. You can continue to lose weight while eating junk food, as long as it fits into your calorie allotment for the day. I read about someone who lost over 100 lbs while eating a hamburger for lunch everyday... he was still at a calorie deficit everyday and continued losing weight despite eating something "bad".
I've personally found it helpful to occasionally budget in a treat to my daily calorie goals. Especially when it's around time for my period, having even just a tiny bit of chocolate or something sweet really helps me from full out binge eating.
Decriminalizing "bad" food
Anyway, this is just an experiment. Deprivation doesn't work, gotta try something new. If eating things not normally on my plan starts to trigger me, I'll just have to go back to the old method (sigh). But I do hope this is something that works. It's definitely worked for some people and I just hope I'm one of them!
