Advice on how to stop eating like a degenerate...

[oI2ange]

So I've been struggling heavily on my eating portion sizings lately. This is a lot worse during the football season and I'm a bit alarmed on the way I've been eating the last few months.

Tonight I just ate a lil ceasers Hot N Ready...I'm fine with cheating some. I don't mind eating the foods I enjoy...but I need to stop eating so damn much. I ate the entire pizza without blinking an eye- that's 2240 calories in my gut. I don't really know why I do this.

In the past I've used monetary incentives/punishments to keep myself in check. After I ate that pizza tonight, I immediately texted my friend that "the next time I eat a hot n ready in the next 2 months, I owe you $50".

Obviously if you do punishments/statements like this, you need to follow through with them in order for them to be effective. But I find that these messages to friends have helped me in the past.

What are some things you do to keep your eating in check? Maybe I'm just an anomaly...I've always enjoyed eating a lot of food for weird reasons. It's fine for now since I'm young and I'm very active, but I need to control it before I get older. Ugh...

/rant

[LeafUF]

One thing I would do is simply not buy foods that I gorge on or prepare myself for when i want to gorge. Granted downing a full days worth of calories in one sitting is extreme but if you only eat.once a day it's brilliant.

Other things you can do is eat more filling food that is fewer calories. Foods that make it harder to down so many calories in one sitting.

Of course if you just have to have big meals you may want to research leangains as people doing that have trouble eating enough at their meals.

[oragator1]

For me the light went on a few years ago when I had a G/F who ate healthy and now three things motivate me below. While I don't have to worry about weight, weight and bad food go hand in hand.
First is a fear of health problems. Eating healthy lowers risks for every major illness including cancer, stroke, heart disease etc. And given that I hate hospitals and dying, that in itself is motivation.
Second is the disciplinary aspect and the self challenge. I watch calories, sodium, saturated fat, good fat, red meat intake ( once a week only), sugar, and the good things like vegetable/fruit intake religiously. Every day I keep track of all of them.
That leads to the third thing which is a feeling if pride and accomplishment in getting it done day in and day out. It might sound a bit over the top, but it really does become a sense of pride in being able to manage something that is so important and potentially daunting.
One other benefit is it becomes like a game and challenge to be won every day.
None of this means I don't eat badly on some days, but it's calculated, I make up for it the day before or day after. Once you get in the groove it's not that hard.

[oI2ange]

I eat fairly clean typically during the week. I could still cut some of my portions down...but the weekends, ugh, it just becomes hell. Overall, I really just need to cut down on the portions that I eat.

One problem that I have is that I eat super super fast. Maybe it's because I grew up in a big family, I dunno. Eat fast or don't eat at all...If i can learn to slow down, I think that'd help alot.

[Dreamliner]

Originally Posted by oI2ange

I eat fairly clean typically during the week. I could still cut some of my portions down...but the weekends, ugh, it just becomes hell. Overall, I really just need to cut down on the portions that I eat.

One problem that I have is that I eat super super fast. Maybe it's because I grew up in a big family, I dunno. Eat fast or don't eat at all...If i can learn to slow down, I think that'd help alot.

Yes, in a nutshell: s-l-o-w down. S---L---O---W down.

Chinese study showed that participants who chewed each bite 40 times consumed 18% fewer calories than those who chewed each bite 15 times.

[LeafUF]

http://summertomato.com/how-to-becom...mmer+Tomato%29

[oI2ange]

thanks for that link, leaf. i inhale my food and really need to slow down.

[johnl]

I think about this all the time. I'm 6'0 175 and 26yo and I'm scared to death of the pending "metabolism halt" everyone warns me about. Where I'm from, it seems like most males pack on a ton of weight after high school or in college, and I mean in their gut, face- not just filling out. My dad supposedly gained 18lbs (21yo) over their 2 week honeymoon, but I'm pretty sure I've got my mom's genes when it comes to weight, fortunately.

I can't say I'm trying to lose weight, though I'd imagine that it would be extremely difficult to lose 10 or even 5lbs for a male my age, height, weight simply by cutting 500 calories or so and not exercising regularly. So would it stand to reason that someone who is 10-20lbs overweight should focus more on exercising daily than dieting, assuming it's still around 2000cal/day?

