why is this so hard?!

Do you keep tempting food in your place?

I know I won't allow myself to buy certain foods and bring them in the house. I know what I don't have any will power over and what I'll gobble down in a matter of seconds. Whereas, if I have to GO BUY IT at night... I probably won't eat it simply because I'll be too lazy to get out of the house to get it. Not to mention, once I have to get up to go buy it, I THINK about what I'm doing and I stop.

x2 ... actually x1000

It's hard because food have chemical effects on your brain. All the willpower/dedication in the world won't help when you're eating the foods that trigger control issues. One place to start might be to identify foods that you have control issues with and not bring those into the house for awhile. It might be junk or it could even be healthy foods. (For awhile there I was eating too many full fat yogurts which are healthy but not when you have 4 or 5 a day!)

I have figured out what my trigger foods are and avoid them like the plague.  I am terrified to even taste pasta as it could set off a binge.  So I sub with zucchini noodles (zoodles) or spaghetti squash.  Not the same but does not trigger a blood sugar spike and the inevitable crash which would have me right back looking for more sugar.  Good luck in finding your balance, it is not easy.

I'm recommending a book called the "Four Day Win" by Martha Beck. It's really helped me to get my "food wars" under control and understand what's going on in my brain around all the food issues. I've honestly read this book about 3x since I first read it about a year and a half ago.

Yes - I am still very overweight - but at least I am feeling much more like I'm getting back to a more normal food relationship.

I think it's worth checking out of your local library at least.

Thanks for all the replies - in this situation it helps much more to follow advice that OTHER people give you rather than do what you are trying to tell yourself.

And that book sounds helpful - I'm gonna definitely check it out!

Have you ever considered that you might be sugar sensitive? I have been doing a lot of reading up on sugar sensitivity lately because I've noticed an extreme trend in myself to binge and go way overboard with sweets and simple sugars and what seems like a physical inability to use moderation. What do your cravings tend towards? A few books that have been very educational have been "Sugar Shock" By Connie Bennett, which just talks a lot about how simple sugars are bad for every aspect of your life, and "Sugar Addicts Total Recovery Program" By Kathleen DesMaisons that breaks it down a lot more simply. They might help. I have by no means kicked this problem in my life but I'm struggling every day and am trying to figure it out a little bit more scientifically. Also, I went on Amazon to look up "The 4 Day Win" by Martha Beck and found two different books1. The 4 Day Win: End your diet war and achieve thinner peace1. The 4 Day Win: Change the way you think about food and your body in just 4 daysWhich one did you recommend cadreamer? Thanks

You sound a lot like me. I battled with eating in college ( go back to school in a few weeks). I had a roomie who would make cookies and have them for breakfast, finals were terrible!! If you can't DO NOT keep trigger foods. One of my triggers was chocolate, I would eat a whole BIG bar ( 4 servings). Today, I have a tablespoon of chocolate chips when I have cereal to keep the cravings down. Good luck, it's HARD. Also, have you thought about seeing a therapist/nutritionist?

Well,
  I was actually going to start a new thread, but this is my frustration as well.  I am new to this and would not be able to complete an Ironman as the original poster indicted.  But having started training for a sprint, I automatically assumed weight would just start coming off without really having to diet.  The scale has bounced up and down but as of today, almost 2 months later I've lost a whopping 1 lb. 

  If you can finish 8hr rides, 4hr runs, and 2hr swims your fitness is phenonenal!

  My big issue is appetite, while I'm only doing 5-6 hrs of workouts per week, those workouts make me famished.  I will try to eat a "normal" meal and wait for the hunger pangs to go away but when I'm still hungry 2-3 hours later I have to snack or eat a whole meal again.    Working out 4-6 times a week makes me hungry all the time.

  I am succeding in my number one goal to improve fitness towards an olympic triathlon.  But, I am coming to the painful conclusion that working out more and then eating more is not achieving the secondary goal - weight loss.  Since my performance has improved I try to convince myself that fat is changing to muscle.  But to succeed in my secondary goal, the realist in me knows I have to find ways to create a consistent calorie deficit.

