Need Advice Emotional Eating! (Reps 4 Advice)

[ndog]

I have lost 42 lbs over 2 years with small changes in my diet over a long period of time. Since I have seen very slow weight loss I have finally come to the point where weight has stopped changing over the past 3 months. When I'm in pain I go to food and eat for comfort, security, and variety. How have you stopped emotional eating and what tips would you give? Any help really means so much to me I want to change and I can't live like this for the rest of my life.

[AllApologies]

As someone who is 19, somewhat overweight, and has plenty of issues, I have some tips.

Intermittent fasting
- Easier weight loss
- Decreased hunger
- Life is more fun in general; food stops being the main focus of living
- Increased confidence; never feel "bloated"

As for the pain:

Entertainment
- Become a super fan of a band
- Go to concerts
- Follow TV shows
- Play video games (in moderation)

Emotional eating is the hardest one to control, because emotional eating can happen in many situations.

Some things I do:
- Diet drinks
- Non (or negligible) caloric drink mixes
- Steamed vegetables
- Sometimes, just cold water
- Eating small portions of almonds (makes me feel strong, and full)
- Make a thick protein shake: use half of the recommended water (this gives the illusion that you've eaten)
- Put hot sauce on something that is usually mundane, this really takes away any appetite


But, sometimes, for me, the best thing to do is just man up. Be better than your urges, stronger than the cravings. For you are in control, not simply your feelings.

[transformerchad]

lately iv been on a keto diet and i get intense urges to eat junk food, usually on a sunday i break loose and make food my mission , its not planned almost like i cant resist eating. now this is something i try work on every weekend! figured ill have something small to cheat on once a week with a massive carb load on oats and sweet potatoes ... should keep me away from burgers and chips every weekend

[ndog]

As someone who is 19, somewhat overweight, and has plenty of issues, I have some tips.

Intermittent fasting
- Easier weight loss
- Decreased hunger
- Life is more fun in general; food stops being the main focus of living
- Increased confidence; never feel "bloated"

As for the pain:

Entertainment
- Become a super fan of a band
- Go to concerts
- Follow TV shows
- Play video games (in moderation)

Emotional eating is the hardest one to control, because emotional eating can happen in many situations.

Some things I do:
- Diet drinks
- Non (or negligible) caloric drink mixes
- Steamed vegetables
- Sometimes, just cold water
- Eating small portions of almonds (makes me feel strong, and full)
- Make a thick protein shake: use half of the recommended water (this gives the illusion that you've eaten)
- Put hot sauce on something that is usually mundane, this really takes away any appetite


But, sometimes, for me, the best thing to do is just man up. Be better than your urges, stronger than the cravings. For you are in control, not simply your feelings.

thanks for contributing repped any other advice!

[PZR]

I second IF, it's been insanely useful for me. I feel completely in control of what food I eat now and don't binge anymore, even with some really low calorie days, also watching fat melt away from my midsection is motivating! Another habit I got into is filling my stomach with low calorie foods (lean meat and veggies) so I'm not tempted to reach for the dense, energy-rich junk food. I so wish I would have started IF sooner, it just takes time for your body to adjust OP, it gets easier, and if you cut the junk out you will eventually not crave it so much.

[ndog]

I second IF, it's been insanely useful for me. I feel completely in control of what food I eat now and don't binge anymore, even with some really low calorie days, also watching fat melt away from my midsection is motivating! Another habit I got into is filling my stomach with low calorie foods (lean meat and veggies) so I'm not tempted to reach for the dense, energy-rich junk food. I so wish I would have started IF sooner, it just takes time for your body to adjust OP, it gets easier, and if you cut the junk out you will eventually not crave it so much.

I know what IF means kinda but how do you implement it (calories, time of fasting, workouts etc.)?

[Voxmusculus]

Ultimately, it comes down to self control. You have a choice: do you want to be fat and potentially drown your life's problems in food and end up as an obese, unhealthy man with little to no self esteem? Or do you want to take some responsibility and exercise some self control?

