Self Control?!?

I've been trying to lose weight for a while now. There are times when I can eat healthy, but most of the time I have a really hard time not eating. Like I feel like I eat everything in sight and will have snacks/desserts and say "only today" but then its the same the next day too....

I guess my question for you all is how do you control the temptation to eat? Do you have any tips on having more self-control when it comes to eating? I've gained 5 pounds in the past 3 months... which is definitely the opposite of what I have been working towards.

Thanks!

I've started brushing my teeth whenever I feel the need to munch on something unhealthy.. by the time I've finished brushing, the urge is normally gone. its tough... but apparently it gets easier :)

good luck

chocolate is my weakness. ive found that if i just dont buy the junk, then i dont think about it. to get my chocolate fix, i drink chocolate milk and once in awhile i have the 100 cal pack of chocolate chip cookies. I used to eat those alot, but now, i only have them once in awhile. it takes work and discipline to cut back on bad things, but you can do it!

chocolate is my weakness. ive found that if i just dont buy the junk, then i dont think about it. to get my chocolate fix, i drink chocolate milk and once in awhile i have the 100 cal pack of chocolate chip cookies. I used to eat those alot, but now, i only have them once in awhile. it takes work and discipline to cut back on bad things, but you can do it!

sorry for the double post! also, when i get hungry, i drink a glass of water before I eat and alot of times that takes care of it for a while.

Try to pick food items lower in carbs for awhile...should control your urge to eat all the wrong things. I am of the belief that it is refined sugar and refined flour that causes weight problems, not necessarily low fat.  Its what works for me. Using this site has been a tremedous help to me...by keeping logs, i actually can see what I am eating from day to day. 

Instead of saying 'only today' try saying 'I can have it tomorrow' instead... then when tomorrow comes, you can either put it off again or enjoy your treat, but you'll at least halve the number of 'naughties' you eat. Delayed gratification is a very good tool to have in your arsenal. (if 'tomorrow' seems too far away, start by saying 'I'll have it in fifteen minutes', or 'half an hour' etc. and gradually build your way up.)

There are no tips to having self-control. But there are somethings that can help you avoid temptation. I can only talk from personal experience so I don't know if it will work for you.

1. Buy only what is absolutely necessary and in small amounts (if you have the time). That way, even if you are tempted, it is not readily available. I usually give up on eating something if it means I have to go to the store to get it. I end up promising myself I'll get it another day. The good news is that, I wouldn't have had it that day.

2. Drinks lots of water. It fills you up and helps you to eat less. I usually do that before a meal when I know that I have only a few calories left for that day.

3. This is the hardest. You don't pray for discipline and self control or hope for it. You work at it and like anything else, it gets better every time, and you feel better with each temptation conquered.

4. Choose healthier snacks so that even if you eat in big amount, it is not as destructive as eating a whole bowl of peanuts (tasty as they are).

5. What triggers your eating? Boredom? Emotional issues? Find that and address it.

6. If you have time, instead of eating, take a walk.

7. Or, still if you can afford it, sleep more. That way, you spend less time thinking about food.

 

That aside, I totally understand what you are going through!

i was the same...eat one chip and in 10 minutes the bag was gone! 

helps not to have it around, and the brushing your teeth idea works great!!!  Also chewing gum.

I found that it got alot easier after you started to see results, it motivates you to keep making good choices.

i definitely agree with the people who say don't keep the stuff around!

but if you have treats and what not at work (i am faced with this daily) it can be harder. what works for me is to PLAN my big treats.

my office does "rainy day pizza" on top of all the other crap we have, but i usually pass right over it for a salad, because i know if i really want pizza, i'll get it for my big cheat meal on the weekend. i'd rather plan it out, order it from my fave place, sit down at my house and eat it. instead of scarfing a mediocre slice or two from the place they order from.

also, try to think about how you'll feel AFTER you eat it whatever it is. yeah, that treat is gonna taste great, for about 5 minutes. then it's gone and over. is it worth it? 

I've been having the same problem latley, and it scares me so much!!!  I'm on a one week school vacation right now, and there's so much food just lying around the house!!!  I can't drive and my parents work all day, so I'm just stuck at the house with all the food. -_-;;

latley I've been trying to do something to get my mind off eating..like cleaning or making something (not food!)

 

today I havn't felt the urge to eat ruthlessly though, so that's good! :]

(my fav thing to stuff my face with when I absolutely cannot stop is Kix, because it's only 88 calories for a cup, and there's a lot of Kix in a whole cup!!) :]

Thanks to all of you who offered suggestions. I carried around a waterbottle with me today and when i was bored i drank from it. It seemed to help a lot. I definitely haven't been in as snacky of a mood today. Also yeah... i just shouldn't have junk around. I have a friend who brushes her teeth once she decides she is done eating for the day... which she says works great too. So many things! Lets just hope I can (and you too) find some sort of combination that works for me. THANKS!

