I had to share this... I knew you guys would understand.

So the past week or so have been nuts for me. The 4th of July weekend was difficult for me as I'm sure it was for many of you and then after that I felt completely thrown off my eating routines and just went nuts.

And by nuts I mean... EATING BEN AND JERRY's TUBS of ICE CREAM FOR LUNCH 3 DAYS IN A ROW.

Yeah, it was pretty bad. I felt sick and depressed and disgusting and I was "cheating" throughout the day besides the ice cream so I was just a mess.

Thankfully I was still doing C25K because I really do love that program and I'm addicted to running! However... the eating dilemma! My weight was going up up up.

I am sick of being addicted to these high-fat, high-sugar foods. Something just snapped the other day, I said "THIS IS ENOUGH" and I'm starting a new routine. Whenever I see something that triggers me to binge, I say (out loud!) "No! You make me sick!" I yell this at McDonalds arches, Snickers ads, anything. It makes me look and sound completely crazy but I already feel empowered somehow and hopefully if it becomes routine the message will sink into my brain (binging on sh*t will make you feel like sh*t!).

I know I'm not the only one who has been driven INSANE by their food addiction! I know once I'm back on track I will be okay again... right?

Ben & Jerry are my abusive, controlling, manipulative boyfriends that I can't seem to break up with....

For me it's Blue Bell ice cream. >.<

And yeah... that's kind of been my week... *sigh*

We can do it... that's what I keep telling myself "get up... do it... do it". So far... my head is pounding like crazy... but... I'm trying... isn't that good enough?

YES! Lol. What a perfect description!

You might like the book The End of Overeating by David Kessler. It's about how food is marketed and engineered to be practically irresistable (or, perhaps, we could say irresistably seductive) to those of us who are susceptible. It really helped me stop cold turkey on the fast food and junk food.

It's funny you suggested this because I'm actually reading this right now! I stopped reading it before my binge-fest though, so need to get back to it and finish it up.

It's definitely an enlightening book and I like knowing exactly what's happening in my brain when I fall for these irresistible foods. But I'm jealous you were able to stop cold turkey... I'm still having a hard time.

Well, I didn't stop cold turkey until I got to the very end of the book when he talks about making rules for yourself. I made two rules "No eating in the car" and "No eating anything purchased from a drugstore or a gas station." That stopped the behaviors that were causing 90% of the trouble for me.

Then, to keep the helpful behaviors going I moved immediately on to the books by Judith Beck. She writes about weight loss and Cognitive Behavior Techniques. If you read her books, and like them, we have an active support group under the Diets sections of 3FC. Join us!

too funny re yelling at the arches etc. you're so right that you're not the only one. those pints of ice cream were one of the toughest goodies for me to let go of. but I did. once in a while I'll have a cone, or cup. I find that the longer I go without it, the less I want it. the summer does kick up that craving, though.

Fifty lbs lost is fantastic!

Ahh... this is good to know. I definitely need to set up some rules for myself.

I'll have to look into those Judith Beck books. Thanks for the suggestions!

For me it was Hagaan Daaz. I would eat a whole one while watching TV. They are like 1000 calories for the whole thing! Some marketing geniuses out there though made the one serving tub for 250 calories (for the chocolate one). I haven't had one yet, but I know it is available should I ever decide I want ice cream for dessert.

I like the rule about not eating in the car!

Chips! UGH with the chips! I don't care about ice cream, chocolate, cake, sweets. Omg with the chips, pretzels, crackers, french fries. Those are my weakness. I had quite a liberal amount of chips on the 4th and everyday after that. It is ridiculous!

my weakness is my hubby's cooking but we have both gotta it together recently and have agreed we have to lose weight.

Mutable Paradox: I am with you on the chips! Sometimes I feel like I am gonna crawl out of my skin if I don't have something salty and crunchy! I could eat my body weight in tortilla chips without blinking an eye! LOL! Altho when I completely eliminate the salty/crunchy stuff I start to eye the sugary stuff! UGH!

I'm with you guys on the salty stuff. I forgot to mention that during my week of FAIL I hate a whole box of CheezIts in one day. Ugh.

Hmm... I guess I should be glad I have stomach problems that cause intense pain if I eat too much sugar. Never thought that would be a good thing, but it's true. My weight loss started when I "quit" sugar as much as I reasonably could. Pain went away ... and so did the cravings!!! For everything crappy.

I highly recommend it. Look into sweet treats that don't contain as much sugar, so you don't feel deprived. (Sugar-free chocolate pudding, for example.) You'll feel the difference!