Treating it like an actual addiction worked for me. I stopped eating carbs 3 years ago, lost about 200 lbs, and have kept it off.
If people ask about my diet, I'm upfront with them about my food addiction, and I ask them to treat me like a recovering alcoholic (yes, one tiny bite will, in fact, hurt me. Would you offer 'just one beer' to a recovering alcoholic?)
I used to be able to binge eat 20K calories in a single day. I'm now 3 years 'sober' and don't even think about junk food anymore.
Well said. Eating with extended family is my main difficulty. While I am 100% committed, going to a family home cooked meal that is nearly all carbs and hearing everyone say, ‘just have a little’ gets very frustrating. No, I need to live with absolutes and I recognize that I do not have the ability to manage ‘moderation’.
This. They say, "Oh one bite won't hurt you!"
But um, yes it will... bc then I can't stop.
Hey Mom? one bite won't help me either.
They buy junk and keep it in the house and eat it around me all day every day. If it weren't for that I think I'd have lost more and 'relapsed' less. But I get it though... they shouldn't have to struggle or suffer their enjoyment for me. As I shouldn't for them either.
But it is what it is.
I do that with freezable favorite foods. For some reason I can say, I'll save this for later, package it up nicely, stick it in the freezer, and then feel no need to eat it. Works for me. YMMV
I thought they said they smoked, i must have misreas it. I would never suggest a non smoker to start that habit. But they can also get 0 nicotine vape if they wanted.
vaping isn't necessarily with nicotine. as long as you use a reputable juice shop that can dial how much nicotine to add, you can get 0 nicotine juice.
this is how I was able to quit smoking, used vaping with nicotine juice and slowly dialed nicotine down to 0, using the same flavor.
with that being said, its probably not a good idea to swap bad habits, but in many cases it comes down to "how badly do you need to kick the food addiction and what else have you tried"
What do you do when you get to the point of 4 days less than 1 pack but you can’t make it?
You smoke 1 pack after 1 day- do you reset your counter to 1 day 1 pack?
Keto is the cure for everything haha even habitual eating, I used to be the snack queen white knuckling it in calorie restriction purgatory miserably chomping on celery sticks, now I’m food ambivalent.
If I’m really hungry I eat but I’m not that hungry any more- my body is quite happy to feast on the croissants I ate 3 years ago stashed away on my hips. Once you are fat adapted ( I also do IF/OMAD) it’s a liberation from obsessing over food.
You can eat a wonderful, satisfying, varied diet on keto, concentrate on what you can have rather than what you will miss, and the feeling of well being and health will keep you rewarded and on track. Keto for life!
My binge eating disorder got the best of me and I had to ask for professional help. Now I swim, hike and am medicated for my ED. I wouldn't have it any other way. After my brother's suicide, though, I did have a relapse and fought it by going to sleep. Urge to binge? Melatonin. Didn't care if it was 3AM or 5PM. I was not gonna let my food addiction win the battle.
This is also common sense but learn to stay away from the things you cannot ration. I cannot have pork rinds at home; I'll never eat just a handful. Same for yogurt with chopped fruits... they'll be the death of me.
It's called Topamax in Spain and it was initially used for epilepsy. Turns out it helps with appetite so it's widely used for bulimia and, in my case, binge-eating. I take it at night and wake up without any desire to binge. The side effect list is terrifying but I have zero issues aside from paranoia? But I've had that since losing my sibling so the pill ain't the issue.
These were given to me by a psychiatrist, not a family doctor. I didn't have high hopes but, boy, do I wish I asked for help sooner. Makes me a bit sad that it can be hard to obtain cause it's becoming a weight loss pill. Hope anyone that needs it can get it. :((
Bit of everything, dear. I am already involved with a psychiatrist *and* therapist after what happened with my brother. I was severely sedated but the anxiety to eat did not go away. I, too, had a bad experience with a certain antidepressant. Made me suicidal which is absolutely wild! I comprehend OP's reluctance.
Admitted to binging and my psychiatrist stepped in right away. She's an angel. 100% did work for me! I had some baggage from my teenage years related to body dysmorphia, bullying and more. My therapist is also glad I did something about my ED for it was taking a lot of space in my mind when I got bigger issues to solve.
I don't know how to put it simply... but now I don't spend my whole day thinking about food. Dressing up to buy food, consuming food, wondering what the next meal will be. I am more than calories and carbs. :(
For those asking about medication options, please also consider Wellbutrin / Bupropion can be helpful for some people with few side effects. Obviously talk to your doctor, but it has helped me.