I hate to be the cynic here but no one is forcing you to eat the food. No one is shoving it down your throat.

You think the rest of us aren't tempted to eat a bag of Cheetos and stuff our faces with pizzas and coke when we're hungry or upset? Of course we are. You will find that pretty much anyone who's in shape on these forums has actually managed to overcome those temptations.

I'll be honest with you: when you cut, you will be hungry. The people who say otherwise are lying to you: there is no way you can cut any significant amount of weight without going through those hunger pangs. There is no real trick or magic pill that can fix it. Things like keto and IF are just tricks -- they still don't take away the hunger per se.

So in the end, it comes down to just how badly you want to give into your excuses vs. how badly you want to be in shape. No one else can make that choice for you.

[JPFaultless]

If you can't control the binging you just don't want it enough, there is a reason everyone isn't walking around with a ripped six pack and that's because it requires a sustained effort in and out of the gym.

Do YOU want it enough, ask yourself this every time you go and stuff your face.

[RPuterbaugh]

I am an emotional eater as well. I needed a visual reminder. I started posting pictures of the body I want on my fridge to motivate me to make the right choice.

[hjsmith00843]

I know exactly what you are going thru right now.

I suffer from PTSD and Major Depressive Disorder because of some things I have experienced when I was in combat in Iraq in 2003. Eating to me was the best medication and I would constantly eat. i would eat all of the time. Mostly when i would think about the friends i lost and the lives I had to take. I am amazed I am not bigger than I am actually.

I would drink liters of soft drinks a day. I could eat non stop. Even when my stomach was full I would continue to eat because it would take my pain away and relieve my mind of my issues.

I have a beautiful wife and I know she can have better looking than me if she wanted. I have 4 awesome children ranging from 13 to 3.

I don't drink alcohol, smoke, or any type of drugs. (other than food)

I do have a really addictive personality so that is not helping with the over eating issues.

Then one day a few weeks ago I decided it was time to stop. I stopped cold turkey and poured all of my soft drinks down the drain. cut out all most all fried foods. eating on a regular time basis. working out some. Not as much as I should but some. my normal day would be to sit on the couch all day on the computer and watch hours go by without getting up.

I just noticed that it was time for a change. So that is what I am doing. even though my diet is young I have already had massive cravings that I fought off and replaced with a more healthy option.

Just stay tuff. You will get by and I am sure I will have even harder times in front of me. This is not going to be easy.

[ndog]

Thank you guys so much! I'm done with excuses and it really does come down to how bad I want it. This thread really motivates me and again thanks for not letting me of the hook and telling me the honest truth.

[GwapoJosh]

For me it was depression that made me binge eat and drink. It felt like it was the only thing I had to look forward to. Once I conquered my depression the fat started to fall off. I'm now going on 2 months of no fast food, soda, or alcohol. Good luck!

[PZR]

I know what IF means kinda but how do you implement it (calories, time of fasting, workouts etc.)?

One of the points in IF is not to obsess over every detail. Just eat your food in a window of between 1-8 hours (I eat 12-8pm), or however way you want to do it, you could have 1 huge meal at the end of the day if you want. I can't generally train in a fasted state especially cause I'm in a severe cal deficit so I train after I eat a piece of toast or something with some decent carbs, usually on training days I'm coming off a low carb day the day before, so I'm somewhat carb cycling albeit loosely...the important thing is to keep your calories lower than what you're spending, it's already been said, these are just tricks to help you with your diet. With intermittent fasting you'll come to actually enjoy being in a fasted state, I feel very good, high energy and surprisingly not that hungry, these could be due to my motivation of seeing my 6 pack for the first time though haha!

My diet has been pretty sh!tty for the longest time and I binged ALL the time, it feels amazing to finally be exercising self control over what I eat and it's starting to make me more disciplined in other areas of my life. Just my $.02..

