I feel like I'm trapped with junk food

[Tacomaster]

Hey guys, just hoping you can give me your input on something that's been bothering me. As you can see I've been on bb.com since '08.. I was 16 back then. I've tried several times to lose bodyfat and eliminate most of my bad eating; I mean literally I'd say I've tried over 50 times. My point with this is that I think I have a really bad attachment to junk food because I can't stay away from it.. my longest clean cut lasted for 2 weeks and I gave up after my family kept enticing me with all of the food they eat constantly. I seriously think I have an issue with junk food, this isn't normal and I doubt most of you don't feel so strongly about bad food. What do you recommend I do? I really want to lose my weight and get started on a bulk within the next year, thanks.

[Ezravdb]

try to stay away from it somehow, and if you are next to stores have a clean meal by hand to fight the hunger

if your family gives it to you tell them to fk off with that ****

[Kerune]

Find a stronger motivation. I can't blame you since I've also fallen off plenty of times. Recently went single tho and have been 99% consistent since.

[Znik]

One simple solution: learn calories and the macros on the "junk food" and fit them into your diet. Pretty much any kind of food can be eaten in a diet as long as you know your calories and macros.
High calorie dense food might leave you more hungry for the rest of the day, but it can be fitted in. On my non-lifting/cardio heavy days I sometimes ate near a whole pizza with some chicken breasts added for the proteins and still was left in about 1k deficit (IF eating tho was my only meal apart from shakes).

So count them calories and learn average on the junk food and fit em in

[kenny85]

Your a grown man. If u wanna eat better then go to the store and buy good food. Everybody has slipped at some point, were humans and it happens. But being an adult and blaming your eating habits on your family is weak.

[Tacomaster]

Find a stronger motivation. I can't blame you since I've also fallen off plenty of times. Recently went single tho and have been 99% consistent since.

Ah, congrats I'm glad to hear that. I do have motivation; it's purely how I feel I should be living: healthy, more energy, happier. I've always looked up to bodybuilders, I live on a college campus so I eat at the dining center. My food sources are very limited: Sometimes they have healthy foods like baked chicken breast, steak, but that's not served everyday.

[Tacomaster]

One simple solution: learn calories and the macros on the "junk food" and fit them into your diet. Pretty much any kind of food can be eaten in a diet as long as you know your calories and macros.
High calorie dense food might leave you more hungry for the rest of the day, but it can be fitted in. On my non-lifting/cardio heavy days I sometimes ate near a whole pizza with some chicken breasts added for the proteins and still was left in about 1k deficit (IF eating tho was my only meal apart from shakes).

So count them calories and learn average on the junk food and fit em in

Nice bro, I've tried IF and it works very well. What motivates me the most is talking to others who are going through the same struggles, i.e you guys.

[Znik]

Nice bro, I've tried IF and it works very well. What motivates me the most is talking to others who are going through the same struggles, i.e you guys.

Yep you get a bit of struggles going through long cuts , at the start I used to crave junk food etc. alot. Eventually I got my mindset that food = fuel instead of food = please. Dont get me wrong I still love a good meal, but I tend to think more of nutritional value of the meal first, and the better that is the more I want it Learned eventually to make healthy food that tastes far better then the junk food.

[Tacomaster]

Yep you get a bit of struggles going through long cuts , at the start I used to crave junk food etc. alot. Eventually I got my mindset that food = fuel instead of food = please. Dont get me wrong I still love a good meal, but I tend to think more of nutritional value of the meal first, and the better that is the more I want it Learned eventually to make healthy food that tastes far better then the junk food.

Alright bro, your mindset is awesome and I'm going to start using it. Tomorrow I'm going on a long cut; probably a year or so to lose 90 pounds.

[TiffGarrett]

Take it slow. I recommend not trying to cut everything at once. Balance is the key. Account in your diet for a few cheats. This way, you're more likely to stick with your plan. Another suggestion would be to find healthier options for the foods you enjoy. I've found some great recipes online and on this website. This way you still get your "fix". :-)

[GarbageJedi]

One simple solution: learn calories and the macros on the "junk food" and fit them into your diet. Pretty much any kind of food can be eaten in a diet as long as you know your calories and macros.
High calorie dense food might leave you more hungry for the rest of the day, but it can be fitted in. On my non-lifting/cardio heavy days I sometimes ate near a whole pizza with some chicken breasts added for the proteins and still was left in about 1k deficit (IF eating tho was my only meal apart from shakes).