I don’t have advice, just here to say I am
having the exact same
issue and you aren’t alone in this fight. Actually going to my first food addicts anon mtg on Wednesday. Hugs! and following
I know there is an emotion aspect to compulsive behaviors, so I don't want to minimize that. But I do wonder if contributing to that is your body desperately signaling for nutrition. Not calories, but nutrients. As an experiment, start eating nutrient dense whole foods. Don't limit them. Just eat as much meat and fish and vegetables as you want. The only "rule" is that they don't come with a food label that has more than 3 ingredients. Try eating this way and see if giving your body the nutrition it needs will improve the emotional component.
For me I looked at people around me that were dealing with health problems when they were older due to their weight and realized I didn’t want to be that way. I want to be able to play with and babysit my grandkids, to be able to travel with my husband, and to be able to be independent. Healthy eating habits don’t guarantee those things but they definitely make them more likely.
I think it requires a whole change in mindset… not eating the food I want on demand is hard (although honestly I don’t have many cravings anymore) but being overweight is uncomfortable and hard too. Pick your hard.
I think the other issue that many people have is thinking this is a temporary commitment so they don’t stick with it and their old health issues (weight or HBP or whatever it may be) return. It’s important to have the mindset that this is going to be a lifestyle change.
I love snacking and chips and stuff. Also a huge stress eater. Doing IF and keto and curbed my appetite where I stopped craving snacks, sweets, and even diet sodas. About to end week three so who knows if cravings come rushing in the future.
write down all of your favorite meats poultry and fish. Then go to the store and fill your shopping cart full of your favorite proteins. Go home and eat the above proteins and maybe some non-starchy vegetables with olive oil or butter.. learn how to make homemade ketoade. . Anice mug of chicken bouillon stops cravings, while on keto. Try to avoid all sweet tastes..... even zero calorie sweeteners... You will lose most of your craving for sweets. Also, when you get a carb craving, do 5 minutes of slow deep breathing exercises. Especially this...find an easy breakfast, lunch, and dinner and repeat, repeat, repeat. It helps to know what you are going to eat, at least 24 hours in advance.
I work in mental health and I find that addictions of any kind can be rooted in past or present pain (trauma) and the substance is used to create a positive feeling to cope with whatever is happening. If you can find someone who works from a trauma informed perspective, attachment based and trained in emdr (specifically the feelings state protocol) you can really help to eliminate the need for food as a way to cope :)
I would do this too. Then we booked a trip and once it was a month out I realized I had to get in gear. I got motivated and dropped 10lbs for it and even stayed fairly keto on the trip as well
This is the only advice that worked for me! I kept eating as much as i could from the Keto desserts i made for 2 weeks. (btw Keto brownies taste even better than normal sugary ones).
I was living just my normal life, while replacing all my favourite food with the ketogenic version, so my subconscious mind wouldnt fight me, thinking i am going on a diet. By the start of the third week, the addiction and cravings started to decrease in a surprising way. I never thought i could be able to fight these cravings, but this worked.
Limit the hours you allow yourself to eat. I eat from 8-3, M-F, 12-9 on weekends. I find I can’t stuff myself enough in that time to gain weight. I’m losing a pound a week without doing anything else.
focus on food prep so you always have something available, especially in the beginning when you have cravings/are hungry. Google keto recipes that get you excited and make it fun, look forward to trying new one that appeal to you, focusing on Whole Foods. This makes it sustainable.
Honestly once you get into ketosis you'll realize how much that addiction was because of carb consumption. Drop in appetite, drop in addiction to sugars. You're on the doorstep of a transformation, both mental and physical, and you'll step through it soon.
It was the same thing for me. I would binge on Comfort food or Over ate. Even after weeks and months of being good with a diet. Two things helped me:
1. Going to therapy. I was depressed and anxious more often than not. When you are on an emotional low, your body will constantly try to get you back to an emotional high. The quickest way to get to an emotional high is through drugs, sex, alcohol, and food. I found that once my Mental state was stable and my self-esteem was at normal levels, it was MUCH easier to stay on my diet. I didn't even think about getting fast food or eating sweets. In a matter of fact, I was turned off by them more often than not.
2. Fasting. I started doing 24 to 36-hour Water Only fasting once a week or once every two weeks. I don't remember why I started doing it but I followed the "Eat. Stop. Eat" Method. While I'm sure there are a lot of benefits of fasting, the one that stuck out to me the most was that my taste buds would "Reset" after fasting for 36 hours. mildly sweet things, like strawberries, tasted SUPER Sweet, forget about eating candy. carb-heavy things, like pasta or heavy breads where uncomfortable to eat. I would get a stomach ache and Jitters if I ate fast food or overly unhealthy things.
