How on earth do I stop being such a greedy pig?

[Givemestrengthorvodka]

Every single day I wake up telling myself today is the day I will stop eating crap and stop drinking so much. Roll on bed time when I'm 3 (strong) g&t's deep, face down in a family sized bag of Revels berating myself once again for being such a failure.
How the hell do i stop being like this? I understand what I need to do, I have all the info I need....just apparently a complete lack of willpower. How on earth do I change my habits for longer than 3 days at a time 😬.
Send help, please!

If you find out please let me know. I'm exactly the same. I need to lose a good 2 stone and the sad thing is I actually know how to do it. I just can't/don't. I repeat the same behaviours every single day - healthy breakfast, healthy lunch, start snacking after school run, snack some more, think fuck it and snack even more, have a triple measure gin and a shit load of carbs for tea.

I think it's partly because I have very little else going on in life and I use food as a comfort/reward. But it's having the opposite effect. I hate how I look.

Sorry I'm no help but you're not alone. It's really hard to break habitual behaviour.

Look into emotional eating, no amount of willpower can stop habits like this. Please don't beat yourself up or think you're not doing well enough, many people struggle with this.

Getting to the root of why you eat like this will really help. For example I used to eat balanced and well all day then I just go mad with snacks when bored or anxious etc. Now I try to listen to my body, if I'm actually hungry I'll have a snack, if I'm not I try to figure out why I'm feeling negative and seeking dopamine or enjoyment in the form of food, then I address the negative feeling as best as I can to steer myself away from the sharing bag of crisps! I still have the crisps if I want them but a smaller amount.

I don't know what the answer is for you but, as someone that was big and is now a size 8/10 you have to stop seeing food as you're friend and comfort. It's something you have the ability to control, much like exercise. If you feel tempted to sit in front of the telly and binge, go for a walk or do something productive around the house. It will take your mind off food.

Just ubered another takeaway.
Jeez I wish I had the answer.
Everything is too convenient these days, 2st to loose too!

I'm no help at all. What I got from your post was: 'Ooh family bag of Revels! Not had those in ages!'
But seriously, I'm similar and think I really need to up non-food comforts and treats as well as replacing high calorie food treats with low cal, healthy ones.

@hungrycrocodile23 "think fuck it and snack even more, have a triple measure gin and a shit load of carbs for tea." - this is exactly me. I have a total fuck it, all or nothing attitude.

I like exercise and do enjoy the feeling I get afterwards but it just takes a lot more effort to get that dopamine hit than it does from pouring a g&t and opening a bag of crisps.

I suppose the difference is that the dopamine release from exercise leaves me feeling virtuous whereas the dopamine high from my treats wanes and leaves me feeling annoyed and pissed off with myself

@TotalOverhaul i know, I think the last time I had Revels it was 1989!

I think most people will empathise with this. For me it's the mindset of hating depriving myself or of being hungry. I can't seem to accept that to lose weight I will have to eat less, be hungry sometimes, and not be allowed to have things I like such as wine or cereal. Exercise makes very little difference to me although sure if I had time to do loads it would help.

I absolutely get it too. It’s just a response to a crap day at work and the enjoyment/ entitlement to the g&ts and the chocs

Are you depressed OP?

I don't say this lightly or in a rude way. I have been there and eating was how I soothed myself and made myself "feel better."

Definitely look into finding the why behind what you're doing.

You can't just go to bed every night hating yourself and feeling like a failure, something has to change.

@chubbachub no definitely not depressed. I've suffered from horrendous anxiety in the past and totally appreciate that i am in a really happy phase of my life just now....other than my eating habits. I think I just really love food. I love the little heat that that first g&t gives after a busy day working and ferrying the kids around. I love the taste of bugles Crisps and those bloody nutella biscuits. But I'm at least 2 stone heavier than I should be and know I need to break my habits, it's just so hard. I really hate feeling shit about what I eat. And my mentality is daft. I've drank every night this week and want to stop but you know, it's Friday tomorrow so I can't possibly not have a g&t to start the weekend...crazy thinking.

I’m like this aswell but have recently lost 5kg using MyFitnessPal. I found it really helpful just to make me account for everything I was putting in my mouth - it definitely made me think twice about it. It’s been nearly a month since I stopped tracking my calorie intake and I haven’t put any weight back on yet - I think it has genuinely helped with my overeating.

I'm prone to this - emotional eating when bored and stressed.

I've been following 16:8 for 13 days now, using an app called Fastic which someone on MN recommended and that's helping put me in touch with the feeling of 'real' hunger rather than emotions. I'm starting to adjust to food as fuel rather than as an emotional substitute and although I haven't lost much weight yet, it feels mentally healthier.

