Topic.
Having a hard time emotionally, all kinds of food thoughts shooting trough my head all day long. I am en emo eater, my weight has jojed up and down between 80kg and 108kg the past 10 years. Fasting and low carb have been my way to get myself under control, but I just feel like I’m losing control again. I don’t want to eat all day long. I don’t want all those carbs. But the worst food gives me the best feeling… I recently got on track again and made some progress, don’t want to lose all of that again.
Any tips to deal with the food thoughts and stay strong in hard times? Thank you
The first time is always the hardest. Quitting overeating once and for all can change your life. Cold turkey may not work, it may need small increments. Vowing to yourself not to take one bite more than the point where you are satisfied, you will see slowly that this feels better to your body and mind. The natural feeling of fullness needs to be relearned, then you will see that overeating is like a bad habit. You have to actively stop yourself and wait fifteen seconds before eating anymore - in that fifteen seconds you might begin to feel with your stomach natural fullness and your mind will turn it’s attention to other things to distract with your time. If you do this for two weeks you will start to feel better about your situation. And lastly as with everything moderation is key - it’s okay to want comfort foods and you will be able to eat them without feeling bad provided you don’t consider overeating an option in your life anymore. It’s always easier to cut down in small increments than cold turkey researchers show. And this is a habit that can be unlearned like any other - in fact it is not the thing to do to hold on to “emotional” habits.
Never be afraid to “lose progress”. It’s always one step forward two steps back. Healing is not a linear process. Ever positive and forward movement you make towards overcoming this habit, is movement that adds up. You will not feel the same one year from the day of commitment as five years from the day. One year from the day, you might still not want to think about it at all and not feel like it is wortht of respect. But five years and you will move one inch and you will see that it’s an inch of pure gold. This is why you must never blame yourself too hard for how it is going, and at the same time not give up on the going.