Exercise Disorders...

Hi I'm recovering from an exercise bulimia and need some tips.  I'm down to doing cardio for an hour a day but still having problems with binges...(i used to binge over 3000 calories a day and spend about 3 hours running it off).  Now i'm running 7 miles a day but I find I'm still having problems with binges...I hope to eventually get down to 45 minutes of cardio 5 times a week...right now i'm 110 pounds 5'4....and i just want to maintain my weight......but I need to mellow my eating habits first.  Does anyone have any advice on how to get over eating binges?  I threw away my scale yesturday which I'm hoping will be a positive change.

Try to not keep foods in the house that you tend to binge on- throw away all junk food, and most of your prepackaged food. I find that if I have to actually make a meal (i.e cooking rice/pasta/meats), I'm much less tempted to binge, since it takes too much effort to make the food in the first place. For snacks, keep a stash of fruits and veggies around, and if you do feel the urge to binge, you can eat large quantities of those and still stay in your calorie limit.

Another trick- if you tend to binge on salty foods (my problem), try making yourself a warm cup of chicken broth whenever you feel the urge to binge. Yes, it's a lot of salt, but it's a whole heckofalot less damaging than eating 3000 calories in potato chips, and it tends to quell that immediate need for something salty.

I've also found that to cure my urge to binge at night, a bowl of oatmeal at 10pm helps a lot- it fills me up enough to distract myself til morning. 

Good luck!

ohhh that's a great idea with the chicken broth....i find i don't have any junk foods in the house.....i'm the same way with the salty foods...i tend to overindulge on crackers/bread etc.....i'm trying to get rid of all the bread in the house. 

since i've been exercising so much my body has adapted to the exercise...i'm scared i'm going to balloon out now that i'm not running as much...should i be worried?

Have you ever thought of seeking help through a support group like Overeaters Anonymous?  It is not just for "fat people" and it helps to have others who may share your problem along with the support from them.

As far the not exercising as much as before...since you are trying not to eat as many calories as before, when you don't exercise you shouldn't worry about "ballooning."  "Dieting" is about balance- using the calories we take in and not having huge excesses in what goes in or out (i.e you shouldn't try to burn 1000 cals if you took in 2000.)

It is great that you are trying to change your habits and hope for your success with this.

First off, you're eating a good amount of calories, because you're starving from all that exercising.  If you're burning that much, you're obviously going to need to eat 3000 cals.  First thing is you need to mellow out the exercising, because thats the reason your body is screaming out for food.  Try that, because unless you stop the exercising, you're going to have a hell of a time trying to eat less.

If you are exercising as much as you are, 2300-2500 calories wouldn't be considered a binge, but considered healthy.  You're going to have to put it into perspective.  A female at 5'4" and 108lbs (and 21--saw in your other post), is literally just a few ounces away from being underweight.  The number one thing you need to do is to cut your running and exercising down.

I'd reccomend you going to talk to a therapist about this, because they could really help you with your compulsive exercising.

so i threw away my scale in hopes of becoming less obsessive...was this a good idea....i think it was contributing to my problem since i was looking at the number so many times during the day.  i am well aware of the fact that my weight fluctuates but it's just an obsessive thing.....was this a good idea? should i have one? is it possible to maintain weight without one....

what is the proper caloric intake for someone of my size to taking in if I'm getting over an excersise problem....will my metabolism now be really slow....or can i eat my basal metabolic rate + whatever i work off??

today i ran for an hour and burned off 580 calories so i ate 2100......does this seem about right?

yes!! it was such a good idea well done for having the strength to chuck 'em out :)

we have very similar stats (last time i weighed) and i maintain my size without a scale, ive no idea on my weight but i know my clothes fit the same so thats good enough to me :) i think going by size rather than weight is much better and will help you let loose if youre ED

as for yesterday, 2100 cals sounds fine to me. i take in that much every other day (days i work out for an hour) and 1800 on days i dont! all i can say is keep it up! try to give youreself rest days and get down to doing less cardio and maybe add some weights and or yoga for flexibility

good luck

I too have had problems in the past with binging.  I think the first step you need to do is recognize what are your trigger foods - the foods that tend to lead you to binge.  If you lke salty foods that's ok, you just need to manage your portions.  I would never recommend eliminating these foods from your household or your diet, since that usually just increases your urges to binge on them later,  however, you have to make sure that if your are going to eat bread, it is only going to be one slice, and if that doesn't satisfy you, drink a glass of water and wait a few minutes.  make wise and healthy eating choices, and you'll feel less likely to punish yourself by running 3 hours to compensate.