You could have a look at the following things which have helped me

the book or audiobook of the last diet by sharoo Izardi

the kiana docherty YouTube channel. She lost loads of weight and now does videos about change and how to do it. Of note is a video she does about foodie beauty, another YouTuber, where she talks about her wanting weight loss but not really wanting to stop eating junk, and how the start of weight loss is wanting to actually get rid of junk food, rather than just loose weight IYSWIM. It helped me.

the Chris van tulleken podcast about processed food on bbc, kinda made me more conscious of how crap some of my binge foods were, and that I truly do like real food more most of the time

also,going to the gym. It made me less likely to wreck my progress by going mad with food.

I do have a couple of nights a week where I eat whatever I want and don’t worry about it, I kind of gave up restricting myself stupidly hard, and just accepted that weight loss might take months and months and months, but as long as I can live without the anxiety and misery of a constant diet I am okay with that.

I have lost nearly 2 stone since Jan

hope any of that helps

Op, possibly cutting back the booze can help you make better food choices. Maybe say you won’t drink Sunday through Thursday as a starting point. Have good foods in the house, not the junk, to snack on.

I suspect if you can reduce the alcohol and make better snack choices, you would likely loose weight naturally

im no evangelist, I did the same thing, was drinking too much, was getting into a nightly habit, then making poor food choices, eating crap in the evening, being hungrier the next day, a vicious cycle, and actually being very sedantry as I work from home.

I now try to limit booze to a sat night, sometimes a Friday if socialising, but not drink during the week, and I stopped with the crap and it has made a huge difference, I sleep better, lost weight, don’t feel shit, and I’m constantly surprised at how bright and clear my skin and eyes are.

reading your posts, I’d say first step would be knock the weekday booze on the head and plan healthy snacks and then take it from there.

Stop seeing every slip up as an excuse for carrying on. So if you have some crisps or some chocolate, physically force yourself to stop after one portion. There are not
many calories in one portion. Don’t think “fuck it” and carry on.
I eat crisps, chocolate and pizza and manage to lose weight.. I just know when to stop.
if you’re hungry, have loads of protein like meat and hard boiled eggs in the fridge to eat

Firstly get rid of everything unhealthy from your house and don’t buy it. Delete takeaway apps. Plan every single meal and snack, and only buy what you need for those. Read Chris van tullekenn or tim Spector books about ultra processed food, it has completely turned my mind against them. And focus on the long term / bigger picture in terms of health and your family. Plan your exercise for times when you would typically have a gin / snacks.

Some great advice on here. I am similar to the OP.

Trying Louise Parker to try and keep blood sugar stable.

I just love carbs, chocolate and wine. I know the answer is limiting carbs, chocolate and wine but I can't seem to do it.

Thanks everyone for the replies. I'm reading through them as I sup on yet another g&t. But the good news is I've nearly guzzled all the gin and eaten all the Chocs. I'm out at the edinburgh festival tomorrow so thats a write off but from Sunday I have no plans and it feels like a good time to try are change my habits.
I'm not going to diet or focus on weight loss. I'm going to focus on not drinking sun- thu and limiting my 'treats' to a few rather than the bag. I think that sounds like a good place to start. But been here before and I soon fall back into old habits....surely one time its got to stick?!

@SapphosRock "I just love carbs, chocolate and wine."
Summed it up perfectly!

I think this is what I'm realising...I have poor willpower, a sweet tooth and a soft spot for g&ts so I think the only way to break the habit is to make it as hard as possible to get my hands on the stuff. And I have to realise it is a habit. I gave up smoking years ago and it was tough, and I think I need to think of this as requiring the same amount of effort.

Yes, I identify with what you say. I just really like food. Possibly more than I like being slimmer - but I need to lose kgs.

I was definitely like this. Got into the habit of eating well during the day, then caving come the evening and eating a large chocolate bar or crisps.
I started a meal replacement plan about 6 months ago though and am 2.5 stone down. It's totally changed my mindset. Still have my treats now and then, but that's it ... they're treats now, not a daily thing.
I think the key thing is not being on a 'diet' and seeing it as a lifestyle change. Once the weight starts coming off that's my motivation to keep going

This sounds like me minus the alcohol part. Massive secret eater, I suspect a binge eating disorder. I am doing the 10 day free trial of slimpod at the moment and my entire mindset has changed. I was very cynical but figured i had nothing to lose. I've not snacked outside of meals once this week, I just feel no desire to. I cannot explain it.