So count them calories and learn average on the junk food and fit em in

What he said.....

I think everyone loves junk food. You just have to man up and discipline yourself. Don't be afraid to have it just count it and don't go overboard.

[Kevin71]

Ah, congrats I'm glad to hear that. I do have motivation; it's purely how I feel I should be living: healthy, more energy, happier. I've always looked up to bodybuilders, I live on a college campus so I eat at the dining center. My food sources are very limited: Sometimes they have healthy foods like baked chicken breast, steak, but that's not served everyday.

Sometimes you have to get creative. Sometimes you just have to know everything that is there. Do they have cottage cheese? Perfect, a good protein source with solid micros. Do they have grilled chicken sandwiches? Great, ask for them with no bun/fries. Hell, get a hamburger patty. Higher in fat but not an unreasonable amount. I'm sure they have skim milk, that's a solid protein source and calcium is always valuable. Broccoli is high in protein compared to the amount of calories it is.

[Cold187um]

Fit it in your calorie limit brah! i always have eaten pretty **** but have lost 60lbs in a year and a 1/2 from IIFYM, where i eat clean most of the day and leave 4-500 calories leftover to have a snack of junk food like apple pie or something for desert. That way i dont really need any cheat days or meals

[ABeast1Day]

Myfitnesspal worked great for me. Logged everything. Started by eating junk but made sure I stayed under my calorie goal and tracked it. Lost 14 pounds or so the 1st month. Then slowly started to work healthier options in,after a while I was hiting my macros and had cut all junk out. Now if I want to eat unhealthy food I can adjust accordingly. I also like to think of my eating in terms of weekly goal instead of daily. If I go over by 200k today I eat 200k less tomorrow. It all works out the same.
You don't hve to wake up tomorrow and bam im eating clean from now on. A whole bunch of small steps turn into leaps,if you know what I mean.

[acrawlingchaos]

There is nothing wrong with eating in a campus dining hall. There are plenty of great food choices there. Get on a diet plan, determine your calorie and macro limits and count.

Dieting sucks, cutting sucks. You're hungry and b*tchy, but you either want it, or you don't.

[bravehorsie]

The problem with the junk food in diet for me is - I don't become satisfied after eating a moderate amount of junk food. So I end up with a bunch of non healthy calories, but craving returns faster than the calories are burned. So I for some people is better don't even touching any junk. Especially if you can't count its calories. It is all about your goal and mindset. Have a vision and don't let craving sneak into your mind.

[Tacomaster]

Ah, thanks guys . All of your posts are amazing; you guys (and gal) give me lots of motivation, knowing everyone else is struggling too makes me feel hopeful about cutting.

[truushot]

Ah, thanks guys . All of your posts are amazing; you guys (and gal) give me lots of motivation, knowing everyone else is struggling too makes me feel hopeful about cutting.

If you don't make it a lifestyle change then you are just a fat man on a diet. That never ends well.

[RRJ]

I know that feeling. I wanted to eat Chinese food, pizza, burgers, fried chicken, french fries, chips, cookies, cake and drink milkshakes on virtually an every day basis. But I wanted to lose weight too. It seems like every few weeks I'd say "ok, now it's time to start my diet", stick with it for three days, then fall off. Every time I would start I would deprive myself of my favorite foods. I eventually learned that if I ever wanted to be a fit guy for the rest of my life, I would have to sacrifice the quantity of food I eat and make better decisions. But I didn't force myself to give up anything, I only ate them in moderation. I haven't fallen off the wagon for more than three years now, my life is a thousand times better and I realized gorging myself with food is not worth what I sacrifice in the process. Yes, there were days where I binged and ate 5000 calories of pure junk food. But I didn't let them get me off track. The very next day I would pretend it didn't happen and continue on with my life.

Once you start the "screw it, I cheated today, I may as well go all out for the rest of the day", and then "well I'll take another day", and then it turns into a week, you're in trouble. Having a healthy and fit lifestyle doesn't end. It has to be permanent. So the key is to find a way to live that way without feeling you're depriving yourself. Yes, any kind of dieting will often make you feel hungry. That's true with me even years later. But remember, once you hit your goal you will be able to maintain and/or bulk, and those hunger pangs will subside and go away.

