Eating Less: Say Goodbye to Overeating by Gillian Riley. Anyone want to start with me?

[TheShapeofYou]

I've ordered this book and it arrives tomorrow. Have never done it before but have read some reviews and watched the short TEDx talk on YouTube and am hopeful it will help me.

I'm 10-14lbs over where I'd like to be, so I'm back in the middle-top of the healthy BMI range. I'm a SAHM and over eat because I'm bored/surrounded by food/emotional eater.

Does anyone want to join me in a support thread please?! I'm also hoping to start C25K for the first time ever on Monday

Place marking while trying to think what I need to say

@aglassofroseplease did you have a colonoscopy to diagnose your IBS? I am sort of hoping a professional tells me I have to give up bread and sugar, as I might actually do it then?! I find I can't have beans, lentils, too much veg/salad, red onion and potato skin.

Thanks for the link to the book.

@TheShapeofYou I had a barium meal - it was horrible. I'm ok with lentils beans etc but wheat, sugar or preservatives and flavourings in foods seem to get me so I try to stick to unprocessed food - mostly but not all the time

Is anyone doing this still? How're you doing?

I’ve just finished reading it. Trying to start today....

Yesterday was very very interesting. I first ate at lunchtime and then set a Time of 4 hours as she suggested. I just didn’t think of food all afternoon. Amazing.

I had tea about 4 and a half hours after lunch using the Plan, and it was quite a big meal, with a pudding but I didn’t eat anything else, felt satisfied and really unusually calm.

This morning I’ve had some breakfast and set another 4 hour Time.

Anyone else still doing this? Any progress to report past first day success? I haven’t had any episodes of addictive desire yet so it would be good to hear from people who’ve managed to use her methods to get through.

@WrappedInBitsOfSilver good to hear how you're doing. I've been doing times and plans this week I've fiddled around at the edges of Gillian Riley's approach for a while now and have been re-reading the Eating less book again and it's funny but different bits resonate with me each time, this time it's the self esteem issue and how connected it is to weight gain and over eating and eating less. I feel that I'm "honouring" myself by eating good quality nutritious food. The choice issue is big for me too so knowing I have choice to eat whatever I want is really empowering and I feel more relaxed about food and eating.
I'm seeing this as a long term plan to work on myself and my self esteem and to care better for myself be it eating, health, my body - half the time I can't be bothered to look after myself and do things for myself, so I've decided - it's Operation Me.
I've been out to a 18th birthday BBQ yesterday and although I was worrying about what I'd eat before I went I was actually fine - I kept off rubbish food but had some bday cake. But then I got home I really wanted some chocolate- so I had it - ok, a slight slippage but I thought it's early days, and my dysfunctional eating habits took a long time to build up, so they're aren't going go away overnight.

I love the sound of Operation Me! Brilliant idea. Also agree that this is going to be a long process, that hopefully will build skills that will last a lifetime.

I’ve had another good day today - used times and plans and I even had a moment of wanting to eat just after tea but I quite quickly thought through the process she suggests and I just didn’t actually want the ice cream the kids were eating, once I gave myself a chance to think about it. I’ve also made bread, which would normally be a trigger for me to eat the whole loaf but I feel confident that I can have some for breakfast tomorrow and stop after a modest amount. The only thing that’s bothering me is that this feels really easy - I’ve had a very bad few weeks of chaotic eating and it’s like someone’s flicked a switch. So I’m concerned that it’s just like starting a diet and I’ll go off the rails in a day or two.

That's all sounds good @WrappedInBitsOfSilver. I get what you mean about it being so easy and keeping it up. - you may well slip off the wagon but it's not an either/or thing - you're on a diet or you're off it - just get back on it again - it's a long process. Just keep going and reading the books - there's an audio as well as a website with a blog that I dip into

Today has been another good day which is astounding - normally by 3pm on a workday I’m falling face first into cake and chocolate, feeling exhausted. But I had breakfast again (did I mention I’m not a breakfast person?) because I was hungry, ate lunch because I was hungry, came home and made tea and I was hungry for it. I had a nectarine while I was cooking because I was so hungry! Normally I make something very healthy and filling for the DCs but I don’t want any due to eating crap all afternoon- she says something in the book about caring more about what your family eat that yourself. So true. Anyway we had tea and I had a bit of the homemade bread with it and it was delicious and there’s some left in the kitchen but I haven’t eaten any of it and don’t intend to. Utterly amazing!

