How to stop binge eating (an approach that will shock you)
Posted on October 23, 2016
I have a long history of chronic dieting. I was a compulsive eater with severe episodes of binge eating disorder for fifteen years. At thirty five, I feared that this would be something I was stuck with for life; that I would be endlessly recovering and relapsing, never cured. But after years of searching (while starving, binge eating, gaining and losing weight and everything in between) I worked out how to stop. I escaped dieting-roller-coaster-hell and am returning slowly to a normal, healthy weight (photos coming soon). I am free of the urge to binge and the desire to compulsively overeat – and I accomplished this ridiculous feat with minimal concerted effort.
I created this website as a place to outline the strategy I used to stop binge eating and lose weight – a place to compile information and link to books and online teachings that allowed me to assemble the knowledge that was required.
I’m so excited that I want to scream it from the rooftops, but I’ve chosen an anonymous internet platform instead: wildly pouring thoughts onto a computer screen. I’m whispering via the keyboard so that you, too, can hear. Binge eating is not something we want to talk about with friends. It’s something that we hide in humiliation: bury inside ourselves, like endless sticky wrappers shoved away in rubbish bins.
If you arrived at this website as the result of typing ‘I can’t stop eating junk food’ or other such desperate phrases into Google, you’ve come to the right place. Welcome. I’m so glad that you’ve found your way here.
Link to first article
20 Tips for Breaking Free from Binge Eating
SEPTEMBER 18, 2013 by NIA SHANKS
20 Tips for Breaking Free from Binge Eating
These tips are not listed in any specific order.
1) ANOTHER DIET IS NOT THE ANSWER
There’s a good chance that a diet is what spiraled you into binge eating in the first place. I know that was the case for me. In the past I have experimented with several diets: low fat, low carb, and numerous others. And I kept looking for the diet that would end all of the confusion and allow me to escape the binge eating behaviors I had developed.
But thankfully I finally realized that another diet is not the answer.
In my experience, strict diets, especially those that revolve around limiting or completely eliminating foods, food groups, or macronutrients only add fuel to the binge eating fire.
The solution is not found in a diet, so don’t search for one.
2) THINK ADDITION INSTEAD OF RESTRICTION
This tip comes from David Dellanave and he posted it to his Twitter account a while back, and I think it’s so intelligently simple.
“In general I tell people to add instead of remove. When you add something, something else naturally has to fall away. Plus you’re focusing on an action you CAN do versus trying NOT to do something you’re already in a strong habit of doing.”
Don’t think about foods you should limit. For example, I love ice cream and I know it’s not something I should eat every day. But, instead of thinking, “Oh, I better not eat ice cream every day” I instead choose to focus on the foods I get to eat every day, and I make an effort to include a wide variety of foods into my eating regimen.
Restriction –> Binge Eating –> Guilt –> Restriction –> Binge Eating –> Guilt
As you can, a focus on restriction just leads to a vicious cycle of binge eating and guilt. Don’t think about restriction because it only makes things worse.
So ask yourself, what are you some foods you can ADD to your meals? You can even make an effort to choose a food from multiple food groups such as veggies, fruits, meats, dairy, nuts, etc.
Make sure you choose foods you like or new foods you want to try.
3) STOP TRYING TO BE PERFECT
I was once told that people who are self-proclaimed perfectionists are more likely to develop disordered eating behaviors, and I think they were right.
I’ve been a perfectionist most of my life. I even managed to get straight A’s in college, and I refused to settle for anything less. As a result I applied this same attitude towards my nutrition, which I believe also led me to develop disordered eating habits.
Before I became a compulsive binge eater, I demanded perfection and only ate “the best” foods. My diet was “squeaky clean”, whatever that means.
If I messed up, I gave myself hell and demanded better. All this ended up doing was making me miserable. I didn’t allow myself to enjoy meals, my favorite foods, or even family get-togethers filled with my favorite homemade meals because they weren’t “clean” enough for me.
After a while, all of this got to me. That’s when I really started binge eating.
I couldn’t take it anymore. No matter how hard I tried I couldn’t be perfect all the time. So I started to say, “Screw it!” and cut loose. That’s when I’d binge eat anything in site.
I still remember the first time I lost control and experienced my first binge. It was scary. Little did I know it was the first of many.
“Perfect is the enemy of good” is a quote by Voltaire that basically claims that striving for perfection often results in no progress at all.
I also believe that to be true.
Once I finally stopped trying to be “perfect” I was able to relax.
Don’t look at things as if they’re black or white. You don’t have to be “perfectly on plan” or “completely off”.
There can be a balance. Learn to find, and live in, that balance.
Ditch the thought of perfection. You’ll be happier and much less stressed.
4) STAY OFF THE SCALE
Many people who battle binge eating also weigh themselves frequently.
Get off the scale.
That number does NOT indicate your self-worth. That number does not tell you what’s really going on with your body. It does not indicate your success because that number does not define you.