Original Post by kajikit:

Instead of saying 'only today' try saying 'I can have it tomorrow' instead... then when tomorrow comes, you can either put it off again or enjoy your treat, but you'll at least halve the number of 'naughties' you eat. Delayed gratification is a very good tool to have in your arsenal. (if 'tomorrow' seems too far away, start by saying 'I'll have it in fifteen minutes', or 'half an hour' etc. and gradually build your way up.)

that's a good idea. i should do that more!!!!!!

 

i'm terrible so i have no good advice.... i usually just try to not keep things in the house that make me "lose it" for instance.... i have a soft spot for salty cheesey snacks.... so if i give in and buy a bag of something.... and i have them in the house, they're as good as gone.  if it's out of sight. it's also (usually) out of mind.  how often do you reallly get in the car and go buy a piece of cake just cuz you want it?  usually you fight it and it goes away... but if you know it's in the pantry (even if it's the way back!) your going to want it!

wow, I have the exact same problem. I get to a certain point in weight loss and I start slacking and eating one day and the next day be like "oh, well it will be only today, I wont eat too much tomorrow" but I do.

What I do, and it sort of helps, is to

1. remind yourself of what your goal is. Say to yourself, for example, "ok, if I eat this bowl of ice cream, I will have to work twice as hard to burn this off and it brings me father away from my goal"

2. Walk away from the kitchen! Worst you can do is stay where there is food. Go watch tv, complete some work, do SOMETHING ELSE!! I know for a fact that if I linger in the kitchen long enough, I will eat something even if I am full.

Jus remember that eating dessert that lasts 10 minutes of satisfacion will never be worth the satisfaction of being comfortable in your own skin.

Good luck, message me if it helps you or you just want to chat. I want to know if it works for other people besides me!:)

Self control is very hard! Figure out where or when it's the worst for you. For me it's sitting at my desk at work. I have a photo on my desktop of myself in a bathing suit from my wedding day. I look at it and I think about the phrase "nothing tastes as good as being thin feels" and I have sugar free hot chocolate or Crystal Light "On the go" Iced Tea or Peach Iced Tea in my water bottle and I feel like I've had a treat but not one that will make me feel bad later. I also keep track of calories in the foods I eat and have a daily total. It really helps to learn how many calories are in what we eat, it affects what we eat or how many of something we eat. My body type naturally burns 1700 calories a day so I try to eat 1300 on non workout days and 1700 on workout days. It takes months not weeks to lose weight (1 pound = 3500 calories) so start now and set a goal for a month or two from now and you'll get there and have better luck staying there if you do it right. It's a commitment to yourself and when you feel weak, give yourself a treat but not something that will ruin your commitment! Good Luck!

I say to myself, "hunger is the feeling of fat cells shrinking."  (Not technically true, but close enough for motivation.)  Then I enjoy the mild hunger sensations. 

 

That, and I don't keep food around me, except "emergency" food like cans of tuna.

 

This is going to sound silly, but when I am in one of those "i'm bored so I suddently feel like eating even though I'm not hungry" modes, I actually take a nice look at my gut and think about how much I want it GONE.  That goes along with funindasun said about thinking of your goals.  I also reflect on the progress I made; this week I bought a new swimsuit that I think looks pretty good on me.  I was in super snacking mode a couple nights ago and went in my room and put the new suit on.  I just looked at myself in the mirror and thought "you got this far, don't screw it up."

Again it sounds kind of silly but it works for me.

When its nice outside I also go for a walk if I need to get away from the kitchen.

Great ideas!

laschndr, I also try on clothes that did not fit a short while ago when I feel snackish...and try on the clothes that are now too big (yay!) and try on the clothes that don't quite fit but will soon if I keep it up. Usually the urge to have treats fades away.

There's some really good advice in this thread! I appreciate it, because I too struggle with binge eating and have felt frustrated about my lack of self control. I think the suggestion about trying on clothes might really help me! For one thing, I know I'm most likely to binge when wearing my sweatpants around the house, so maybe it's time for some nice pants and a belt!

Writing absolutely everything down helps me stop from eating as much... if anything else I don't want to get out my pen and write yet another thing on the list of food items. But, then again, I can only keep this up for about a month before I give that up and eat terrible again.

Eating enough fiber (fruits and vegetables), protein and fat in order to not feel hungry all the time.