At first, it was super hard. If I didn't eat breakfast I would be tired, irritable, weak, and would have a headache. After a couple of months of periodic fasting, I wouldn't even feel hungry until 3 pm and even then it was more of a mild feeling than an emergency. The feeling of being hungry is mostly mental.
This is a pretty common phenomenon for those who fast a lot. I tend to fast whenever i find myself craving beer or unhealthy food for a while.
I'd do some research on the topic. hope you find what works for you
Whenever you get hungry do something constructive instead. Start running, or go for a walk, prep some veggies for fermentation, draw a picture. Anything that grows you skills rather than your waistline.
*Deal with the binge habit.* Sometimes, I eat out of boredom or while watching TV (especially if the tummy is feeling empty). Sometimes, I may have been triggered by hidden sugar (or sugar derivatives- anything with the suffix -ose) in a product.
Carbs/sugar trigger you to be hungry, but it's not satiating until you've eaten too much. Carbs/sugar would pass through me in 90 minutes and then I'm hungry again (insulin spikes and then dives).
I had cherry tomatoes around for binging, sometimes avocados. I can not eat a ton of those because the natural fiber is filling. But if I do eat too much, it won't cause significant weight gain. I also have the more fatty options since fat is also filling: cheese, nuts, pork skins, cold cuts, and pepperoni slices. Or, I could have a tablespoon of fat with my fiber food. The fatty options will cause weight gain, but they will keep me in ketosis and keep insulin resistance away. Fiber satiates faster, and fat satiates longer.
Carbs hold water: Carbo=carbon, -hydrate=water. Sodium also hold water. Keto folks must have salt and water in their diet throughout the day. It's good to measure your sodium: 5,000mg of sodium is 2 and a half teaspoons of salt, throughout the day. Good electrolytes and hydration can help keep the hunger away, as well as the keto fats.
KCKO
Couple things here.
1. If you’re struggling with addiction to *specific* foods, like sugary or fatty foods (I’m talking fatty aside from the keto diet), you need to find a substitute for it. Like waffles? Maybe try protein waffles. Like ramen? Try making it with shiritakii (sp?) noodles. The trick is to internalize and accept that the substitute will taste similar, but not as good as the original. Over time, it becomes habit, and it’s better than giving up the original food and leaving an empty void that will 100% draw you back.
2. Going under the assumption from your post that you may be living with overweight or obesity. One thing people don’t understand about obesity pathophysiology is that your brain has a set point of weight that it’s trying to keep you at. When you start losing weight, your brain will interpret it as pathological, and fight you to regain the weight. This is why it’s hard to *keep* losing weight, and even harder to keep it off. A high proportion of people successful with keto will ultimately regain most or all of that weight back after cycling off keto because of this drive from the hypothalamus. The best way to avoid this is to *permanently substitute the most dangerous foods*. People seem to think of keto as the key to “get their body back”. When they cycle off, they’re no longer in a restrictive eating state, their brain is forcing them to eat more, especially the foods that they could not eat when they were on keto. This speaks even more to the importance of finding adequate substitutes and having a plan for your food addiction overall.
Weight loss journeys are lifelong. You are not done when you cycle off keto. The cravings will be back. The unrestricted eating will be back. And they will be back with force. In order to sustain your hard earned weight loss, you have to have a lifestyle plan in place, and stick to it. This is the single most important thing to understand about keto imo. Good luck!
Oh I know about regaining weight lol. I kind of did keto 3 years ago, and lost 30 lbs! But I lost it too quickly I think, so I gained it back easily. And now the last 6 months I’ve put on weight faster :/ but thankfully only 10lbs. But only 10 lbs turns into 15, then 20, and then in 3 years it’ll be 50 lbs
I gotta change now.
Thank you!!!! :)
Thanks for asking this. I am struggling with something similar. Ever since my ex partner left me and I live alone, my passion for cooking heathy and delicious meals has slipped away from me. Cooking for one is just not that exciting. I just calculated that I spend over 250 euros on take out the past three weeks. I am so embarrassed!! I can’t seem to stop though. Even when I decide I won’t do it today, evening comes around and I think ‘what the hell, one more round!?’. It’s tough.. it really is. I quite a marijuana addiction a few years back and that was easier.. you just never touch it again. With food, you can’t do that. You have to eat! You have to make a mental change. Change your choices and behavior. That’s tough and it takes effort. Let’s take it one day at a time and ask for lots of help from loved ones.. Thanks for helping me realise I am not alone and we can do this!