5) DITCH CHEAT DAYS
Some people claim a cheat day is the answer to their binge eating problem.
They’re “good” during the week and then one day, usually on the weekend, they go crazy and eat any and everything they want for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. I think this only contributes to the binge eating cycle. Because you’re only allowed to enjoy “forbidden” foods for that single day, you’re more likely to over eat AND eat foods you don’t even care for because of the fact they’re “off limits” every other day of the week.
Many people I’ve spoken to who have done the whole “cheat day” thing say they usually feel horrible that day, and after, from eating so much food. In my opinion, cheat days can also promote binge eating because you’re left thinking, “This is the only chance for a whole week I’ll have to eat these ‘forbidden’ foods.” As a result, people gorge themselves.
They end up eating foods they don’t even like and cramming as much food in their bellies as they can manage.
In my opinion, stay away from cheat days.
6) CELEBRATE ALL VICTORIES AND DON’T DWELL OVER MINOR SET-BACKS
My binge eating habits were so bad I would binge every single day. I think I went a month straight where I would binge at least once a day.
But when I finally committed to being kind to myself and taking things slowly, I remember the first day I went without binge eating in over a month.
And I celebrated this victory.
Sure, I ended up binge eating the next day, but I still celebrated that victory. Eventually I made it two days without binge eating. Then three. Then I’d slip, binge, and start back from zero.
But the point is that I celebrated every victory. Whether it was going a day without binge eating, being kind to myself, or engaging in positive self-talk I would meditated on the good things and not dwell on the negative.
Don’t be so hard on yourself. Celebrate whenever possible, even if it’s something very small.
And when you do slip up, don’t dwell on it.
I know it’s easier said than done, but when you do binge, don’t dwell on it for hours or even days afterward.
Just move on.
Focus on something POSITIVE instead.
7) DITCH THE RIGID RULES
Ditch rules about what foods to eat, what not to eat, when to eat, and any other rigid rules.
Instead, learn to listen to your body.
You don’t need a book to tell you what foods to eat or even when to eat.
I encourage you instead to eat real, whole, natural foods most of the time. Eat when you’re physically hungry and learn to do something other than turn to food when you’re gripped by emotion and want to eat. It may take some time, but relearn your natural innate cues of physical hunger.
If you’re not hungry but want to turn to food, make an effort to do something else. An idle mind is often hard to combat, so try doing something physically active, get out of the house, go for a hike, or have a good conversation with a friend.
We’ll talk more about listening to your body in a moment . . .
Link to second article
Posted on October 23, 2016
I have a long history of chronic dieting. I was a compulsive eater with severe episodes of binge eating disorder for fifteen years. At thirty five, I feared that this would be something I was stuck with for life; that I would be endlessly recovering and relapsing, never cured. But after years of searching (while starving, binge eating, gaining and losing weight and everything in between) I worked out how to stop. I escaped dieting-roller-coaster-hell and am returning slowly to a normal, healthy weight (photos coming soon). I am free of the urge to binge and the desire to compulsively overeat – and I accomplished this ridiculous feat with minimal concerted effort.
I created this website as a place to outline the strategy I used to stop binge eating and lose weight – a place to compile information and link to books and online teachings that allowed me to assemble the knowledge that was required.
I’m so excited that I want to scream it from the rooftops, but I’ve chosen an anonymous internet platform instead: wildly pouring thoughts onto a computer screen. I’m whispering via the keyboard so that you, too, can hear. Binge eating is not something we want to talk about with friends. It’s something that we hide in humiliation: bury inside ourselves, like endless sticky wrappers shoved away in rubbish bins.
If you arrived at this website as the result of typing ‘I can’t stop eating junk food’ or other such desperate phrases into Google, you’ve come to the right place. Welcome. I’m so glad that you’ve found your way here.
Link to first article
20 Tips for Breaking Free from Binge Eating
SEPTEMBER 18, 2013 by NIA SHANKS
20 Tips for Breaking Free from Binge Eating
These tips are not listed in any specific order.
1) ANOTHER DIET IS NOT THE ANSWER
There’s a good chance that a diet is what spiraled you into binge eating in the first place. I know that was the case for me. In the past I have experimented with several diets: low fat, low carb, and numerous others. And I kept looking for the diet that would end all of the confusion and allow me to escape the binge eating behaviors I had developed.
But thankfully I finally realized that another diet is not the answer.
In my experience, strict diets, especially those that revolve around limiting or completely eliminating foods, food groups, or macronutrients only add fuel to the binge eating fire.
The solution is not found in a diet, so don’t search for one.
2) THINK ADDITION INSTEAD OF RESTRICTION
This tip comes from David Dellanave and he posted it to his Twitter account a while back, and I think it’s so intelligently simple.
“In general I tell people to add instead of remove. When you add something, something else naturally has to fall away. Plus you’re focusing on an action you CAN do versus trying NOT to do something you’re already in a strong habit of doing.”
