Have you changed the way you think about food?

I just read today the success story with the title "Thinking of Food as Fuel, Not Entertainment." That title really got me thinking about the success I've been having so far, and why I think that this time I'll truly succeed in getting the weight off.

I believe that many addictions are caused by what's in our heads, rather than what's going on with our bodies. You don't have to agree with that, and you may have valid arguments against it, but that's how I feel.

My "addiction" to food is mostly an emotional one, and I believe that there are reasons why I've subconsciously chosen to sabotage myself and get to this size.

What I really believe is different this time for me though, is how I've changed my thinking about food.

For example, one of my biggest problems with food has always been portion control. I grew up in a household where you sat at the dinner table until you finished everything on your plate. If you took it, you eat it. "Think of all the starving children in..." pick your country. I spent many lonely nights sitting at the dinner table as a child looking at an unappealing and very cold plate of food.

I imagine it was during that time that I started using my "trick" of saving the best for last. If I didn't like some type of food, I would eat it first. Kind of like taking my medicine. Then I would end the meal with whatever item I liked the best. Makes perfect sense if the goal of the meal is to clean your plate.

I've noticed however that doing that means I don't listen to my body at all when it tries to tell me that I'm full. I've ended many meals in my adulthood feeling ill almost to the point of faintness from eating too much food at one sitting.

I decided that this "trick" absolutely had to go. I now make sure to eat whatever tasty morsel that appeals to me the most right up at the beginning so that I don't force myself to keep eating just to get to the best part. I think these are the kinds of changes that will really help me succeed.

Now it's your turn. Do any of you have stories about how you've had to change the way you think about food?

OK, I'll try to illustrate what I meant by "always hungry" and the food I fix "always tastes good."  I didn't mean that I am in a constant mood of craving food.  What I meant was that, now, whenever I do eat one of my smaller 5 to 7 meals a day, I am not just eating to be eating or eating more than I really needed to, as I often did in the "old days" (prior to 4 months ago).  I am always ready to eat because I need to eat, as opposed to I used to eat simply because it was "that time of day" sort of thing.

I just consumed this French toast meal that was fun to think about, prepare, cook, and devour!  4 pieces of 70-calorie bread; 1 tb. of EVOO for skillet; 1/4th cup of skim milk; added to 4 egg whites;   1 tb. of real maple syrup.  The total calories for that are 540.  That is a very healthy meal and it satisfied my sweet tooth and my appetite.  We could choose to disagree on whether or not it was "healthy," but since I have done the research on the ingredients many times, a person  would have a difficult time convincing me otherwise.  How often do I eat it?  Not even once a week, actually, although I do eat egg whites several times a week.

Great thread and I really enjoyed reading all the replies.  Very informative and interesting.  The above illustration I provided is indicative of how my thoughts about food have changed.

I too have mom and dad to thank for being a member of the "clean plate club".  While they did not make us sit there until it wqas gone, they did load on the guilt if you didn't finish what you took..The "think of the starving people in China" was the big opne.  It finallyy dawned on me that it didn't matter about the other starving people because the food wasn't going to get to them anyway, at least get to them and still be edible.  I can't control what restaurants serve so I just dont eat it all anymore.

Hello, everyone. I am new to this website and it has been such a great help for me. Like some of you mentioned, the calorie counter/nutrition counter has really opened my eyes to the nutritional value of the food I'm eating. I stopped eating pork and beef five years ago and three months, I cut out meat completely. It was difficult at first, but I feel so much better. I used have chronic IBS, depression and a whole host of other issues, but just in this short period of time eating a vegetarian diet only, I feel and look better. I'm not suggesting it for everyone, but I will say that sometimes we have to listen to our bodies, and for me, I think I don't process meat very well.

I've also started working out at the gym. The main problem that I am finding though is that the exercising really makes me not hungry, so I'm having to work hard to make sure I get enough calories a day. I gained all of my weight when I was the caretaker for my dad a four years ago. After he died, I lost the first 60 pounds pretty easily, but these last twenty-five pounds are not coming off without a fight. Glad to find a community of people who are all striving to eat and live better lives.