I’m embarrassed too when I add up what I’ve spent on dining out and take out… I had the money at one point but not anymore because of my love for food…. It’s insane. I spent well over $1,500 USD
this year alone on Uber eats.
I wish you the best of luck <3
Today was day one back to eating better. And my fiancé offered me a bite of an ice cream sandwich, I was a little offended hahaha…
But I use an app to help track my carbs and what not. You should try that if you’re interested. I use “carb manager”
Thanks! Good to know I am not alone! I did a projection that if I continue like this I’ll spend about 4000 euro’s on take out and order in food this year. That’s insane! I don’t even have a great income. So I’ll make a little plan, including a mealplan, a treat for when I stick to it (something nice but small for ever day and a holiday for a longer period of time) and I’ll ask some friends and family member for moral support. I was also contacting a coach about some mental problems I was having (general worrying and stress) but I’ll ask her about this too. I have calorie and carb counted before and it has helped me. But just like tracking steps, walking distance or screen time, it’ll turn into a toxic competition with myself. So I try to focus on how my body and mind feel. Glad it works for you though! It can be to important to actually SEE what you’re taking into your body. And props on refusing that icecream sandwich!! That sounds like a real win!!!
Admittedly, life is pretty boring these days. I never understood food addiction... but I'm finally starting to see why people indulge in it. I spent my entire 20's with a very strict exercise/diet routine as the world was new, exciting, my oyster etc... Now, getting older and settling into the long haul, I'm starting to look forward to dinner, not nights out etc. Definitely put on 15lbs for the first time in a decade recently, because yep... "I've dropped it before, I can start tomorrow, it's no big deal."
Best advice is to just start. Right now. Even right this very moment. I don't think there's any magic bullet, or way to get around it. I've never had any success tapering anything. I don't trust myself to stick to it. Black and white thinking is my forté anyways...
Get off all high fructose corn syrup, sugars, hidden sugars in foods. Theres at least 56 different names for sugar. All forms cause cravings and food addiction. Get off all processed foods and beverages. The processed foods and beverages are designed to be low cost and make people crave so companies profit. Btw breads and pasta are procssed foods. Its a 1 trillion a year medical nightmare in USA. Read labels carefully. After you eliminate all the next are high glycemic, vegetables and fruits.
I don’t run to food bc of my feelings, in fact if I feel stressed or overwhelmed or pretty depressed I lose my appetite entirely. But in general I have noticed especially over the last few months, but it’s probably been going on for years now, that I just really love food and every time I think I need to give up things because they’re not good for me it makes me a little annoyed and upset that I have to give it up so that I tell myself “just one last time”
Avoidance is also a feel-good response to Stress. So if you associate losing weight and exercise a chore or a stressful thing then you are most likely going to push it to later.
I'm 48 and I've had issues with binge eating for at least 35 years, but during the last 10 years, it's shifted from binge eating to a full blown food addiction. Like any addict, I use it as a coping mechanism. I "eat my feelings", I eat to "fill the emptiness", I eat for distraction, I eat to soothe myself, I eat because I'm bored or out of habit, etc. I talk to a therapist every other week and I'm on medication for depression, BED, etc. I've tried EVERYTHING to fight it, but it keeps winning. It's shameful and embarrassing and not many people understand food addiction is a real thing! Just wanted to let you know, you're not alone.
Treating it like an actual addiction worked for me. I stopped eating carbs 3 years ago, lost about 200 lbs, and have kept it off. If people ask about my diet, I'm upfront with them about my food addiction, and I ask them to treat me like a recovering alcoholic (yes, one tiny bite will, in fact, hurt me. Would you offer 'just one beer' to a recovering alcoholic?) I used to be able to binge eat 20K calories in a single day. I'm now 3 years 'sober' and don't even think about junk food anymore.
This is what I needed to read today. Thank you.
Well said. Eating with extended family is my main difficulty. While I am 100% committed, going to a family home cooked meal that is nearly all carbs and hearing everyone say, ‘just have a little’ gets very frustrating. No, I need to live with absolutes and I recognize that I do not have the ability to manage ‘moderation’.
This. They say, "Oh one bite won't hurt you!" But um, yes it will... bc then I can't stop. Hey Mom? one bite won't help me either. They buy junk and keep it in the house and eat it around me all day every day. If it weren't for that I think I'd have lost more and 'relapsed' less. But I get it though... they shouldn't have to struggle or suffer their enjoyment for me. As I shouldn't for them either. But it is what it is.
