Don't you guys ever miss..

Just eating?  Like, before it became all complicatd and stuff.  Before you knew all about calories and fat grams and saturated whatnots.  Back when you ate a piece of cake because it tasted good, and moved on.  Without guilt, without self-beration.  Back when you used to live for homemade pies and cookies during the holidays, and now cringe in fear of them?  Of ordering impulsively what looked best on the menu to you, and not being slewn with thoughts of which dish could have the lowest calorie content?  Ofliving for the pleasure of now, and not for tomorrow's possible discomfort?  Do you ever get tired of the high-strung neuroticism that goes hand-in-hand with weight loss? 

..I understand that knowledge of these things has its undeniable benefits.. but, sometimes.. when I look back on how I used to live.. ignorance really was bliss.

yup.

=^..^= MOLLY

Yes, I oftentimes wonder what it is like (I have been obsessive about what I eat ever since I modeled as a 13 year old, Im 25 now) to not "care" anymore. To eat what I wanted, when I wanted, just because. I DONT remember what it is like..I really dont. I also wonder if my body would be the same if I never started this process; if I was destined to be this size and that no matter what I had chosen to obsess about, I would have wound up at this weight. Anyway, so to answer your question yes...do you think we could ever go back...doubt it.

Not thinking about what i'm putting into my mouth has gotten me here...obese and needing to lose weight. Life is a journey and learning process.
There are times yes that I think about when I was a child and could just eat a piece of cake and not think anything of it besides how great it tasted.

I just want to be healthy and feel better. I don't mind obessing so much anymore because the rewards are going to be much better for me.

EDITED: for spelling error

Well said shiagirl. There's so much crap around that we can eat--fast food, cakes, candy, cookies, ice cream, that if we don't pay attention to what we eat, and just eat, and eat, and eat....

It's not like we live in some primitive society where we eat to survive!

YES.

and that's why I give myself a day every once in a while to just eat and enjoy and indulge. (not go crazy) but to just not worry. for one day.

if not for celebrating, what else are the holidays for?

That's very true, shiagirl.

But don't you ever get shot with the twinge of mind-crippling envy whenever you see a bone-thin person devour a 10-course meal while you're eating a salad and a baked potato?  And then you ask them how they stay so skinny and eat the crap they eat, and they're all like, "Well I don't know.. I've never watched what I ate." 

It always makes me angry, because whereas I must count calories and glue myself to overstrict food diaries t look the way I do, they.. can just eat.

figurethefat.....

I just keep thinking about how in the beginning we didn't have all this processed food and look now at all the chemicals, sugars, sodium that we are putting in our bodies.

I do eat processed and packaged foods sometimes but nothing like I use to and am working my way to eating healthier each day.

Your right there is SO much junk out there. Just the other day I was looking at this magazine and there was so much food advertisements in it. It just makes me sick that they are like brain washing us to EAT EAT EAT AND GET FAT FAT FAT.

I'm amazed really at how little calories it takes to survive after eating large portions for years. We really don't need that much we just need to be balanced and get all the healthy ones in for the vitamens.

I don't miss eating because I do eat! Most of the time I do not count my calories either because on most days your body asks for the same amount of calories (unless it is around that time of the month)... but even when I do count my calories, they wind up being pretty much what I want and I eat exactly which foods I want. Granted, my diet is VERY select, but out of the foods I can eat: I eat A LOT! 

I never crave junk food EVER, but what I do crave is a LARGE juicy piece of grilled salmon, and when I want it (which is OFTEN) I eat it with a SMILE on my face! haha! And no, I don't eat a TINY PIECE I eat about 12-14 ounces in ONE sitting!!!!!!

I used to be neurotic about eating, but now that I have settled into a comfortable eating plan, it really is not too bad anymore! I hated being NUTS over food because then I really couldn't focus on anything except when and what I was going to eat next. But when I started thinking the way I do now, that I will eat what I want (within my restrictions) I really have not gone bonkers! haha!  

veganpancake........yes I do wonder about people like that who SEEM to be able to eat anything and not gain an ounce. But to be honest I don't believe them when they say oh I don't know I guess I have a fast metabolism or something like that. Either they are fasting meals sometimes for a day or two or exercise alot and sometimes both.

Ive had friends like that and when I had the chance to really watch their patterns most did not eat during certain times or didn't eat at all or exercised like crazy.

My Mom was like that. She would eat a big meal one day and have pie and all the goodies and gravy and things. Then she would go several days without eating hardly anything at all.

I just don't believe it. And if so then there is something wrong with them physically/medically.

 

Every once in a while I start missing certain foods that haven't met my mouth in ages. Sometimes I'll have a nibble though if it's really bad, but that's the great thing about trying to live a healthy lifestyle. It's not about constant restriction, it's about looking at it in a new way. I love eating right and caring about what I put into my body. (I just wish my body would realize that and start shrinking faster :P)

I can't remember when I ever ate things like pie, etc. and didn't give it a thought. Probably not since I was 10 years old. I was a chubby kid in a house full of thin athletic siblings. I just ate it anyway and felt guilty. I do still eat things like that, I just count the calories and watch the portions. I try anticipate when those things are going to be coming up and eat accordingly.

I agree with shiagirl, there are very few people who just eat large amounts and don't put on weight. I think we often only notice when other's are eating a lot but not how they compensate (usually without thinking about it.) I think that's what comes from being in tune with when you're body is actually hungry. My sibs would eat a very large holiday meal and then skip or have smaller ones following. I'd have about the same amount at the holiday meal but would just keep grazing and then have a regular meal later.