Don’t think about foods you should limit. For example, I love ice cream and I know it’s not something I should eat every day. But, instead of thinking, “Oh, I better not eat ice cream every day” I instead choose to focus on the foods I get to eat every day, and I make an effort to include a wide variety of foods into my eating regimen.
Restriction –> Binge Eating –> Guilt –> Restriction –> Binge Eating –> Guilt
As you can, a focus on restriction just leads to a vicious cycle of binge eating and guilt. Don’t think about restriction because it only makes things worse.
So ask yourself, what are you some foods you can ADD to your meals? You can even make an effort to choose a food from multiple food groups such as veggies, fruits, meats, dairy, nuts, etc.
Make sure you choose foods you like or new foods you want to try.
3) STOP TRYING TO BE PERFECT
I was once told that people who are self-proclaimed perfectionists are more likely to develop disordered eating behaviors, and I think they were right.
I’ve been a perfectionist most of my life. I even managed to get straight A’s in college, and I refused to settle for anything less. As a result I applied this same attitude towards my nutrition, which I believe also led me to develop disordered eating habits.
Before I became a compulsive binge eater, I demanded perfection and only ate “the best” foods. My diet was “squeaky clean”, whatever that means.
If I messed up, I gave myself hell and demanded better. All this ended up doing was making me miserable. I didn’t allow myself to enjoy meals, my favorite foods, or even family get-togethers filled with my favorite homemade meals because they weren’t “clean” enough for me.
After a while, all of this got to me. That’s when I really started binge eating.
I couldn’t take it anymore. No matter how hard I tried I couldn’t be perfect all the time. So I started to say, “Screw it!” and cut loose. That’s when I’d binge eat anything in site.
I still remember the first time I lost control and experienced my first binge. It was scary. Little did I know it was the first of many.
“Perfect is the enemy of good” is a quote by Voltaire that basically claims that striving for perfection often results in no progress at all.
I also believe that to be true.
Once I finally stopped trying to be “perfect” I was able to relax.
Don’t look at things as if they’re black or white. You don’t have to be “perfectly on plan” or “completely off”.
There can be a balance. Learn to find, and live in, that balance.
Ditch the thought of perfection. You’ll be happier and much less stressed.
4) STAY OFF THE SCALE
Many people who battle binge eating also weigh themselves frequently.
Get off the scale.
That number does NOT indicate your self-worth. That number does not tell you what’s really going on with your body. It does not indicate your success because that number does not define you.
5) DITCH CHEAT DAYS
Some people claim a cheat day is the answer to their binge eating problem.
They’re “good” during the week and then one day, usually on the weekend, they go crazy and eat any and everything they want for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. I think this only contributes to the binge eating cycle. Because you’re only allowed to enjoy “forbidden” foods for that single day, you’re more likely to over eat AND eat foods you don’t even care for because of the fact they’re “off limits” every other day of the week.
Many people I’ve spoken to who have done the whole “cheat day” thing say they usually feel horrible that day, and after, from eating so much food. In my opinion, cheat days can also promote binge eating because you’re left thinking, “This is the only chance for a whole week I’ll have to eat these ‘forbidden’ foods.” As a result, people gorge themselves.
They end up eating foods they don’t even like and cramming as much food in their bellies as they can manage.
In my opinion, stay away from cheat days.
6) CELEBRATE ALL VICTORIES AND DON’T DWELL OVER MINOR SET-BACKS
My binge eating habits were so bad I would binge every single day. I think I went a month straight where I would binge at least once a day.
But when I finally committed to being kind to myself and taking things slowly, I remember the first day I went without binge eating in over a month.
And I celebrated this victory.
Sure, I ended up binge eating the next day, but I still celebrated that victory. Eventually I made it two days without binge eating. Then three. Then I’d slip, binge, and start back from zero.
But the point is that I celebrated every victory. Whether it was going a day without binge eating, being kind to myself, or engaging in positive self-talk I would meditated on the good things and not dwell on the negative.
Don’t be so hard on yourself. Celebrate whenever possible, even if it’s something very small.
And when you do slip up, don’t dwell on it.
I know it’s easier said than done, but when you do binge, don’t dwell on it for hours or even days afterward.
Just move on.
Focus on something POSITIVE instead.
7) DITCH THE RIGID RULES
Ditch rules about what foods to eat, what not to eat, when to eat, and any other rigid rules.
Instead, learn to listen to your body.
You don’t need a book to tell you what foods to eat or even when to eat.
I encourage you instead to eat real, whole, natural foods most of the time. Eat when you’re physically hungry and learn to do something other than turn to food when you’re gripped by emotion and want to eat. It may take some time, but relearn your natural innate cues of physical hunger.
If you’re not hungry but want to turn to food, make an effort to do something else. An idle mind is often hard to combat, so try doing something physically active, get out of the house, go for a hike, or have a good conversation with a friend.
We’ll talk more about listening to your body in a moment . . .
Link to second article
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