[Voxmusculus]

Thank you guys so much! I'm done with excuses and it really does come down to how bad I want it. This thread really motivates me and again thanks for not letting me of the hook and telling me the honest truth.

If you want real motivation, read this thread: Were you treated differently after losing a lot of weight?

Lots of inspirational stories, and some pretty amazing transformations. Read it, man. And if you're even remotely interested in getting in shape, you'll be hitting the gym halfway through it all.

[ndog]

Guys yesterday I was going to binge on a whole pizza and soda when I remembered this thread and I asked myself how bad do I want it? This allowed me the inner strength to not eat out and go home and cook for myself. This is a daily challenge, its all a mind battle now that I'm going to win!

[SeanMcShane]

1) Never shop hungry, just have your fixed weeks shopping there --> Planned and organised routine for the week

2) Include loads of fibre to keep you full especially and somewhat obviously vegetables which can really help to hold back pangs

3) Drink Lots of water --> fills you up

4) Substitute a new trigger response to stress that are simple and easy to do at any time in public or private. e.g. you are stressed and would usually auto respond with eating junk to cope--> you are stressed, you get up, stretch your legs for a bit, go for a short walk accompanied with some deep breathing and a glass of water, or call a (very patient) friend (since they will become your new habit and coping mechanism), or quite simply eat as a response, but eat something healthy that you like -->

In doing any of the above or whatever you come up with, make yourself aware of the achievement -in not going on a binge- every single time i.e. you must recognize that you are doing a good job.
For any time you do give into that craving which you have falsely portrayed a binge as a comfort and temporary emotional solution, just self-reflect on what went wrong and bring your mind and perspective back into the reality of it. i.e you recognise that it was not a healthy or good choice and know that on an emotional and real level, eating that junk has not solved or helped anything... so why do it again in the future?


5) Remember your goals e.g. keep a photo where you were not happy with your physical/emotional state as well as one where you are or where you aspire to be.

6) Remember to note the physiological and emotion response from eating rubbish compared to eating well --> does it make you feel that good when you eat crap? Not really, it makes you feel tired, sluggish, generally less sociable and worse...Logically if you are emotionally eating, you want to solve the problem...so make sure you are giving your body the right types of fuels and vitamins and minerals for it to feel better.

7) It might sound lame but try meditating. It is a great way to reflect and cope with stress as well as to be able to generally pick up the ability to take a step back from a situation and look for a solution. I use HeadSpace as it only takes 10 minutes a day odd you get some free and it was easy (for me) to get into. Though ofcourse you might not experience any difference on a first or even fifth attempt as it can be difficult to get into it.



Hope at least some of these techniques help you.

[GarbageJedi]

Ultimately, it comes down to self control. You have a choice: do you want to be fat and potentially drown your life's problems in food and end up as an obese, unhealthy man with little to no self esteem? Or do you want to take some responsibility and exercise some self control?

I hate to be the cynic here but no one is forcing you to eat the food. No one is shoving it down your throat.

You think the rest of us aren't tempted to eat a bag of Cheetos and stuff our faces with pizzas and coke when we're hungry or upset? Of course we are. You will find that pretty much anyone who's in shape on these forums has actually managed to overcome those temptations.

I'll be honest with you: when you cut, you will be hungry. The people who say otherwise are lying to you: there is no way you can cut any significant amount of weight without going through those hunger pangs. There is no real trick or magic pill that can fix it. Things like keto and IF are just tricks -- they still don't take away the hunger per se.

So in the end, it comes down to just how badly you want to give into your excuses vs. how badly you want to be in shape. No one else can make that choice for you.

^this^

....And when you do fall off the wagon gather yourself and forge ahead its not a total loss unless you give in and go back to your old lifestyle.

