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I want to loose wieght but I love junk food too much help!!!!!

My relationship with food is a very unhealthy one. When I decided to take control of my life my mum signed me up for the gym and I went 5 times in a week, every week for about 2 weeks, whilst eating healthy, and I dropped from a 109.5kg to a 98.1kg. I was ecstatic when I found out, all my hard work was paying off. However, things changed when I started school again, I couldn't go to the gym as often and my unhealthy relationship with food began again, was secretly buying junk food, and not going to the gym. I weighed myself the other day and found out that I have put on 1.9kg, (currently I'm 100.1kg), I'm disappointed but not surprised. When I go to shops to buy things I actually need e.g stationary I end up impulsively buying food for immediate gratification. My weight loss has been going around in circles I lose weight then gain even more because I can't control my impulses. When I eat healthily, I feel as if it's almost forced, and most of the time I don't really enjoy the food. I there anything I can do to stop these impulses, and motivate my self to lose weight, I've been to the gym once this week and planning to go today on Sunday evening.
Reply 1
Have you considered a personal trainer
Reply 2
you will manage this, because you have identified the problem: "unhealthy relationship with food"..."secretly buying junk food"..."can't control impulses"...

If you categorise different foods into "junk" "unhealthy" "neutral" "quite healthy" "very healthy" and then rather than substituting junk for "very healthy" you make a more subtle change to your diet, you may enjoy it more and lose weight more slowly, but it is more sustainable as it is not a drastic change

Anyway you should not feel that you are starving or punishing yourself with your diet -- that is the wrong mindset to create lasting change
(edited 4 years ago)
Original post by Trogloyte
My relationship with food is a very unhealthy one. When I decided to take control of my life my mum signed me up for the gym and I went 5 times in a week, every week for about 2 weeks, whilst eating healthy, and I dropped from a 109.5kg to a 98.1kg. I was ecstatic when I found out, all my hard work was paying off. However, things changed when I started school again, I couldn't go to the gym as often and my unhealthy relationship with food began again, was secretly buying junk food, and not going to the gym. I weighed myself the other day and found out that I have put on 1.9kg, (currently I'm 100.1kg), I'm disappointed but not surprised. When I go to shops to buy things I actually need e.g stationary I end up impulsively buying food for immediate gratification. My weight loss has been going around in circles I lose weight then gain even more because I can't control my impulses. When I eat healthily, I feel as if it's almost forced, and most of the time I don't really enjoy the food. I there anything I can do to stop these impulses, and motivate my self to lose weight, I've been to the gym once this week and planning to go today on Sunday evening.

Where and how do you eat normally? Do you eat sit-down meals with your family, or do you all eat separately? How long have you had a weight problem for, and how long have you been trying to deal with it?
Reply 4
Original post by Reality Check
Where and how do you eat normally? Do you eat sit-down meals with your family, or do you all eat separately? How long have you had a weight problem for, and how long have you been trying to deal with it?

When I am extremely strict on myself and motivated I eat well and do not binge. I have breakfast by myself, lunch with friends at school and dinner with the family. I 've had this problem for 2 years now and I want to go to 2020 slimmer with healthy eating habits
Original post by Trogloyte
When I am extremely strict on myself and motivated I eat well and do not binge. I have breakfast by myself, lunch with friends at school and dinner with the family. I 've had this problem for 2 years now and I want to go to 2020 slimmer with healthy eating habits

It sounds a bit 'all or nothing' to me. You're either being super healthy or bingeing on a lot of junk food. Would it be fair to say there isn't much balance, where you're eating fairly healthily, but still having the odd thing you like here and there?

All or nothing thinking is a common problem, and is the thing which prevents successful long-term weight loss. It's got to be small, incremental changes which lead to not just weight loss, but maintenance of that loss.
Reply 6
Original post by Reality Check
It sounds a bit 'all or nothing' to me. You're either being super healthy or bingeing on a lot of junk food. Would it be fair to say there isn't much balance, where you're eating fairly healthily, but still having the odd thing you like here and there?

