How did I become a binge eater???

I know that binging is a disorder which mostly overweight individuals have, and they can loose weight if they kick the habit. I have never been overweight- always healthy and strong. i lost about ten loubs though and got in the best shape of my life and i have developed since that a binge problem. It doesnt seem right to me to have gotten this problem when it is just not natural to me to overeat- i never did before i lost wieght but now i dont get full. Maybe it is the weight lifting? has loosing weight made anyone else develop a binging problem when you were never overweight to begin with?

I've had BED for about a year now, and have been struggling to get to a weight that I'm comfortable at, although I've never been overweight in my life.. go figure. I've recently (past month or so) started getting serious about lifting weights, and have found that while I'm quickly getting stronger and feeling fitter, the increased hunger from working out does lend itself to a desire to binge.

Personally, the best thing I ever did was learn to forgive myself once I've overeaten for the day. If it's not classified as a "binge" in my own mind, I'm less likely to say "**** it all" and eat as if I've blown it already. Seems like a simple thing.. but allowing myself to overeat, at least in my case, tends to prevent me from going overboard. Of course I would prefer to stay within a certain number of calories for the day or week, but for the past year, depriving myself mentally has always led to a dam breaking. No deprivation = no super-compensation..

I too have had problems with binge eating since losing weight.  My eating is mostly stress related, and I think when I was a lower weight, stress got to me a lot easier.  I'm trying my best just to take it one day at a time.  Binge eating is terrible for the blood sugar, so it's hard to break the cycle.  Something that has helped me is making sure I workout for at least an hour a day.  Seems to keep the urges somewhat at bay.

You didn't overeat, you weren't overweight and you were a naturally healthy weight.... so far so good.  Then you lose 10 loubs (sic) start doing a lot more exercise and suddenly your appetite increases.   If you're trying to keep your body at an artificially low weight why are you surprised?

Eat more....

i have never been overweight before and i've always been considered thin, yet i developed a form of binge eating. i think the reason why lies behind the fact that i was calling foods i love "bad" which was causing me to crave them even more. besides that, i began to count calories, and when i would start my day off with one of many "bad" foods, i would consider my day "ruined" and binge eat the rest of the day.

it's a vicious cycle. you just have to try to do things to keep yourself away from the kitchen, or keep a stash of good foods away from the junk food in your house so that you will never go to the pantry where the junk food is. don't even look in it. you won't be as tempted.

also, make sure you're eating enough to begin with. your body could be in starvation mode, which would probably cause you to binge eat (it has me before).

I agree with GI Jane. You're "binging" because you are probably underweight and aren't eating enough to sustain yourself. This is especially true if you're doing weight training, muscles need protein after weight training to repair and build more muscle. You need to up your calories.

I did the exact same thing myself - practically lived off vegetables and severly restricted whilst doing lots of cardio and resistance training - then wondered why I'd eat like a pack of biscuits in one sitting. It's only now I realise I did that because I was starving myself and my body desperately needed the food. If you eat a well balanced nutrious diet you won't crave junk binges. 

I agree with GI Jane as well.  Your binging is probably due to your body begging for more food after being starved from it.  Eat more.

i dont think i'm in starvation or anything like that. and my weight is not an obsession where i think i'm fat or anything- i lost wight because i hope to be a fitness/figure competitor in the near future. i eat about 2000 cal a day- do i need more? i try to stay in a healthy range and eat very clean but i am a little hazey on how many cals i need considering i have a lot of muscle mass and am 19 and very active

If your diet is well balanced and your body is getting what it needs you will not need to binge.

Once you start over eating or binge eating your body becomes used to eating larger amounts of food then it needs and it can be hard to go back to eating normal amounts but once you do it for a while the urge to eat more will stop, you just have to preserver . Take 1 day at a time, eat normal meals and don’t over eat at any meal and your body will start craving normal amounts of food again.

If your body is feeling like it genuinely is hungry then feed it! You do not have to have a LOT of food, just have the extra food you need! The more muscle you have the more hungry you will be because the more muscle you have the more calories you need

Just listen to your body, and make sure you get enough carbohydrates/protein/fats and your urge to binge will dissipate

Some times even if you eat enough, you may not be having enough of a specific thing, either protein carbohydrates or fats, and you will then crave that specific foods. So if you mainly crave sugar then try eating a little more carbohydrates and see if you feel better. If you do, and the craving goes away then there you go, no more binge eating!

oh, BY THE WAY, I am slim and I had a binge eating problem, many slim people have a binge eating disorder they are not all over weight!

I eat 2000 calories a day typically and I'm twice your age and probably half as active.  Try increasing your calories to 2200 or 2500 and see how your body responds.

speaking as a recovering binge-eater, I know that even shaving off some calories a day to say 2000-2200 calories will lead to a huge binge after a week... for me.  I have only developed this ed since I lost 30 pounds and have been trying to maintain/gain a little weight.  I'm 5 feet and 94 pounds and do weight training about every other day.  You may think you're eating well enough, but the absence of a couple hundred calories a day or any time you feel that you are restricting food all adds up quickly! ESPECIALLY since you lift weights as well.  Binging is how your body is trying to make up for the lack of food from the past week, or month.  Really, eat a little more!

You need a lot more than you think. i am 5'5" and weigh 108 pounds. I need 2200 a day to maintain my weight with my activity level and I am underweight by about a few pounds. I dont know what your proportions are, but you should probably be getting 2200-2500 cals a day. Also, if you start eating more and gain a pound or two over what you are comfortable with, don't immediately freak out. Take a look in the mirror and make sure you're gaining it in muscle, not fat, because you can weigh more than the average person with muscle but look a lot leaner and sexier. Just keep that in mind.

Keep in mind, if you're hungry and you're eating, it's not really a binge. It becomes a binge when you can't stop yourself even though you're full.

If you're eating abnormally large proportions at one time because you're starving, that just means you waited too long to eat. Try eating 6-8 smaller meals a day instead of 3 large ones. That's recommended for people trying to build muscle for this exact reason in addition to the fact that it is more effective to building muscle mass. Also, make sure you're getting enough protein. Multiply your weight by .75 and that will give you the amount of protein in grams that you should be consuming as a person who lifts weights.