to ask how to stop bingeing

[WaterandSandy]

Just eaten half a Victoria sponge, family bag of maltesers and family bag of peanut M&Ms and that’s by lunchtime. It’s like this every day.
Dont say WLI but any other suggestions would be welcome

Don't buy it. Don't go in the shop. Order groceries online and make sure that's the only food available.

It sounds like food addiction so you need to treat it that way. If someone was addicted to drugs/alcohol or anything else they couldn't have it in the house. The problem is you can't resist the temptation so you need to remove it completely. Nothing else will work.

I feel for you and wish you the best

It's a cycle isn't it? It's terrifying. Totally circular. Whatever negative thoughts-binge eating-negative thoughts because you binge ate-more binge eating and on and on.
But look at one part of that cycle, which is, I'm assuming, the binging resulting in you feeling completely shit about what just happened with food. That's the first weak point in the cycle. Don't beat yourself up. You are allowed to binge eat. It does not mean you always will. Each time you do it, there is a new opportunity to think about not doing it. Tomorrow is always a new start.

I guess others will recommend stopping the foods you binge on from even entering your house. Ditching the habit of buying all that stuff in the first place. Or you might try a strict nutritional programme with measured portions. But that's also only one part of the cycle. You'll still have whatever negative thoughts led you to bingeing.

So step one, don't hate yourself for it, it's OK. Start that way before building up to actively changing your habits. You can do it, but not if you hate yourself each time.
It's OK to binge. It's better not to, but it doesn't mean you are a bad person.

Not sure if that make sense or if you think I've presumed too much... But I have battled previously with bingeing. We are all different, but I do think it sits hand in hand with self loathing. No need, you are lovely!

I used to be the same. I found it so hard to stop - I literally had to go cold turkey and just cut out junk food completely. Eating in moderation didn’t work for me as when I had a little bit I desperately craved more. So it was easier to completely go without.

The first 3 days were terrible for cravings. But if you hold firm, it does then ease. Instead I gradually started to crave certain meals instead. So I go out for pizza once a month as a nice treat.

You’ll feel so much healthier without the junk. Also, after a while it doesn’t taste as good as you remember it.

Is there anyone around you that can help you? My DH helped me by us both ensuring there was none in the house for me to eat. Also, brush your teeth after meals - you won’t want to eat afterwards for a while!

Don’t buy it - then you only need willpower while you’re in the shop, not all day everyday at home.

Make it a rule that you only eat treats after dinner. Try and organise yourself to eat a substantial meal ahead of the weak point in your day.

Start tomorrow and have a proper savoury breakfast - scrambled/poached eggs or even leftover dinner.

The bingeing is because of a blood sugar cycle. If your blood sugar is stable cravings are much reduced. The key is to avoid sugary foods on their own, and particularly not on an empty stomach.

So have cake at the end of a meal, and eat some fat or protein with it. Have the victoria sponge, but with whipped cream.

Follow the Glucose Goddess on Instagram - lifechanging!

Agree with eyewhisker probably. What’s the rest of your diet like? Do you eat proper meals? Often people binge eat because they’re restricting calories early in the day.

Try to have a balanced breakfast and lunch that include protein, carbs and fibre. Fill half your plate with veg.

My advice is probably a little different to other people’s from my experience. When I cut out the junk, I made a point of making sure that my meals were things that I really enjoyed - to lessen the blow of removing the junk food. I found that if I tried to plan these nutritionally balanced meals then I was miserable and craved the junk more. Instead, I picked meals I loved. Then, over time, when I had removed the junk, I started to make the meals healthier. But it’s one step at a time.

For me, the junk food wasn’t so much about my body craving it because my diet wasn’t great. My diet could have been amazing otherwise and I still would have craved it. Instead, it was more a comfort eating sort of thing where I saw the junk food as a treat and it made me feel better.

So maybe consider why you eat the junk as that might impact the best approach for you?

Fingers crossed for you as I know how hard it is!

You could use one of many online tools to work out how many calories you should be eating a day, and then look at the packets of what you ate to work out how many calories were in them. It's probably already far, far over your daily caloric need (let alone sugar).

If you can't face restricting your eating right now, then just keep eating what you want, but write everything you eat down to give yourself a reality check.

Alternatively, plan ahead and stock up with a ton of healthier snacks. Popcorn is a great one. Fruit of course. Yogurts, raisins, nuts. And buy individual Nutella (or similar) portions if you want to add some chocolate to those snacks. But I guess you know all this already, there's just no getting around the fact that those things don't give the same hit as chocolate and cake.

Choose your hard: feeling unhealthy and overweight is hard. Restricting your eating is hard.

Thanks. That sounds like me too. I’ve been trying to eat three meals a day but I’m still bingeing on top of that so it is more of a comfort thing to me. I’ll try choosing meals I like as you suggest then I won’t feel so deprived by stopping the junk.