[ShannonLagasse]

ndog, I work with emotional eaters and am a former emotional eater myself: You have to figure out WHY you're eating. You can try to force yourself to stop but, and I'm sure you've been there, in the moment, the urge to eat can be overwhelming and there is just no thinking or forcing your way out of it. Ask yourself, "What am I using food to numb or avoid?" "If I wasn't focusing on food, what would I be thinking about?" We often use food as a way of escaping our thoughts and our feelings. Find out and face what's keeping you in this cycle and you'll be free forever!

[ShannonLagasse]

As someone who is 19, somewhat overweight, and has plenty of issues, I have some tips.

Intermittent fasting
- Easier weight loss
- Decreased hunger
- Life is more fun in general; food stops being the main focus of living
- Increased confidence; never feel "bloated"

As for the pain:

Entertainment
- Become a super fan of a band
- Go to concerts
- Follow TV shows
- Play video games (in moderation)

Emotional eating is the hardest one to control, because emotional eating can happen in many situations.

Some things I do:
- Diet drinks
- Non (or negligible) caloric drink mixes
- Steamed vegetables
- Sometimes, just cold water
- Eating small portions of almonds (makes me feel strong, and full)
- Make a thick protein shake: use half of the recommended water (this gives the illusion that you've eaten)
- Put hot sauce on something that is usually mundane, this really takes away any appetite


But, sometimes, for me, the best thing to do is just man up. Be better than your urges, stronger than the cravings. For you are in control, not simply your feelings.

Ok, this sounds to me a lot like you're starving yourself. I'm all for people losing weight and gaining muscle and all that jazz, but purposefully doing things to get rid of your appetite is disordered eating behaviors. Not trying to diagnose ya, but as a recovered anorexic, you notice these things. Is it more important to have the physique you're looking for or to be HEALTHY? What's the real goal here?

[iceaura]

Some really good stuff in this thread and it attacks the heart of the obesity/overweight issues - mentality. I don't really like the whole, "well, just man up" idea, if the solution was that easy, everyone would obtain their ideal bodies. I believe it has to be more planned and deliberate than that.

What really helped me with motivation was taking control of my own nutrition - researching and dedicating time to finding out everything I could about diet and nutrition and tailoring my plans to suit ME (not following some preset plan).

Setting goals has been a big part of remaining consistent. Keeping a larger goal in mind, I have smaller weekly goals, constantly log my progress and graph it in excel. Also have my diet in excel and make adjustments as required.

I created a vision board of what my ideal body should look like, I chose guys with similar builds to make it more realistic.

My own before/after pictures are really good, I often look at them when I'm feeling a bit demotivated.

When I do eat something "bad", I take note of how I feel afterwards. I make it a point to remember that feeling, so that I can bring it back to mind before I'm about to do it again. Also, make it a point to drink a litre of water before you're "allowed" to eat something "bad".

The forums on here are another great source of motivation.

[pMbeast]

i bet now that you've had a diet break, you'll start losing weight like crazy again when you go back to dieting.

[AllApologies]

Ok, this sounds to me a lot like you're starving yourself. I'm all for people losing weight and gaining muscle and all that jazz, but purposefully doing things to get rid of your appetite is disordered eating behaviors. Not trying to diagnose ya, but as a recovered anorexic, you notice these things. Is it more important to have the physique you're looking for or to be HEALTHY? What's the real goal here?

I'm sorry to hear that, I hope you're doing better these days.

On to me, you don't know me that well. I pretty much overate for about 4 years straight, my appetite, even now, is crazy. I would easily eat 4000 calories a day if left to my own devices. So, I've adopted an IF eating pattern that allows me to eat at night, and still feel full with a reasonable amount of calories (2000~). Although, during the day, I still occasionally feel food cravings.

My tips are simply to deal with the hunger when it's not time to eat, I obviously think someone should hit their macros. Rather than eating 1500 calories from Wendy's, I just think it's much easier to have some almonds and a cold glass of water. The "real goal" here is simply to not go back to old (insane eating) ways.