All or nothing thinking is a common problem, and is the thing which prevents successful long-term weight loss. It's got to be small, incremental changes which lead to not just weight loss, but maintenance of that loss.

I think you are 100% correct. Small changes that I have implemented is literally go to the gym 3 times a week, eating small healthy meals throughout the day, 8 bottles of water. I'm going to do a water fast a week (for religious reasons), I want to lose weight and also test my willpower. I feel like my biggest problem is my very poor motivation and will power.
You need therapy or something. That kind of lack of impulse control is seriously not normal.
Original post by Trogloyte
I think you are 100% correct. Small changes that I have implemented is literally go to the gym 3 times a week, eating small healthy meals throughout the day, 8 bottles of water. I'm going to do a water fast a week (for religious reasons), I want to lose weight and also test my willpower. I feel like my biggest problem is my very poor motivation and will power.

It's great that you've made some positive first steps - and that you're integrating these changes into a permanent eating pattern. Keep trying to make small changes - maybe promise yourself next time you go into a shop for something, you won't buy any chocolate or anything.

As for the water fast, I'm not sure about the religious aspect of this, but you are aware that you can't just drink water for a week - you will need to eat something? Trying to just have water for a week is a sure-fire way to end up massively binging. Do you have a plan for healthy eating during this religious week?
Reply 9
Original post by Reality Check
It's great that you've made some positive first steps - and that you're integrating these changes into a permanent eating pattern. Keep trying to make small changes - maybe promise yourself next time you go into a shop for something, you won't buy any chocolate or anything.

As for the water fast, I'm not sure about the religious aspect of this, but you are aware that you can't just drink water for a week - you will need to eat something? Trying to just have water for a week is a sure-fire way to end up massively binging. Do you have a plan for healthy eating during this religious week?

My plan was in the morning (6:30 am), for breakfast I would have ginger tea. Then I would drink water til (11 am), break time I would have some grapes, then water again, til (1:10 pm) lunch I would have a pear. And then for dinner after I go to the gym, green salad with cucumber (8 ish). And then before I sleep 10:30 ish, ginger tea again.
How does that sound?
Original post by Trogloyte
My plan was in the morning (6:30 am), for breakfast I would have ginger tea. Then I would drink water til (11 am), break time I would have some grapes, then water again, til (1:10 pm) lunch I would have a pear. And then for dinner after I go to the gym, green salad with cucumber (8 ish). And then before I sleep 10:30 ish, ginger tea again.
How does that sound?

It sounds like a recipe for a massive binge come Wednesday evening...

You're suggesting for a whole week eating nothing but some grapes and pear for 14 hours. Having been to the gym beforehand. Even if you got that far, how likely do you think it would be that you could have a 'green salad with some cucumber' after your gym - given that you'll already be ravenously hungry and have no energy to do decent gym work anyway....?

It's really not sensible or practical, and is just going to perpetuate this starve-binge-starve cycle you're going through. It's a really common observation that those who are struggling with their weight and who are on a diet often try to delay eating as long as possible each day. This pattern of eating very rarely occurs in people of a normal weight. Delaying eating builds up a 'deficit' of hunger - it becomes like a wave of hunger that becomes more and more difficult to control. The inevitable outcome is that you end up at about 7pm not able to control the hunger any longer and bingeing as a result. This is followed by disgust and promises that you'll never do that again and you'll try harder tomorrow, etc etc.

Eating sensibly and regularly is the key to having a sustainable eating pattern which will allow you to get in control of your hunger and overeating.
Just increase your exercise, take up swimming and stick to water instead of soda/sugar substitute filled drinks.
I eat two meals a day, drink plenty of water and do lots of daily exercise.
I'm the same weight I was as a teenager, ten years ago.
If you try and make a drastic change you will fail. It's that simple.