Everyone's stories are so interesting! I grew up with a family of 6 and all of us kids were very very active and always starving when mom finally made us come in for the evening...my mom seemed to be good at not overcooking so only the first 2 or 3 to finish their plate got 2nds! Needless to say, we became very fast eaters, ha! So one thing I've tried to change in my adult life is to slow down and give my stomach time to tell me it's full. I try to put my fork down after every bite. Or tell myself that I have to stretch out eating dinner over 30 minutes rather than 10. This really has helped with portion control! Another thing I do is rather than leaving the leftovers on the stove when I sit down to eat my meal, I'll go ahead and put it all away in the refrigerator, and then sit down. So now if I want 2nds, it requires a little more effort and forces me to make sure that I'm actually still hungry rather than just eating out of convenience. It also keeps me from picking at the food as I'm cleaning it up. These are just a couple of small little things that I do that honestly have drastically changed my portion sizes.

I wasn't so much part of the "eat it because because people are starving" but instead it was a situation of not much choice as there wasn't much money.  And when something yummy was served or purchased (like cookies or ice cream)  then we generally gorged ourselves on it.  We'd (my brother and I) would eat the entire bag of cookies in less than a day.

Now I feel as though I have a disease.  I try to avoid the bad things but I still struggle with the binge eating.  I have lost about 25lbs.  I was doing great but then I had a week off and that's it.  I fell of the cliff, diving into pie, homemade cookies etc.  I lost control for nearly a month.  Needless to say I have gained a few lbs back.  Not as many as I thought, thank goodness.

So how do I manage this disease?  I can't stand the thought that I have to be viligent for the rest of my life. Yet sometimes I completely lack control.  Will my eating ever be normal?

Original Post by adtkhome:

I wasn't so much part of the "eat it because because people are starving" but instead it was a situation of not much choice as there wasn't much money.  And when something yummy was served or purchased (like cookies or ice cream)  then we generally gorged ourselves on it.  We'd (my brother and I) would eat the entire bag of cookies in less than a day.

Now I feel as though I have a disease.  I try to avoid the bad things but I still struggle with the binge eating.  I have lost about 25lbs.  I was doing great but then I had a week off and that's it.  I fell of the cliff, diving into pie, homemade cookies etc.  I lost control for nearly a month.  Needless to say I have gained a few lbs back.  Not as many as I thought, thank goodness.

So how do I manage this disease?  I can't stand the thought that I have to be viligent for the rest of my life. Yet sometimes I completely lack control.  Will my eating ever be normal?

 

There are lots of different opinions about binge eating here in the CC communities, so definitely take a few minutes to search the forums and advice areas for them. 

For me there are basically two things that seem to be working to help me avoid binges.  First, I try not to let myself become too hungry, but rather eat small snacks or move up my meal time whenever I feel that gnawing in my belly. 

Second, I don't make anything strictly off limits food-wise.  I think it's much easier to say "no" to things that aren't really good for me if I know that I could have it but I choose not to.  Also, sometimes I just don't WANT to say "no", so I have a small or normal sized portion of whatever treat I can't resist.  Usually just a single serving of something is more than enough to satisfy while staying within the calorie limits I've set for myself.

We spend our whole lives training ourselves (or being trained) in all sorts of ways, including in how we eat.  You feel like you have a disease, but it's really just training from your childhood.  Change is really difficult, but we can do it!  Being healthy for many of us means UN-learning all those bad habits we practiced for years and years, and replacing them with new and better habits.

Good luck adtkhome!

I've been reading this thread for 3 weeks now, and I keep asking myself.  Have I?  Have I really changed the way I think about food?  Today I know.  I have changed.

One month ago I was at a potluck and I saw a friend who used to have hair down to her waist.  She had shaved it all off.  I asked her why, and she said that she believed her hair held on to things (I think she meant memories, feelings, emotional things).  And that she had had a lot of experiences in the last 7 years that she was ready to let go of.  That both struck me and stuck with me.  In this moment in time I realized that I was ready, ready to let go of everything that was not serving me or others. 

I didn't shave my head   But I did stumble upon this website a few days later.  Actually, several things have happened to me over the last 3 weeks that has led me to this place, one of which was resolving a life-long conflict with my parents. I am not the same person I was one month ago. 

