I am so tired of thinking about food!!!

Its out of control lately.  All I can think about is food, not just planning my calories for the day but 'bad' food and binging.  The other night I even had a dream about the biggest Buffet ever! I woke up craving everything I had just dreamt about.  WTF...I just don't get it and its starting to have major consequences on my food choices threw out the day.  For example yesterday I walked over to taco bell to get my free taco (which I budgeted in my cals for the day) and also ordered the big box meal!  It was like I was possessed.  When I got back to my store I divided the 6 items into 3 meals and ended up only 300 cals over for the day but still ate under what would be my maintenance cals for this weight. (I use my maintenance cals as a guide for bad days like this, if I go over them then I seriously hate myself) I have no idea what is going on.  Does anyone else experience anything like this?

Yes and no. I'm obsessed with food but I don't let it control me. If you're a foodie (I totally am) then I suggest you read a book by Michael Pollan called In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto. I think you might discover a thing or two about the foods you've been eating and you may gain a lot more control over "bad foods". 

The book can be hard to sit and read in small parts so if you don't have a lot of time on your hands, I highly recommend finding an audio version (available at lots of libraries) and listen to it. The reader is quite wonderful. You'll never look at food the same way again.

Also, I HIGHLY recommend checking out The End of Overeatting: Taking Control Over the Insatiable American Appetite by David Kessler (I think that's his name). There is a little video on the amazon site that's a note from the author on the book. 

I think it's really important for you to understand what you're eating and how it affects your appetite and your choices. You might be amazed at how you're programming your own food desires through what you currently eat.

Good luck!

Agree with sunnyhikes on In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan. I'm currently reading one of his other books Omnivore's Dilemma, another must-read.

Both books are a good way to disconnect completely from thinking about good and bad foods, calories, RDAs, nutrients, nutriceuticals, transfats, synthetic sugars, optimal fat/protein/carb spreads, etc.

Until the tobacco industry did a deal with all the states to pay damages for the health costs of treating smokers in return for gaining all control over anti-smoking campaigns, there was a really successful independent campaign (actual numbers of teen smokers plummeted in Florida, where it ran) showing how tobacco companies were manipulating teens into smoking.

Reading Pollan's books is a bit like facing one of those anti-smoking ads -- it's no longer about good foods and bad foods -- you discover you're eating stuff that isn't even food at all which is why you end up craving and bingeing all the time -- it is not meant to function like food, it is meant to deal with the corn surplus by turning you into an industrial eater.

Anyhow, see if you don't find Pollan's writings food for thought as well! Best wishes.

Thanks, I am going to see if my local book store has any of those books today if not I will order them from the internet.

Obsessive thinking about food is a sign that you may not be eating enough - it's one of the bodies natural defenses against starvation.  They actually did a study (during WWII) where they starved healthy young men, to study the effects of refeeding, and the men developed very strong obsessions with food during the starvation part of the study.

How many calories per day are you eating? Are you making sure to get plenty of fat and protein? How much weight do you lose, on average? Maybe it would be better to aim for a smaller daily deficiet, and lose slowly for a month or two, while your body adjusts to your current weight, then kick back into a higher weight loss mode.

Hey dont worry that happens to everybody at least once, lately I also have the same problem about thinking about food all the time, it drives me crazy really, but thats when I think about all my results and how my life has changed and then compared to all those good things, food seems so unatractive, what Iam trying to say is that you cant let food control you, you got the power!!! Sure, you cant always control yourself, but thats when excersise comes, when I eat too much I do extra time, so now when I want to eat something I now i cant I just think in all the excersise I have to do to burn all those calories and like magic I dont want to eat that thing anymore!!. Remember your goals and how all that junk food will only make you suffer in the future, If you keep that in mind dont you think that carrots and apples sound way better as snacks? dont worry we all fall so remember when that happens we are always here to help you stand up! ^^  

You got the power its up to you how you'll use it.

Original Post by appletwo:

Obsessive thinking about food is a sign that you may not be eating enough - it's one of the bodies natural defenses against starvation.  They actually did a study (during WWII) where they starved healthy young men, to study the effects of refeeding, and the men developed very strong obsessions with food during the starvation part of the study.

How many calories per day are you eating? Are you making sure to get plenty of fat and protein? How much weight do you lose, on average? Maybe it would be better to aim for a smaller daily deficiet, and lose slowly for a month or two, while your body adjusts to your current weight, then kick back into a higher weight loss mode.

I don't think I'm starving myself.  I eat around 1400 cals on days when I don't work out and around 1800 on the days I do. (plus I have one free day a week or one free weekend a month)  I am actually very careful to make sure I am eating balanced and since my hair started falling out even more so.  (I went to the dr and he said all my blood work was fine and sometimes hair loss is a side effect of weight loss) In the beginning I lost really fast and then Sept I lost 8lbs and oct I lost 6.6, so I am averaging the 1-2lbs a week.