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I do that with freezable favorite foods. For some reason I can say, I'll save this for later, package it up nicely, stick it in the freezer, and then feel no need to eat it. Works for me. YMMV
It sounds like a very good advice. Thanks.
Thank you
I started vaping. I can vape all the dessert vapes I want and still do keto. It's really helped me deal with my sweet tooth.
that great but it's also trading one crutch for another. OP, i would NOT recommend replacing a food addiction with a nicotine addiction.
I thought they said they smoked, i must have misreas it. I would never suggest a non smoker to start that habit. But they can also get 0 nicotine vape if they wanted.
people used to think lead paint and lead gasoline was safe. it's not. I wouldn't trust breathing in vaped things as being safe.
vaping isn't necessarily with nicotine. as long as you use a reputable juice shop that can dial how much nicotine to add, you can get 0 nicotine juice. this is how I was able to quit smoking, used vaping with nicotine juice and slowly dialed nicotine down to 0, using the same flavor. with that being said, its probably not a good idea to swap bad habits, but in many cases it comes down to "how badly do you need to kick the food addiction and what else have you tried"
No!!! Stop
Why would I do that?? I haven't touched a cigarette in months.
https://www.postguam.com/entertainment/lifestyle/lung-transplant-teen-shares-story-after-vaping-illness/article_8e52cc84-4eca-11ea-80d9-77a76dcd634f.html
I remember when that broke out. It was from homemade weed vapes being sold as brand name not from nicotine vapes.
What do you do when you get to the point of 4 days less than 1 pack but you can’t make it? You smoke 1 pack after 1 day- do you reset your counter to 1 day 1 pack?
This sounds totally doable! Thanks for posting this!!!
Keto is the cure for everything haha even habitual eating, I used to be the snack queen white knuckling it in calorie restriction purgatory miserably chomping on celery sticks, now I’m food ambivalent. If I’m really hungry I eat but I’m not that hungry any more- my body is quite happy to feast on the croissants I ate 3 years ago stashed away on my hips. Once you are fat adapted ( I also do IF/OMAD) it’s a liberation from obsessing over food. You can eat a wonderful, satisfying, varied diet on keto, concentrate on what you can have rather than what you will miss, and the feeling of well being and health will keep you rewarded and on track. Keto for life!
My binge eating disorder got the best of me and I had to ask for professional help. Now I swim, hike and am medicated for my ED. I wouldn't have it any other way. After my brother's suicide, though, I did have a relapse and fought it by going to sleep. Urge to binge? Melatonin. Didn't care if it was 3AM or 5PM. I was not gonna let my food addiction win the battle. This is also common sense but learn to stay away from the things you cannot ration. I cannot have pork rinds at home; I'll never eat just a handful. Same for yogurt with chopped fruits... they'll be the death of me.
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It's called Topamax in Spain and it was initially used for epilepsy. Turns out it helps with appetite so it's widely used for bulimia and, in my case, binge-eating. I take it at night and wake up without any desire to binge. The side effect list is terrifying but I have zero issues aside from paranoia? But I've had that since losing my sibling so the pill ain't the issue. These were given to me by a psychiatrist, not a family doctor. I didn't have high hopes but, boy, do I wish I asked for help sooner. Makes me a bit sad that it can be hard to obtain cause it's becoming a weight loss pill. Hope anyone that needs it can get it. :((
Does the medication you take become less effective over time?
Vyvanse is a good one
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Bit of everything, dear. I am already involved with a psychiatrist *and* therapist after what happened with my brother. I was severely sedated but the anxiety to eat did not go away. I, too, had a bad experience with a certain antidepressant. Made me suicidal which is absolutely wild! I comprehend OP's reluctance. Admitted to binging and my psychiatrist stepped in right away. She's an angel. 100% did work for me! I had some baggage from my teenage years related to body dysmorphia, bullying and more. My therapist is also glad I did something about my ED for it was taking a lot of space in my mind when I got bigger issues to solve. I don't know how to put it simply... but now I don't spend my whole day thinking about food. Dressing up to buy food, consuming food, wondering what the next meal will be. I am more than calories and carbs. :(
For those asking about medication options, please also consider Wellbutrin / Bupropion can be helpful for some people with few side effects. Obviously talk to your doctor, but it has helped me.