Also, if I've learned anything about limiting food intake, it's easier to not eat hardly anything or maybe a pack of baby carrots and a few ritz crackers throughout the day and drink beer and water, maybe a spoonful of Nutella for desert. It's best to never whet your appetite to begin with. Being extremely hungry and refusing to eat will make the stomach shrink. Drink a beer, eat a couple crackers, drink lots of water and try living like a model for a week and you'll quickly learn it's easier than eating what you like, then stopping. Stop teasing yourself and shock your body into what I like to call food deprivation, not starvation. Buy yourself a Bowflex with the amount of money you'll save. Of course, active people will need to eat more. I despise working out and running.

I'm not a model by the way, but live alone these days, am poor, and know nothing about cooking so at least I can play by my own rules, not by what my body desires food-wise. Sure I could still kill a pizza by myself, maybe, but I don't need to if it's there. That's the goal, right?

[Dreamliner]

Good news is that anyone in any station of life can learn to eat more contemplatively.

Why not you ? Why not now ?!

[oI2ange]

I don't mind the eating nothing strategy...but I work out like a fiend and that simply wouldn't cut it for my energy. I'm partly glad I ate that pizza tonight- It might force a real wake up call for me and helping me fix my diet. The last 'enlightening' moment I had diet wise was during college, right during nutrition class. Though I got like a D in the class because I skipped a group project, that class taught me more than I can describe and literally changed my life. I took out all frozen foods/most of my processed foods that I used to ALWAYS eat from my diet. Perhaps this will be my second 'enlightenment' lol...

Thanks all for the replies.

[Dreamliner]

Good luck!

[oI2ange]

welp...ate ~4000 calories for dinner last night. FML

[Dreamliner]

Originally Posted by oI2ange

welp...ate ~4000 calories for dinner last night. FML

Don't FYL. Just stop eating that much. You don't have to give food that much power over your life.

[LeafUF]

This wont help but damn that's awesome.

[Dreamliner]

Originally Posted by LeafUF

This wont help but damn that's awesome.

Yes, on a certain level it is awe-inspiring.

[ATL_Gator]

This reply won't help either.

First, a whole pizza... then (different day) 4000 calories for dinner.

/golf clap!

In similar fashion, my son wanted to go out to eat with one of his friends the other night and we ended up at a Stevie B's pizza buffet. DEMOLISHED.

When I go on binges like that, I don't typically worry about it too much. Just budget it out over the next few days and you will be OK.

Eat big for a couple of days, and it was a spur of the moment thing? Impart a few days of "intermittent fasting" to make up (if fancy terms help at all, I just call it skipping some meals). If you need need to eat before a workout or whatever, just don't skip that particular meal and skip a meal after your workout instead.

You could also do more veggies when you do eat for a few days (assuming you aren't adding a bunch of calories through butter, sauces, dressing and other additives). Veggies pack a lot of volume with little calories. I will try to do 1/2 or more of the volume of food I serve myself in veggies (broccolli, cauliflower, green beans, peas, spinach)

If it is an event that you know is coming, start attacking the "budget" ahead of time and follow through after. The budget can be less aggressive if need be.

[LeafUF]

Good advice ATL. I think you are basically saying to look at your calories consumed in weeks instead of days. If you do it that way a 4000+ calorie day wont look so bad when you pair it up with a bunch of days below 2000.

[ATL_Gator]

Exactly.

I found that looking at it that way gives you a bit of latitude in how you approach things.

I went from 260ish to 205 a number of years ago with that strategy.

So far this year I have gone from 215 to 198 doing the exact same thing, inspite of some odd weekends.

[Dreamliner]

Yes, weekly strategies seem to work better than daily strategies. And of course it all comes down to budgeting. Apparently, ATL has balanced his checkbook successfully.

However, many people don't handle blowouts as well. They would do well to shoot for less 'ambitious' fluctuations in eating.

Now back to being serious. 4,000 calories ? Really ?

[ATL_Gator]

It's all in the math.