Can't seem to start!

I am dying to begin my "new way of life" Exercise, healthy eating, not binging. The only problem is I can't seem to kick this off! I'm so scared of not being able to eat, well, crap- that i keep putting it off day after day! I literally have been "beginning" this for weeks. I don't know what to do, obviously I'm not being strong and I'm really dissapointing myself. I've started things like this before and when Im making healthy choices I'm in such a better mood, and feel so much better about life in general. How can I be trading that for... brownies and chinese food. It's disgusting. Today was my 27th "first day" and I found myself cramming 4 brownies into my mouth in a row on my lunch break. That led to getting pizza on the way home... to skipping hanging out with friends to eat a box of mac and cheese!! And why?! Because I keep thinking "better get this out of my system if I'm gonna start eating right tomorrow" the thing is, tomorrow never comes!!

Any one have any kind of suggestions? Anyone been through the same thing?

The only  thing I can say is "JUST DO IT" I know it's hard but you have to just fight temptation and just start!

I think you're being too rigid about what constitutes 'eating right' and that's making you reluctant to get started.  Tough 'rules' aren't required.  Just some changes for the better, swapping bad habits for better ones.   Remember... there are no bad foods, only bad diets. 

Plan ahead maybe....   If your day has some structure you're less likely to make it up as you go along and make poor choices in the process.   A good way to get off the mark is with a solid tasty breakfast so that you can get most of the way through the morning with a full tummy.  And then plan a mid-morning snack.   (If brownies come in 4 packs then they're probably not a good idea.)   But bananas and other fruit or yoghurts etc., ... you could pack a few up and take them to work.   Same goes for the mid-afternoon.  If a few crackers with some peanut butter on top means you leave work not feeling so hungry that you divert into a pizza shop... that's a good thing.  Finally, think about what you'll have for supper the night before and make sure you've got everything you need in the house.   Make it a substantial meal and allow yourself a dish of ice-cream or something similar as a dessert if you like.   Don't feel that 'eating right' means your meals should be joyless.   

Don't skimp on the quantity of food in the first week or two.  If you tend to overeat the worst thing you can do is allow yourself to get hungry.   And don't expect to be perfect either.  Try your best to stick to your plan for the day but don't worry if you slip up a little. 

Best of luck... No time like the present.

YOu sound exactly like me! I wake up every morning saying, "This is going to be the day!" But then I get tempted and it's all over. So then I just tell myself, "Well I'll just eat all this so that I won't be craving it, and I'll start tomorrow!" It's horrible! I have had so many "first days!" But I can never seem to get to the second day! I need someone to stay on top of me and say, NO! lol...I'm glad to know that I'm not alone in my issues with eating healthy!

I suggest that you start with little things that don't actually chang your diet too much at first such as replacing butter with the no calorie spray and sugar with Splenda.  If you like to snack a lot during the day then make sure you have a supply of low calorie snacks.  I love baby carrots and I keep them in the fridge at work and at home.  Another good i like is 100-calorie microwave popcorn.  If you feel like you really must have some french fries, then go for the small size and try to leave a few in the bag when you throw it away.  If you start small and then work your way up to bigger changes, you won't feel deprived and I think you will be amazed at how many delicious things you can have.  Also, you really have no limitations on what you can or can't eat.  If you really want to go out for a hot fudge sundae tonight, go ahead!  You just have to allow for the calories!  It's really not as horrible as it seems once you get started.  There are days when I have to find things to eat to make sure I get enough calories.

siiigh 1 week later and no closer to starting. Tomorrow I shall try again. Thank you for the tips :) i guess my problem isnt even that im hungry all the time- its just that i crave food in general. I eat most when im not hungry at all! crappy. oh well. Gotta keep chuggin along & trying my best!

I feel your pain - a male version of you so to speak! I get on CC almost every night to track food and the pattern is the same every time. A few good days and then when a bad day starts, it becomes two days, three days and on and on. Forget about the weekends! These have become my downfall!

On a positive note, I enjoy exercise and joined Equinox for their great equipment and classes. I try to compensate by burning 600-700 a workout 3-5 days a week and even then, I have started to slack off on exercise days. Used to get up at 6am to do HIIT on the treadmill and now find it hard to even look at the treadmill.

Mood is a huge factor. I also have other variables that dictate "falling into poor habits" over and over. A bad day at work, an argument with the wife, a day at home with my little girl (fridge is within close proximity) and a new baby due in February (beautiful time in my life, but not without consequence of losing "me" time for the gym). I need structure and regimine in order to stick to a plan. Our environment and personal predicaments dictate otherwise at times.

I hope to break the cycle for good soon and knowing there are "others" who fight the same battles gives me some level of comfort. Good luck to you!