I don't think I'll ever be able to NOT THINK about what I'm eating and not gain weight. I don't think my brain is naturally wired to give the right kind of feedback.

Every once in a while I just have an I-Don't-Care day and eat what I want.  =)  It's tough not to add it up in my head but at the same time...it's kind of nice.  Plus I try to get in a workout that day or the next so I don't feel too horrible about it.

I think there's still room for some of that in a healthy lifestyle, it just can't be every day, all the time.

Years ago we didn't live in this toxic food environment. Cakes and pies and huge meals WERE exceptional, and WERE special. It was birthdays and Christmas and Easter and anniversaries, because it was a lot of work and a lot of time and a lot of money to have those kinds of things. Now, they're in every corner store, every mall, every grocery store. Now, they're cheaper than healthy food, and easier too - just unwrap a Little Debbie, no need to make a chocolate cake from scratch. Now, anyone can mindlessly eat their way into massive obesity.

Those thin people eating a large meal - they aren't magical. Either they didn't eat anything all day, so they'd be able to (physically) fit in that large dinner, or they don't eat ALL of every course, or they exercise regularly, or they have a "food hangover" the next day and don't eat much... but more likely, they gain a pound or two over the holidays, but their daily lifestyle lets them burn it off later.

All the "lucky" normal-weight people I know, who don't think about what they eat (though most thin people DO think about it), simply don't eat that much. They eat what they want, but they don't always want the really greasy or oversweet foods, like I do; they eat smaller portions naturally, and they don't go back for seconds and thirds like I do. They can't finish their plates at restaurants.

When I was young and slender and never thought about what I ate, I would not eat past the point of being full. I would not eat to relieve stress or boredom. I didn't go to restaurants a lot. I also worked out hard three days a week. When I was achieving and maintaining a class 2 obese BMI, on the other hand, I'd eat till it hurt and call THAT an "indulgence". I'd soothe all kinds of feelings with food, every single day. I'd eat out about 8-10 meals a week, and every one of them would be the kind of meal I would have considered an overeating "treat" in my former life. (Big mac meal plus cheeseburger plus sundae and sometimes nuggets as well; appetizer plus entree plus dessert at one of those huge-portion restaurants; we're talking 2000-4000 calorie meals here). And, of course, I didn't even take the stairs anymore.

Part of what makes this journey work for me is consciously FIGHTING the neuroticism. Not obsessing over a maintenance day or a splurge day. Not obsessing over the results on the scale. It's not easy - lord, is it not easy - but it's possible if you work at it enough.

We DO need to maintain control of our lifestyles in this toxic environment - the western world is leading us in the opposite direction. That doesn't mean we can't turn it off for a night, or even a weekend, and live it up. It just can't be every night, or every weekend. I now recognize that it was my obese eating pattern that was extreme and unhealthy; maybe it's getting more common to live like that, what with over 2/3 (going on 3/4) of the US population being overweight, and nearly 1/3 obese - but that doesn't make it normal, if you know what I mean.

After losing about 20lbs, I often tell myself and my husband " oh ill splurge this day and eat something bad" but I never do. I would feel so guilty. I think you just put yourself in a new state of mind when you start dieting, which is a good thing. Its a habit you now have to be observant of what you eat. Habits are hard to break, thats why I cant eat a lot of the stuff I use to.:-(

Yes ! Yes ! Yes ! 

 

 

 

 

 

I don't know if you guys listen to Howard Stern or not, but this morning they were discussing what Artie Lang ate for breakfast. It was funny because I couldn't wait to get to work so I can log everything to see how many calories it was. I took a guess before logging it and came within 50 calories!! I can't believe how good I've become at calorie counting :)

for those of you wondering what he ate (before 8:30 am!!) it is:
2 muffins
bagel with butter
caramel machiato (spelling?)
2 hawaiin punches
and a pepsi

It's about 2,200 calories. That example makes me glad I've become so good at it. :)

I know this is funny but..

The only thing that calorie-watching has ruined for me is POPTARTS!!!!

One little metallic package is 400 calories.

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH H

Original Post by shiagirl:

veganpancake........yes I do wonder about people like that who SEEM to be able to eat anything and not gain an ounce. But to be honest I don't believe them when they say oh I don't know I guess I have a fast metabolism or something like that. Either they are fasting meals sometimes for a day or two or exercise alot and sometimes both.

Ive had friends like that and when I had the chance to really watch their patterns most did not eat during certain times or didn't eat at all or exercised like crazy.

My Mom was like that. She would eat a big meal one day and have pie and all the goodies and gravy and things. Then she would go several days without eating hardly anything at all.

I just don't believe it. And if so then there is something wrong with them physically/medically.

 

I AGREE!!!

I surely understand missing it.  But every few weeks, probably about once a month, I have an "eat anything and don't worry about it" day.  It might be a special day, or it might just be a Saturday and we're going to go out for a nice dinner.  And I order whatever I feel like on the menu, or eat whatever I want at the event, until I'm satisfied.  No pigging out, just eating whatever I want until I'm well satisfied.  (At a restaurant, that probably means lobster bisque, steak, cheesecake, whatever--I DO NOT eat all of it, I take the rest home for another meal, snack, treat.) If you do it that seldomly, it's neither a weight nor a health issue.  You'll see the scale jump a bit the next morning, but within another day or two the excess food will have gone through your system and you'll be back to your previous weight.  If three days later, you're still a little high, then cut back a little more until you've compensated.  It's pretty simple.  And the enjoyment of eating all the rich, special foods is enough for a few weeks.