I've noticed that I no longer resent my skinny friends for eating whatever they want, whenever they want. I feel I can do that too.  I also don't think of them as "skinny" anymore.  The way I perceive myself and others has changed.

The way that I am eating today, I can do this for the rest of my life, and be totally and completely happy.  I feel that I am not sacraficing anything.  I am striving for balance.  There is no angst, no loss, no anger. 

I feel like my mind has changed, my sense of self has changed, and that the outside is taking the time it needs to catch up with the inside.  For the first time ever in my life, I don't hate myself, and I'm not ashamed.  I actually like myself, and I think that I will soon love myself.

Shanasedai, you made me cry. Your post was so beautiful. I really needed to read such positive words this morning. When I woke up this morning, I stood in the mirror and just "hated on" my thighs and butt. I had a real big "hate fest." Then I came downstairs and logged on here and found your post. Then I remembered something.

I was adopted and found my birth family when I turned thirty. My adopted family all had thin frames and I was the only "bottom heavy" person in the family. Then I found my birth family and low and behold, there were all of these beautiful "bottom heavy" women. My grandmother had died before I found them, but she had these gorgeous big hips and this tiny waist (just like mine). I need to remind myself that if I despise my body, I am rejecting my beautiful grandma. No matter how much weight I lose, my bottom is always going to be bigger than everything else. I need to love my body where it is and not wish for something that is unattainable. I can reshape those trouble spots, but I can't undo generations of DNA. Thank you for reminding me that I need to love myself (including the big butt and thighs). Have a wonderful weekend.

Adjackson :)  I'm not sure what to say!  I am so very glad that my post helped... and I sincerely think that curvey is beautiful.  There is beauty in every shape and form.  I do like curvey the best though

Your post was almost as if it had come from my brain.... That is the mantra that I've been using for the past 5 weeks - "Food is Fuel, it is not Entertainment, Comfort, a Friend or anything else.  It's here to fuel your body and if it's not doing that, then it's not going IN!"

I have made a choice each and every time I put something in my mouth - "Will this release me from this body, or will it free me from this body?"  For whatever reason this time, it clicked.  I have made smart choices every day for the past 40 days and have lost 22 lbs.  No sugar, salt, white flour or fat.  It's easy.  I can't believe it, but my life has changed and my diet has changed - forever.  Why would I eat that chocolate donut?  Is it going to help me to my goal or slow my progress towards my 100 lb weight loss?  If it doesn't help, it hurts.  Period.

It's a new way of thinking and now that I've been thinking like this for 40+ days, It's forever now!

Ellis412: That's truly inspiring!  40+ days and no sense of loss or frustration

Thanks Shanasedai!

I wish I could tell others what it was that  happened that has made this work for me.... All I know is that I'm tired of being fat.  I'm fed up with telling myself "hey, this looks good on me" when I know deep down, it doesn't.  I won't ever be truly happy in this body unless I shed a lot of weight.  And, this is the only body I'll ever have.

I was lazy, I was indulgent, I was unmotivated and I hated the way I look.  The one other thought that has moved me through each day is this....

"You'll always get what you've always got, if you always do, what you've always done..."  bad grammar - but it's the truth.  You can't change your body or your life by wishing it would happen.  You have to JUST DO IT! 

delivermenow...  "food as fuel" was an example of how we think about food and whether that thinking has changed.  For many of us who are overweight, we don't think of food as fuel, but rather as comfort or as an emotional substitute (consciously or unconsciously). 

In your situation you likely don't have to overcome the exact same sort of thinking, however the way you think about food may still change or need to change.

If you truly only eat 300 calories a day, you are undereating to a dangerous and unhealthy degree.  That doesn't make you psychotic, however it is possible you could be anorexic, but there could also be some other problem.  You might talk to your physician about your situation.

Good luck!

This viewpoint and philosophy really resonates with me.  We are all listening in our heads to the old tapes of conversations/experiences from our lives.  Eating healthy was not the point  - just cleaning the plate was the goal.  Cleaning (eating) everything off your plate was a reminder of when food was scarce (the Depression) -- from a long time past. "Waste not, want not". Our perspectives must reflect better choices on our plates, both portion sizes and nutrition values.  Most of us know better.

Time to wipe the tapes clean and start new ones and give our kids permission to look at meals with a more healthy attitude.