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binge eating
hi! female, 18. soo i need serious help. i have had a serious issue with food for about the last 5 months. it started when i became very self conscious about my body and i went on a very calorie restricted diet and lost about 30 pounds then i gained it all back. i am very embarrassed to talk to anyone about it. i binge eat a lot and when im done i feel awful and guilty and ashamed. i have been able to maintain my weight by working out and starving myself after a binge. i know this is very unhealthy but i have no idea what to do. food is seriously controlling my life and im scared its going to get worse when i got to college and it will affect my sports. pleasee help :(
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I am battling this right now, but I have found a way to control it. I recently lost a tonne of weight from a well known diet and have done it before and gained it all back and more.
This time I kept it off, but it is not always easy.
What I do is lots of excercise, mostly jumping rope or lifting weights. The weight drops off with jumping rope, especially in your hips and thighs and even tones your stomach.
I have found a trick that really works to keep my hunger at bay and it's sipping water with lime/lemon sqeezed in it. It cuts your appetite and is better for you than sipping a soda.
I eat small meals about 4 times a day and I can't believe that I am actually full. I nibble on low fat/no fat cheese when I get hungry or a granny smith apple.
The best thing of all is eating about 5-8 unsalted almonds when you have a real hunger pang and in minutes it gone.
Try my tips and see for yourself. I have a ferocious appetite and have battled with my weight all my life, but this time I am winning the battle of the bulge.
You can do it to!!!!!
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You have an eating disorder, which if not addressed will cause you physical harm. The cycle of binging and starving is causing your body to do things to save itself during the periods of starvation. Add to this the fact that you are athletic or an athlete and the harm you are doing is greater.
The body is designed to save itself from itself. Meaning the two most important systems are you heart and brain. If the body is not getting what it needs to operate properly it will shut down systems in order to operate the most important systems. The first to shut down are the kidneys, then the liver. By this time you should be in the hospital probably on life support.
Am I trying to scare you? Yes and No. Yes because this is what can happen if you do not properly address this problem. No because I want you to address this problem because you need to address it not because I'm scaring you to do so.
You need to tell your parents what you are doing. They may have some idea but may not be fully aware. Then you need to see a doctor for you will need counseling and a proper program to guide you back into proper eating habits.
Actors and actresses have gone through routines of gaining and loosing weight to fit different parts they played. It is only recently that it has been found that this cycle of weight gain and loss has been harmful to them later in life.
What I am trying to say is the sooner you address your eating disorder the less chance of problems now and in the future.
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The only way to stop this cycle of binging/starving is to let yourself binge. If you're going to binge, then binge...but don't try to reverse things by starving. Depriving yourself of calories for any period of time will just trigger another binge. Also, after a binge, don't exercise. Eventually, you'll want to stop binging because you won't be able to justify your behavior by starving or working out after.
I know this all sounds backwards, but it is what has worked for me.
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How quickly did you lose the weight?
When you lose weight quickly, you tend to gain it back pretty quickly as well. I lost about 6 kilos when I had the flu, and then gained half of it back in 2 weeks! The best way to lose weight in my opinion, and from my experience, is by eating a good, healthy balanced diet and by exercising regularly. You'll lose the weight slowly, but I think that's the best way to lose weight. Losing it quick just hurts your body and can result in weight gain.
I've had weight problems as far back as I can remember, and now at the age of 19 I've only just started to really understand healthy eating, exercise and what works for me.
The best advice on eating was actually something I overheard. Two women were eating lunch, and one said "I've already eaten all of my lunch, but I'm gonna eat this extra sandwich anyway" and the other woman said "no! you know what that is? habit."
Eating is a habit, and the great thing about this is that you can change your eating habit!
Firstly, you need to understand that by eating properly and exercising regularly you WILL lose weight, even if it does take a lot of time. This is about eating breakfast, lunch, dinner AND snacks. I'm 19 and 5'4 with an average body type. I should be eating about 1500-1600 calories per day, and absolutely no less than 1200. I downloaded this great app on my iPhone called fitness pal and it estimated how many calories I should eat per day to lose weight. This app also helps me count my calories in every meal.