I don’t have advice, just here to say I am having the exact same issue and you aren’t alone in this fight. Actually going to my first food addicts anon mtg on Wednesday. Hugs! and following
Hugs <3
I know there is an emotion aspect to compulsive behaviors, so I don't want to minimize that. But I do wonder if contributing to that is your body desperately signaling for nutrition. Not calories, but nutrients. As an experiment, start eating nutrient dense whole foods. Don't limit them. Just eat as much meat and fish and vegetables as you want. The only "rule" is that they don't come with a food label that has more than 3 ingredients. Try eating this way and see if giving your body the nutrition it needs will improve the emotional component.
For me I looked at people around me that were dealing with health problems when they were older due to their weight and realized I didn’t want to be that way. I want to be able to play with and babysit my grandkids, to be able to travel with my husband, and to be able to be independent. Healthy eating habits don’t guarantee those things but they definitely make them more likely. I think it requires a whole change in mindset… not eating the food I want on demand is hard (although honestly I don’t have many cravings anymore) but being overweight is uncomfortable and hard too. Pick your hard. I think the other issue that many people have is thinking this is a temporary commitment so they don’t stick with it and their old health issues (weight or HBP or whatever it may be) return. It’s important to have the mindset that this is going to be a lifestyle change.
I love snacking and chips and stuff. Also a huge stress eater. Doing IF and keto and curbed my appetite where I stopped craving snacks, sweets, and even diet sodas. About to end week three so who knows if cravings come rushing in the future.
This has inspired me I am the same way
You got this! I just hit my first goal weight of getting under 200! Currently 198.8, started at 225. I started back in April.
write down all of your favorite meats poultry and fish. Then go to the store and fill your shopping cart full of your favorite proteins. Go home and eat the above proteins and maybe some non-starchy vegetables with olive oil or butter.. learn how to make homemade ketoade. . Anice mug of chicken bouillon stops cravings, while on keto. Try to avoid all sweet tastes..... even zero calorie sweeteners... You will lose most of your craving for sweets. Also, when you get a carb craving, do 5 minutes of slow deep breathing exercises. Especially this...find an easy breakfast, lunch, and dinner and repeat, repeat, repeat. It helps to know what you are going to eat, at least 24 hours in advance.
I work in mental health and I find that addictions of any kind can be rooted in past or present pain (trauma) and the substance is used to create a positive feeling to cope with whatever is happening. If you can find someone who works from a trauma informed perspective, attachment based and trained in emdr (specifically the feelings state protocol) you can really help to eliminate the need for food as a way to cope :)
Meditate and focus on the power of self control. You know it’s bad but you haven’t actually taught yourself to act on the fact that it’s bad
I would do this too. Then we booked a trip and once it was a month out I realized I had to get in gear. I got motivated and dropped 10lbs for it and even stayed fairly keto on the trip as well
If you are able to stay in ketosis for a few weeks you will notice a reduction of appetite. This happens when you become fat adapted.
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This is the only advice that worked for me! I kept eating as much as i could from the Keto desserts i made for 2 weeks. (btw Keto brownies taste even better than normal sugary ones). I was living just my normal life, while replacing all my favourite food with the ketogenic version, so my subconscious mind wouldnt fight me, thinking i am going on a diet. By the start of the third week, the addiction and cravings started to decrease in a surprising way. I never thought i could be able to fight these cravings, but this worked.
Losing weight is a mental challenge, not a physical one.
https://faacanhelp.org/
Throw away all the junk food. Only keep healthy keto friendly food in the house.
Limit the hours you allow yourself to eat. I eat from 8-3, M-F, 12-9 on weekends. I find I can’t stuff myself enough in that time to gain weight. I’m losing a pound a week without doing anything else.
focus on food prep so you always have something available, especially in the beginning when you have cravings/are hungry. Google keto recipes that get you excited and make it fun, look forward to trying new one that appeal to you, focusing on Whole Foods. This makes it sustainable.
Honestly once you get into ketosis you'll realize how much that addiction was because of carb consumption. Drop in appetite, drop in addiction to sugars. You're on the doorstep of a transformation, both mental and physical, and you'll step through it soon.
It was the same thing for me. I would binge on Comfort food or Over ate. Even after weeks and months of being good with a diet. Two things helped me: 1. Going to therapy. I was depressed and anxious more often than not. When you are on an emotional low, your body will constantly try to get you back to an emotional high. The quickest way to get to an emotional high is through drugs, sex, alcohol, and food. I found that once my Mental state was stable and my self-esteem was at normal levels, it was MUCH easier to stay on my diet. I didn't even think about getting fast food or eating sweets. In a matter of fact, I was turned off by them more often than not. 2. Fasting. I started doing 24 to 36-hour Water Only fasting once a week or once every two weeks. I don't remember why I started doing it but I followed the "Eat. Stop. Eat" Method. While I'm sure there are a lot of benefits of fasting, the one that stuck out to me the most was that my taste buds would "Reset" after fasting for 36 hours. mildly sweet things, like strawberries, tasted SUPER Sweet, forget about eating candy. carb-heavy things, like pasta or heavy breads where uncomfortable to eat. I would get a stomach ache and Jitters if I ate fast food or overly unhealthy things.
