[MJCA]

Dear all,
I am a 33 year-old mummy to a lovely girl, and wife to an adorable husband. However, my weight, like probably most here, is a real burden to my life. It wasn’t always the case.

When I was 16, my then normal weight became a huge issue for me -« I wanted to weight like Kate Moss », and after a couple of months of starving, I then started bingeing, shortly followed by purging.

Despite having stopped the purging for many years now, I still have to deal with the everyday bingeing or overeating. I don’t really know what to call it.

Those bad cravings are unbearable like those of an oncoming binge, but the quantity of junk I eat during those moments are more those of …big scoffs.

I have tried every diet under the sun – you name it, I’ve probably done it. I have spend a CRAZY amount of time these last years trying to devise my own eating plan, reading books….

Recently, I’ve been reading a lot about the non-diet eating and intuitive eating and that, but I just managed to put on more weight, and now I am obese, with a BMI of 35 … +15 points of bmi from my sweet sixteen weight worries ! And yes, I did my very best with the intuitive eating…

However, despite having tried every solution under the sun, I never stick to my eating-plan very long. Usually a day, at most maybre three.

Starting an eating plan always triggers HUGE cravings . I’ve talked to my GP about that and asked him if those starting off cravings were normal, and he answered « not really, no ».

So I just wanted to ask the most experienced ones out there if you had ever experienced those very harsh « starting a new eating plan » cravings, at the beginning of a diet ? Or am I the only one out there ?

If so, do they subside after a couple of weeks ?

I hate being fat, I hate being obsessed about diets and that… there is so much more to life 

[EMERALDberry]

Diets are very restrictive and I think that is one of the biggest problems. That is why I am doing the Old Weight Watchers Points plan. You can eat whatever you want, but you have to know how to count the points for it. I am currently allowed 31 points per day. Every day I eat a Skinny Cow ice cream sandwich which is 2 or 3 pts. depending on which one I buy. I also eat real butter and real mayonaise. I only have to know how to count them. I have gone out to eat 3 times this past week. Once to Ruby Tuesdays and had the salad bar with all veggies, equivalent of 1 chopped egg, 2 Tbsp of shredded cheese and had the dressing on the side in a cup. I had 3 Tbsp of honey mustard and would dip my fork in the cup for each bite. Then I went out another day and had a blackened chicken sandwich with pickle. Only ate half the bun. Went to Texas Roadhouse yesterday and had a pork chop with salad and tomatoes. Had them put the egg, cheese and dressing on the side so I would know how to count it.

Planning is the key to weight loss and I know that as I have been successful in years gone by on this plan. I got fat again in the past 3/4 years because of depression. No longer depressed and ready to get back to my 12/14 clothes.

I wish you the best in your struggles. There is absolutely no food/drink that tastes as good as feeling good about yourself. =)

[Chunkahlunkah]

The cravings you experience may be primarily physical, if you cut your calories too low, or primarily psychological.

Have you examined how many calories you normally eat and then cut them by only a moderate amount, maybe 300 a day? I would guess that if your cravings are mostly physical, then a relatively small drop like that probably wouldn't cause you overwhelming cravings.

I personally haven't experienced bad cravings. I don't drop my calories that much though. I also know from experience which foods keep me full longer and which trigger my appetite, so I seek out the former and avoid the latter. The times I've lost weight have been mostly without hunger. (I've put weighht back on a few times mostly due to inactivity and letting my trigger foods appear too frequently in my diet.)

When you tried low carb, which I'm guessing made it into the mix at some point , how did that go? For how long and how'd you feel?

Have you ever spoken with a psychologist about this? That may be the missing piece. It sounds like you're ready to move past this. Good luck. You may not feel it yet, but you can do this.

[Slimmer me]

For me, hunger is more psychological then physiological. Psychologically and emotionally, I "need" food that gives me gratification and enjoyment, in addition to the nutrients. While this may sound extreme, I have gone to one meal a day, and find it vastly preferable to three meager, "diet" meals a day. Since I only eat one meal a day, it can be a good, satisfying meal - moderate protein, plenty of vegetables and salad, and low carb (I avoid grains and starches like potatoes and rice). During the day, I have coffee and ice tea, and water, and look forward to a good dinner with a glass of wine. I am a good cook, and indulge in buying good produce, so the dinner is both healthful and psychologically satisfying.
Contrary to what your doctor said, if you have a history of psychological issues related to food, I would think that committing to a restrictive "diet" plan would trigger psychological cravings as you have committed to depriving yourself of your favorite foods. If the doctor himself does not have a history of repeating disorders, then for him, a diet would not induce cravings.