I’m on Mounjaro…so for the first time in my life I can enjoy the ‘look’ of the cake and happily not the taste. In fact it would make me feel a bit queasy . 2 years ago would have eaten the lot . Maybe not in one sitting but definitely in two.

I’ve found some success with buying single portions of things I like. So, previously I’d buy a multipack of crisps (and eat them all in one night) I know I can’t do that and now I buy one packet if I want it that day. It’s more expensive and inconvenient but worth it to gain a bit of control.

I’ve also found some success in not banishing types of food altogether.

still have some days where my brain does a short circuit and I go back. Progress not perfection.

I've been snacking a lot and secret eating and I'm finding it helpful to delay things in my head and have a known treat that day. Like okay don't eat chocolate this morning and I can have a nice hot chocolate at that cafe I go to weekly. Don't get junk food after work but I can have beans on toast when I get home.

Definitely made a habit of eating too much chocolate over Christmas and I've found I need to have the best willpower in a shop, leave without enough time to stop by one on my way home, check my basket again on the way out, keep different snacks at home. Have something healthy on me like dried fruit and nuts (not amazing but better than chocolate) and eat properly at mealtimes. I have a young toddler and was definitely guilty of not eating enough at mealtimes then using naps as a treat myself break.

Try and eat only in front of other people as well or something you'd be happy to be seen eating, that's a big one for me.

Self control.
No one is forcing you to put that food in your mouth.

Everytime I try to buy a single portion I convince myself that I can buy loads but just eat one. There’s no logic to it as I’ve been doing it for years

Sod off you moron. Would you say that to an alcoholic or a drug addict too?

As others have said, just don't buy it in the first place. You need to go "cold turkey" because it's an addiction. If you can't control yourself around chocolate, biscuits, crisps, pork pies, or whatever, just don't buy them. And don't go places where you could buy them too often.

I used to binge on my long car commute (over an hour each way) as I'd stop at one of several petrol stations and buy a load of crap to eat on the journey both there and back. The only way I could stop myself doing that was move jobs to one a lot closer to home with a much shorter commute that didn't involve passing a petrol station! Yes, extreme, but it worked for me! Broke the habit and ever since I've never stopped on a long journey just to buy crap to eat!

If you can't help yourself buying crap at the weekly supermarket shop, then get it delivered online instead, so you have more control as to what you select on their app and won't be suckered into buying crap as you walk down the aisles.

I can only speak from experience but I eventually stopped binging when I stopped restricting and dieting and just accepted that I am the shape I am. Whenever I binged it was because the next day I was going to go on a diet and wanted to make the most of not being on it.

Overtime I then stopped binging and started eating fairly normally. From then I could focus on eating healthily and exercising. Nowadays I'm a healthy weight, I eat fairly healthily and do quite a lot of exercise. I do the exercise not for weight but for health and enjoyment. So I know I need enough energy to do that exercise.

I also have a day a week when I don't watch what I eat at all. And the rest of the time I just watch what I eat, try not to be too restrictive or inflexible with it so if I meant to have X for dinner that night but actually fancy Y which is a few calories more I just go with it. I keep the novelty in food and no foods are banned. So if I fancy some sweets after my walk, I'll have one or two then leave the rest - back when I was binging I couldn't do that. If I'm craving a takeaway, I don't tell myself that I can never have that again (which is something I used to do) instead I say, I'll get that takeaway at the weekend.

You aren’t being unreasonable but you ARE eating the wrong food. Once you realise most of what is considered food these days is slow poison then you can start making changes. The type 2 diabetes epidemic can essentially be considered a slow poisoning of the blood sugar regulation system and metabolism. No animal was designed to eat this stuff.

Processed food is designed to be addictive (bliss point) so no surprises you can’t stop. But so are most carbs - they spike your blood sugar and your insulin which starts a cycle. It’s why things like cereal and toast are terrible as breakfast. They spike your blood sugar and then you’re hungry a couple of hours later as it crashes. Better eating steak & eggs or simply nothing. Don’t fall for the nonsense of ‘most important meal of the day’. That’s marketing from Kellogs.

Start gradually lowering your carbs over 6-12 weeks. Make sure to stay hydrated and add electrolytes. Watch the weight fall off and hunger start to disappear along with cravings. Once you start to eat proper human food like natural fat & protein then it’s easy.

Good luck.

Bit rude!!

I’ve eaten the other half of the Victoria sponge now do I can start afresh tomorrow. Ironically, I’m on a diabetes prevention course as I’m pre diabetic. D’oh!

Exercise. Distract or delay. Lots of protein.

This isn’t a joke to me.

@WaterandSandy , is there anything which precedes these binges? Are you unhappy for any reason? Stressed?

Not really, it was a completely unnecessary nasty dig.

the more you eat of it the more it makes you want to eat. It really is a cycle. So the first day is always the hardest. Just do it.

maybe make yourself eat a carrot or apple before you eat any junk. If you want more junk…. Sure but you gotta eat the carrot first to at least help fill you up?