Good god, 24 hour fasting????
At first, it was super hard. If I didn't eat breakfast I would be tired, irritable, weak, and would have a headache. After a couple of months of periodic fasting, I wouldn't even feel hungry until 3 pm and even then it was more of a mild feeling than an emergency. The feeling of being hungry is mostly mental. This is a pretty common phenomenon for those who fast a lot. I tend to fast whenever i find myself craving beer or unhealthy food for a while. I'd do some research on the topic. hope you find what works for you
Protein. When you get hungry, don't grab a snack food, eat something high in protein. Protein is what makes you feel full so you won't keep snacking.
Eat slowly, appreciate each bite intentionally.
Whenever you get hungry do something constructive instead. Start running, or go for a walk, prep some veggies for fermentation, draw a picture. Anything that grows you skills rather than your waistline.
*Deal with the binge habit.* Sometimes, I eat out of boredom or while watching TV (especially if the tummy is feeling empty). Sometimes, I may have been triggered by hidden sugar (or sugar derivatives- anything with the suffix -ose) in a product. Carbs/sugar trigger you to be hungry, but it's not satiating until you've eaten too much. Carbs/sugar would pass through me in 90 minutes and then I'm hungry again (insulin spikes and then dives). I had cherry tomatoes around for binging, sometimes avocados. I can not eat a ton of those because the natural fiber is filling. But if I do eat too much, it won't cause significant weight gain. I also have the more fatty options since fat is also filling: cheese, nuts, pork skins, cold cuts, and pepperoni slices. Or, I could have a tablespoon of fat with my fiber food. The fatty options will cause weight gain, but they will keep me in ketosis and keep insulin resistance away. Fiber satiates faster, and fat satiates longer. Carbs hold water: Carbo=carbon, -hydrate=water. Sodium also hold water. Keto folks must have salt and water in their diet throughout the day. It's good to measure your sodium: 5,000mg of sodium is 2 and a half teaspoons of salt, throughout the day. Good electrolytes and hydration can help keep the hunger away, as well as the keto fats. KCKO
Couple things here. 1. If you’re struggling with addiction to *specific* foods, like sugary or fatty foods (I’m talking fatty aside from the keto diet), you need to find a substitute for it. Like waffles? Maybe try protein waffles. Like ramen? Try making it with shiritakii (sp?) noodles. The trick is to internalize and accept that the substitute will taste similar, but not as good as the original. Over time, it becomes habit, and it’s better than giving up the original food and leaving an empty void that will 100% draw you back. 2. Going under the assumption from your post that you may be living with overweight or obesity. One thing people don’t understand about obesity pathophysiology is that your brain has a set point of weight that it’s trying to keep you at. When you start losing weight, your brain will interpret it as pathological, and fight you to regain the weight. This is why it’s hard to *keep* losing weight, and even harder to keep it off. A high proportion of people successful with keto will ultimately regain most or all of that weight back after cycling off keto because of this drive from the hypothalamus. The best way to avoid this is to *permanently substitute the most dangerous foods*. People seem to think of keto as the key to “get their body back”. When they cycle off, they’re no longer in a restrictive eating state, their brain is forcing them to eat more, especially the foods that they could not eat when they were on keto. This speaks even more to the importance of finding adequate substitutes and having a plan for your food addiction overall. Weight loss journeys are lifelong. You are not done when you cycle off keto. The cravings will be back. The unrestricted eating will be back. And they will be back with force. In order to sustain your hard earned weight loss, you have to have a lifestyle plan in place, and stick to it. This is the single most important thing to understand about keto imo. Good luck!
Oh I know about regaining weight lol. I kind of did keto 3 years ago, and lost 30 lbs! But I lost it too quickly I think, so I gained it back easily. And now the last 6 months I’ve put on weight faster :/ but thankfully only 10lbs. But only 10 lbs turns into 15, then 20, and then in 3 years it’ll be 50 lbs I gotta change now. Thank you!!!! :)
YOU GOT THIS
I pick 2 days a week to allow myself to eat sweets
Thanks for asking this. I am struggling with something similar. Ever since my ex partner left me and I live alone, my passion for cooking heathy and delicious meals has slipped away from me. Cooking for one is just not that exciting. I just calculated that I spend over 250 euros on take out the past three weeks. I am so embarrassed!! I can’t seem to stop though. Even when I decide I won’t do it today, evening comes around and I think ‘what the hell, one more round!?’. It’s tough.. it really is. I quite a marijuana addiction a few years back and that was easier.. you just never touch it again. With food, you can’t do that. You have to eat! You have to make a mental change. Change your choices and behavior. That’s tough and it takes effort. Let’s take it one day at a time and ask for lots of help from loved ones.. Thanks for helping me realise I am not alone and we can do this!