Also, to iceaura:
Our thought processes are different. I think it's the weak mindset that has allowed our nation to become predominantly overweight. It's the whole "I can't deal with my issues, so I'll eat and make then go away" mentality. People need to grow up an face life without using food as a constant escape. Hey, I love going out to eat once or twice a week and not focusing on life. But, I see so many of my friends eating all day, every day, to escape some stress or problem. I use the phrase, "be a man" because it signifies the strength required to deal with the stress of daily life without using food as a crutch. And sometimes, when cutting weight, you just have to deal with a little hunger. My tips were to simply make that hunger easier to deal with.

[iceaura]

I'm sorry to hear that, I hope you're doing better these days.

On to me, you don't know me that well. I pretty much overate for about 4 years straight, my appetite, even now, is crazy. I would easily eat 4000 calories a day if left to my own devices. So, I've adopted an IF eating pattern that allows me to eat at night, and still feel full with a reasonable amount of calories (2000~). Although, during the day, I still occasionally feel food cravings.

My tips are simply to deal with the hunger when it's not time to eat, I obviously think someone should hit their macros. Rather than eating 1500 calories from Wendy's, I just think it's much easier to have some almonds and a cold glass of water. The "real goal" here is simply to not go back to old (insane eating) ways.

Also, to iceaura:
Our thought processes are different. I think it's the weak mindset that has allowed our nation to become predominantly overweight. It's the whole "I can't deal with my issues, so I'll eat and make then go away" mentality. People need to grow up an face life without using food as a constant escape. Hey, I love going out to eat once or twice a week and not focusing on life. But, I see so many of my friends eating all day, every day, to escape some stress or problem. I use the phrase, "be a man" because it signifies the strength required to deal with the stress of daily life without using food as a crutch. And sometimes, when cutting weight, you just have to deal with a little hunger. My tips were to simply make that hunger easier to deal with.

I do agree with your base mentality, however I have seen (and experienced) far too often, the "forced willpower" approach to losing weight. You start off all pumped up like you're going to take on the world and lose the weight "even if it kills me". But this aimless energy can only be sustained for so long, and you end up quitting 1-2weeks later. Without proper education and structure, you are unable to obtain consistent and long lasting results. You need to be developing the tools and habits you require for lifelong fitness.

[joeturner]

helps!
only 10cal per cup! give you a full feeling like water, but also the feeling that your eating something like soup
very tasty too! put some spices in it, hot sauce etc.
smells delicious! like chicken or chicken noodle soup!
eat this + celery loads and loads of celery.

p.s 10hrs into my IF and drinkign a cup right now w/ soy sauce!

ECA stack helps too! I've been on the ECA stack + IF for the last 6 months.

[AllApologies]

I do agree with your base mentality, however I have seen (and experienced) far too often, the "forced willpower" approach to losing weight. You start off all pumped up like you're going to take on the world and lose the weight "even if it kills me". But this aimless energy can only be sustained for so long, and you end up quitting 1-2weeks later. Without proper education and structure, you are unable to obtain consistent and long lasting results. You need to be developing the tools and habits you require for lifelong fitness.

I totally understand that my approach doesn't work for everyone, but it does for me. It's worked for the past 10 weeks and 20 pounds. We're all different, right. Mind you, I'm 19, I'm a college student. So, this approach works well for me when it's time to walk past the cafeteria. I had already gained 5 pounds this semester from late August to late September. I had to find a way out of the food mentality, and the best way I found was using IF and getting in my calories over a few hours. The best part of it was realizing that I couldn't just go to the cafeteria and eat whenever I wanted.

I understand probably 95% of the "motivation" related posts are done in a high calorie state. Like, the night where you eat 5000 calories and say "this is the last bad meal I'll ever eat." But, then it's the next day and you do it all over again.

For me, the educated approach and a little forced willpower has allowed me to lose the most weight I've ever lost. I don't think the past ten weeks has been "aimless energy," but that aimless energy has sure helped me stay on track.