Cut out fizzy drinks and chocolate that's not part of a meal. Allow yourself a pudding if you're still hungry. That's a pretty small change but could easily net you a 500 calorie deficit without impacting hunger levels.
Original post by Trogloyte
My relationship with food is a very unhealthy one. When I decided to take control of my life my mum signed me up for the gym and I went 5 times in a week, every week for about 2 weeks, whilst eating healthy, and I dropped from a 109.5kg to a 98.1kg. I was ecstatic when I found out, all my hard work was paying off. However, things changed when I started school again, I couldn't go to the gym as often and my unhealthy relationship with food began again, was secretly buying junk food, and not going to the gym. I weighed myself the other day and found out that I have put on 1.9kg, (currently I'm 100.1kg), I'm disappointed but not surprised. When I go to shops to buy things I actually need e.g stationary I end up impulsively buying food for immediate gratification. My weight loss has been going around in circles I lose weight then gain even more because I can't control my impulses. When I eat healthily, I feel as if it's almost forced, and most of the time I don't really enjoy the food. I there anything I can do to stop these impulses, and motivate my self to lose weight, I've been to the gym once this week and planning to go today on Sunday evening.

Hang in there pal. I had the same problem. I would stress eat a lot especially when I'm studying. It's the only thing that kept me sane :frown: Then after exams I'd go on crazy diets.

Lately I've been trying intermittent fasting which has helped a little. I've been skipping breakfast which surprisingly suppresses my appetite for the rest of the day and make sure I don't eat anything after 8pm.
Good luck!
You need to control your impulses. Junk food is high in sugar, salt and fats and thus is not good for health. If you want to lose weight stop indulging in junk and processed food.
Reply 15
Original post by Reality Check
It sounds like a recipe for a massive binge come Wednesday evening...

You're suggesting for a whole week eating nothing but some grapes and pear for 14 hours. Having been to the gym beforehand. Even if you got that far, how likely do you think it would be that you could have a 'green salad with some cucumber' after your gym - given that you'll already be ravenously hungry and have no energy to do decent gym work anyway....?

It's really not sensible or practical, and is just going to perpetuate this starve-binge-starve cycle you're going through. It's a really common observation that those who are struggling with their weight and who are on a diet often try to delay eating as long as possible each day. This pattern of eating very rarely occurs in people of a normal weight. Delaying eating builds up a 'deficit' of hunger - it becomes like a wave of hunger that becomes more and more difficult to control. The inevitable outcome is that you end up at about 7pm not able to control the hunger any longer and bingeing as a result. This is followed by disgust and promises that you'll never do that again and you'll try harder tomorrow, etc etc.

Eating sensibly and regularly is the key to having a sustainable eating pattern which will allow you to get in control of your hunger and overeating.

Fair enough, but for the first time I was able to follow this plan, and I lost 2kg!
Reply 16
Original post by helenarmy02
Hang in there pal. I had the same problem. I would stress eat a lot especially when I'm studying. It's the only thing that kept me sane :frown: Then after exams I'd go on crazy diets.

Lately I've been trying intermittent fasting which has helped a little. I've been skipping breakfast which surprisingly suppresses my appetite for the rest of the day and make sure I don't eat anything after 8pm.
Good luck!

Aha thanks that's a great idea
good luck to you as well mate!
Original post by Trogloyte
Fair enough, but for the first time I was able to follow this plan, and I lost 2kg!

Isn't that the point though? 'The first time you were able to'...! I thought you wanted a long-term, permanent solution to your weight problem, not a quick fix?
Reply 18
Original post by Reality Check
Isn't that the point though? 'The first time you were able to'...! I thought you wanted a long-term, permanent solution to your weight problem, not a quick fix?

No of course not, I want a plan that will be able to make me lose weight and keep it off, the only difference is now I have literally stopped binge eating, I don't eat all that much when I'm hungry, and I will only eat unless I absolutely have too. When I started this journey I was a size 22, now I am an I size 16 I still have a long way to go. But for me, it was just cutting out junk food and knowing that self-discipline equates to self-love. the only scary thing is that I have been on a calorie-restricted diet for about 3 weeks, on Xmas, when we were having dinner I literally felt like throwing up, I hadn't had a meal that big for 3 weeks, I felt so sick, and literally couldn't function, tomorrow's my 18th bday and I'm scared I'm going to have to force my self to eat again and make myself sick. Is there anything I can do to stop feeling sick after eating a meal?

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