  I had been feeding myself anything I want to enhance perfomance, but am concerned when I start prioritizing weight loss, my weight will begin dropping and my performance will stall or regress.
----
  I too have started NOT bringing bad food home. 

  Veggies tend to allow me to snack a lot without piling on the calories.  Baby carrots are a favorite, a 1lb bag is only 160 cal.

  Another tool I plan to use is to just be busy.  Whether I'm doing the dishes, mowing the yard, paying the bills, out on a run or a ride, I have no urge to eat.  But the moment I plop down to relax, my mind moves to food.  So the next time I know I shouldn't be eating, but want to, I'll go do the laundry.  I think it's going to work. 

  Good luck!  Wish I could do an Ironman.

Read this article:
http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=1699

It's "what" you eat and "when" you eat it that will help you stave off hunger and help you lose weight. If you arn't eating/drinking a recovery snack within 15 minutes of finishing a workout you are probably going to feel hungry for a lot longer than if you had. A snack usually of 4:1 carbs to protein immediately after a HEAVY training session will allow you to stave off hunger, follow it with a normal meal a couple hours later. Feed before, feed after with easily digestable carbs. Check out nuts for snacks - almonds are good - about 7 cals per + protein will keep your tummy from feeling hunger pains.

x1000 on not bringing tempting items into the house = evil!

And don't underestimate MENTAL toughness - when you're hungry drink a glass of water and wait - it'll probably go away...

Balancing the cals in/out while training and trying to lose weight is not easy - persevere, it'll start coming off... I use many ppls suggestion of taking BMR + 1/2 calories burned as a base - you can adjust +/- calories particularly + if you're feeling fatigued or performance seems to be suffering. It might in the very short term, but your body will get used to it, and you'll see bigger gains over longer periods from weight loss combined with fitness.

I use Base [BMR @ sedantary - 500] + 1/2 calories burned (or larger percentage if it's been a 1000+ cal day). For me, that's about 1760 base + 100->1000 cals depending on exercise level. I am never Hungry but I do think about food - A LOT. I tend to eat 3 largish meals and 2-3 or more smaller snacks (fruits, nuts, veggies).

I've lost a lot of weight and have some of same issues. For me carbs and sugars are tough for me...better now that I've exercised for 5 years and eat much healthier.

For me after doing long workouts I feel more free with my food and I can get away with it but it often leads to wanting more.  Last year after IM was over and training slowed down I gained 15 pounds which I've since lost. This year for IM training I eat differently on my long runs and bikes and it is fuel not enjoyable and it has helped me after my long training. Eating enough while training takes practice but if you are hungry when done you probably didn't eat enough. Eatting to little while training often means eatting more later in the day.

I try to eat well when training, then after long training, I eat a recovery drink with about 75 grams carbs and 25 grams protein and it makes my appetite go away. Usually 2 hours after I'm done I eat. Last week I had my biggest training week with about 27 hours, I trained through lunch 5 days. It mucked up meals but I ate lots of natural healthy carbs to keep fueling up for the following days workouts. I tried to see food as fuel. I ate no sweets other than one night and it made me feel crappy so I avoided sugar stuff. It made my workouts better. I think this year I have managed food better with lots of training. I do see what I eat makes a huge difference in how I feel and how my training goes.

While I've thought of many reasons why this is happening, I actually never thought of that one. I'm definitely going to check that out.

I've also talked to my old therapist about it (although it was incredibly embarrassing admit to binging) and it at least after it was out it was easier to cope with.

The weird part is once I get in a habit, like if I get 1.5 - 2 weeks of practicing what I want to achieve, it is almost just as hard for me to have sweets. (I know, it sounds compulsive, and I think I am a little OCD but hey I deal )

Thanks for everyone who continues to post - every comment is helpful

Edited by cam224 2009-07-30 12:37 AM