I wish you luck. You can do this, I promise you. I started 100 lbs heavier than you are and I was able to do it and completely change my life around. I can probably say I had more of an attachment to junk food than you do, and it took a long time to break away from that addiction. Eventually after a long time, you might find that a banana is a delicious as junk food once was. I feel that way. I don't even crave fried chicken any longer. We're a creature of habit, so form healthy, non-deprivation habits and you can stick to it for the rest of your life.

[Riffo]

Just taking a look at the customers in a fast food joint is motivation for me to avoid these places.

[bravehorsie]

Once you start the "screw it, I cheated today, I may as well go all out for the rest of the day..

^^ This is so true of my mind when I give myself a cheat with a chocolate!!

[Naeem11]

There is no good and bad food. All that matters is the quantities. Learn how to calculate your macros through stickies and use that as a base; with that you can eat ANYTHING you want. When I look at a food Item I don't say oh it's an ice-cream bar (which I just had)....it's 16g carb/2.5g fat/3g protein...same with oatmeal....25g carb/2.5g fat/5g protein. Don't go over your daily limits and you're fine. Just make sure you get your micronutrients (i.e. vitamins/minerals) and adequate fiber (mostly 25g-35g, depending on the individual)...and fill your protein and fat and fill the remainder with w/e.

Don't look at individual foods as being "BAD"....had honey nut cereal for breakfast today, egg white/spinach omelet w/ cheese for lunch, having a Burrito from chipotle for dinner, and will still have room for probably another bowl of honey nut cereal and a piece or 2 of fruit. Try to develop a balanced healthy diet in both a physical aspect and mental aspect.

[masterb403]

I can sympathize with you, op. Theres a great deal of valuable information above this post. I'll echo some of my life experience. If youre like me, your eating habits and relationship with food are engrained deeply in your person. Understand that in order to be fit and healthy you'll likely be at war with your old eating habits possibly for the rest of your life, and at least as long as it took you to develop them. Your relationship with food is your oldest and greatest enemy and I find it very profitable to think of it this way. You will never be able to relax. Eventually you wont want to. Try and prevent yourself from getting sad about falling off, and try to get angry instead. Anger is a beautifully productive energy, sadness is a sink hole.

[TomLambert]

I know where you're coming from; my favorite foods used to be candy, pizza, and ice cream. The first few months are going to be the hardest, after that your habits will become engrained in your daily routine and you'll learn how to balance your diet. I tried to lose weight many times before it really clicked and I educated myself on proper nutrition/fat loss so you definitely aren't alone there. When I do want "junk food" I just fit it into my daily macros but more often than not I'll find myself at the grocery store looking at the macro breakdown of said junk food and decide I would rather have a bunch of satiating food that's going to make me feel full and energetic.

You seriously just have to learn to say no to people. While you're in the adjustment period the easiest way to stay on track is to just not have the trigger foods around, literally only keep things in your house that you're OK with fitting into your diet that you won't go overboard on. Make sure you're eating satiating foods that keep you full, that way when you're tempted to eat something you know you shouldn't it's a lot easier to fight the urge.

Either way, a year is going to go by whether you get your diet in check or not, just some food for thought. If you need any help PM me, that's why I'm here.

[Tacomaster]

Wow at all of these responses.. I would have never thought anyone else had just as much or more of an addiction with junk food as I.. I'm so glad that every one of you posted ITT. You guys are motivation for me to ultimately become healthier and maybe even save my life (i.e dying at a younger age because of obesity). I will definitely apply everything mentioned to my life and way of eating; Moderation is key and I know that now, thanks so much to everyone here.

[KCTonyG]

The best thing you can do is move out. No more family members holding you down, and no more excuses on why you are unable to stick to your diet.

[et3rnal]

you must stay away from it! the best way to resist temptation is to remove yourself from that situation.
if i have junk food (ice cream, chips, cookies, etc) in my house I will eat them all up as soon as possible. so i find the best thing is to just not buy them

[Tacomaster]

The best thing you can do is move out. No more family members holding you down, and no more excuses on why you are unable to stick to your diet.

you must stay away from it! the best way to resist temptation is to remove yourself from that situation.
if i have junk food (ice cream, chips, cookies, etc) in my house I will eat them all up as soon as possible. so i find the best thing is to just not buy them

Yeah, well I don't live with them I'm just here for winter break, I live on a college campus 120 miles away. But even then at the dining center there's a ton of bad food; so I'm slowly learning how to resist temptations

[syed2011]

We will get attracted to bad things soon. It is the human psychology. Motivate yourself and please stay from junk food, it also results in health issues.