This comes to my second point, calorie counting. Do not lower your daily calorie intake to 1200 or less. I would actually say minimum 1300. Calorie counting works out really well for me, especially with the Fitness Pal app. Even without the app, you can buy books or just google types of food to get an estimate of their calorie value. When you get into the habit of this, it becomes really easy for you to estimate how many calories are in a meal without having to look it up. Food is meant to be enjoyed, not feared. Watching your calories will help you figure out a balance in how many calories per meal and per snack. You should usually start off with a big breakfast and reduce your meal sizes after that.
Thirdly, habit. It's really hard for the first couple of months to get into the habit of choosing the healthier meal and by deciding when to not eat or stop eating. Try to have a vague idea or organise your meal plan for the day so you don't stray and snack too much. When I make meals, I count the calories and if something is unnecessary (like say, a piece of chocolate) then I put it back. You will feel really hungry for a while, but your body will get used to your lower food intake.
NEVERR starve yourself or crash diet. The reason why you shouldn't go below 1200-1300 calories per day is because with that minimal amount of calorie intake, your body will go into starvation mode. This means it will store any food you eat as fat, and you'll lose no weight. Not only that, but it puts a lot of strain on your body that's trying to deal with too much food, and then not enough food.
Don't be scared though! It's okay! You CAN and WILL control your eating habits with some strong willpower and tenacity. If I can control my eating habits and lose weight, you certainly can!
I said earlier about healthy eating, regular exercising and finding what works for me. Healthy eating is about eating all different kinds of food (meats, fish, eggs, dairy, nuts, grains, fruits, vegies...etc). You don't need to think too much about it, it's really just making sure that you eat healthy food every day and avoid fatty, fried, greasy, oily foods. Regular exercise means exercise 5-7 days a week for at least 30 minutes.
What will help you control your eating habits is by finding what works for you. For me, it was about removing bad foods from my house completely (so no chocolates or junk food). It also meant replacing foods I eat with healthier versions. For example, white bread with brown bread, full cream milk with skim milk, lean chicken and beef mince and things like that. By removing those from my grasp, it was a lot easier for me to control what I ate. Also, I had to use a lot of willpower when it came to fast food. If I was out somewhere and had to buy lunch, I stopped and thought about what to eat. I thought to myself, "is that quarter pounder really worth it? A nice salad from that place would make you feel a lot better and would be a lot healthier".
This is another great tip for controlling your eating habits, just stopping and thinking about what you're doing and what you're about to eat.
I didn't like exercise much at all, but I decided to try jogging and found that I loved it! I love jogging around the parks near my house. They're not the most picturesque, but they're quiet and I like that time to calm down and just be by myself for a little while every day.
There are some other things you can do to help with your eating habits:
- Talk to people. It's hard, but talking to family members about how you eat and asking them to help you out is a great way for you to be able to find some moral and real support. If you can't talk to them, try your friends. Me and my friends joined a local gym and try to eat healthier meals together. We talk to each other about how healthy we're eating, if we're going off track which helps us motivate and support each other.
- Another tip is if it's really difficult for you, to go to professionals. Find a dietrician, or if you can't just go to your local doctor and ask to be referred to someone. Fitness trainers are excellent too if you have the money, as they can give you fantastic advice and keep you on track.
- Finally, there are tonnes of healthy eating and weight loss forums or even groups possibly near you. A lot of what I know about losing weight has come from just google searching questions about food, eating habits, exercising and things like that. Don't always accept what someone says, look at different websites and see if what they say matches what other people have said, then take their advice.
By the way, you're absolutely gorgeous no matter what size you are. Never forget that. Look at yourself every day and tell yourself you're beautiful, because you are, and you deserve to know it.
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