I had a few wobbly moments during the day - work can get very stressy which is why there is always crappy sweet food on offer. But I just thought “no, you’re not hungry and it’s not time yet” Simple but brilliant.

rose I’ll take a look at the website and blog, thank you

That's great @WrappedInBitsOfSilver 💐
I was quite pleased with myself at lunchtime as I came in hot and sweaty and had a small choc ice - then I thought I'd have my lunch but I couldn't think of what I fancied - so I set another time 2 hours hence and when got to the time I just had a ryvita and cheese sitting in the garden. Then, for dinner I had salad, salmon and some pasta. I've had some dark choc (better than milk choc!) and a glass of wine tonight - so, am I choosing or am I eat addictively??

I've decided I'm spending this next week trying to identify and understand my addictive desire, using Ts and Ps to help me do that. Gillian Riley talks about AD being about eating too much: quantity and the wrong foods: quality
What do you think of the website, Wrap

Very busy day today. Ta and Ps went out the window! Had a piece of fruit as an emergency at 1pm (T was 12, 4 and a half hours after breakfast) then actually ate lunch at about half 2. Sometimes work is just too busy which I hate. I’m sure it’s contributed to my eating problems!

Had tea with DCs again - loads of veg and I enjoyed eating. Had 2 choc biscuits with a cup of tea afterwards which was a demonstration of choice and I enjoyed them too and only having 2 is something of a miracle.

I haven’t weighed myself, but I took my waist measurement (as a better indicator of improving health) and I’ve lost an inch from my waist in 3 days. Just thought I’d mention it!

That's brilliant! @WrappedInBitsOfSilver.
It's hard when work puts everything out - I suppose all you can do is try to keep to Ts and Ps when you can. I like the P as I tell myself what I will eat for that meal. I'm trying to ensure I've got choice as I tend to rebel if I think I haven't got a choice of what I eat - hence my not succeeding with diets - too many rules and do's and don'ts. I'm feeling less nervous around food

aglass how long have you been using this method? I’m trying to give myself choice at mealtimes too but I worry about wasting food - like I could have eg salad today at lunchtime, but if I don’t eat it, it’ll have gone bad by tomorrow and I’ll have wasted it. I agree with everything GR says about more vegetables but I seem to have unearthed a strange anxiety around this - and I think I’ve been rebelling and eating junk rather than face HAVING to eat veggies. I don’t have any solutions yet, but I suppose it’s good that I’ve become aware of it.

Do you
Think this helps with eating fruit and veg as I'm very avoidant and almost repulsed by them

Wrapped I've been on and off this for a few years but I feel like this time - I'm getting it. I think that for me my dysfunctional eating is strongly linked to low self esteem and I'm reading what GR says and reflecting on this
I get what you're saying about veg as I'm choosing junk types food over healthier veg salads and fruit - I'm letting myself go with this and hoping that I'll get through it and out the other end eating a fairly balanced diet that's right for me - and eating less!

I’m still trying my best - work being busy and totm isn’t helping but I haven’t eaten nearly as much junk as I would normally so I’m quite calm about the couple of biscuits and choc muffin I ate yesterday.

Rose that’s good that this has helped you in the long term - I completely agree with the low self esteem = dysfunctional eating. I only ever have the addictive desire GR talks about wheh I feel crap about myself. Stressed at work (feeling like if only I worked harder I wouldn’t be stressed) stressed at home (meeting needs of DCs when no one meets mine) and I channel it all into eating crap food I don’t actually want, if I stop and pause for a minute. Honestly, this week has been a revalation. And I’m another half inch down on my waist! My clothes feel noticeably looser, and I feel noticeably calmer. I love the freedom and control this method gives me.

Had a few difficult days but I’ve just sort of gone with it, tried to make good, wise choices. Still keeping on keeping on. I’ve got the book on my kindle and I find it helpful to read a few pages every day. I read the whole thing in a few days initially and this is helping it sink in

I bought the book a while ago and didn't finish it. Just got it out again a few days ago, but not read any! I need to get my act together! Will start it again soon!

This sounds really good. I’ve recently lost half a stone and would like to lose a few more pounds, just to make my clothes comfortable and slim down my tummy so it doesn’t stick out as much. I also just want to be healthier. Sugar plays havoc within my skin.

I was doing really well, but have found myself slipping back into bad habits (thanks Tesco’s with your cheap gu puddings offer!)
I will check this book out.

Hi Wrapped
Sorry I've not replied sooner things have been a bit manic as I've got my sister staying as well as our electricity supply mysteriously disappeared and we had workmen and diggers taking up half our street while they fixed it

We've been eating out quite a bit and I'm trying to eat just normally - whatever that is.
It's sounds like you're doing well.

@frustratedashell keep coming back to the book - I find something that it resonates with every time I re-read it

Thanks Glass. Have read a few pages, will keep going.