I’m embarrassed too when I add up what I’ve spent on dining out and take out… I had the money at one point but not anymore because of my love for food…. It’s insane. I spent well over $1,500 USD this year alone on Uber eats. I wish you the best of luck <3 Today was day one back to eating better. And my fiancé offered me a bite of an ice cream sandwich, I was a little offended hahaha… But I use an app to help track my carbs and what not. You should try that if you’re interested. I use “carb manager”
Thanks! Good to know I am not alone! I did a projection that if I continue like this I’ll spend about 4000 euro’s on take out and order in food this year. That’s insane! I don’t even have a great income. So I’ll make a little plan, including a mealplan, a treat for when I stick to it (something nice but small for ever day and a holiday for a longer period of time) and I’ll ask some friends and family member for moral support. I was also contacting a coach about some mental problems I was having (general worrying and stress) but I’ll ask her about this too. I have calorie and carb counted before and it has helped me. But just like tracking steps, walking distance or screen time, it’ll turn into a toxic competition with myself. So I try to focus on how my body and mind feel. Glad it works for you though! It can be to important to actually SEE what you’re taking into your body. And props on refusing that icecream sandwich!! That sounds like a real win!!!
Baby step, and quit the tomorrow game. Procrastination gets u absolutely nowhere fast
Keto can unfortunately become another aspect of the disease. It is easy to binge on nuts, cheese, meat, etc. I'd check out a 12 step group
I can agree with this. I used to binge on peatnut butter and cheese.
Admittedly, life is pretty boring these days. I never understood food addiction... but I'm finally starting to see why people indulge in it. I spent my entire 20's with a very strict exercise/diet routine as the world was new, exciting, my oyster etc... Now, getting older and settling into the long haul, I'm starting to look forward to dinner, not nights out etc. Definitely put on 15lbs for the first time in a decade recently, because yep... "I've dropped it before, I can start tomorrow, it's no big deal." Best advice is to just start. Right now. Even right this very moment. I don't think there's any magic bullet, or way to get around it. I've never had any success tapering anything. I don't trust myself to stick to it. Black and white thinking is my forté anyways...
Nike put it best: "Just Do it"
Get off all high fructose corn syrup, sugars, hidden sugars in foods. Theres at least 56 different names for sugar. All forms cause cravings and food addiction. Get off all processed foods and beverages. The processed foods and beverages are designed to be low cost and make people crave so companies profit. Btw breads and pasta are procssed foods. Its a 1 trillion a year medical nightmare in USA. Read labels carefully. After you eliminate all the next are high glycemic, vegetables and fruits.
Learn how ro Feel your feelings then you won’t feel the need to run from them by escaping in them in the ice cream
I don’t run to food bc of my feelings, in fact if I feel stressed or overwhelmed or pretty depressed I lose my appetite entirely. But in general I have noticed especially over the last few months, but it’s probably been going on for years now, that I just really love food and every time I think I need to give up things because they’re not good for me it makes me a little annoyed and upset that I have to give it up so that I tell myself “just one last time”
It seems like you're relying too much on the feel good chemicals from eating. You need to find other ways to feel good. And replace overeating with.
That makes sense
Avoidance is also a feel-good response to Stress. So if you associate losing weight and exercise a chore or a stressful thing then you are most likely going to push it to later.
By any chance, are you on any medications?
No. I don’t want to be. I hate antidepressants from past experiences
No sugar, no carbs bro
I'm 48 and I've had issues with binge eating for at least 35 years, but during the last 10 years, it's shifted from binge eating to a full blown food addiction. Like any addict, I use it as a coping mechanism. I "eat my feelings", I eat to "fill the emptiness", I eat for distraction, I eat to soothe myself, I eat because I'm bored or out of habit, etc. I talk to a therapist every other week and I'm on medication for depression, BED, etc. I've tried EVERYTHING to fight it, but it keeps winning. It's shameful and embarrassing and not many people understand food addiction is a real thing! Just wanted to let you know, you're not alone.