Addicted to Food
I've been trying to loose a few pounds for a few months now, with no success. I've come to the conclusion that the problem is that I love food. I love preparing it, I love eating it, I love going out to a good restaurant. I don't even have to be hungry!
So, since I'm sure there are plenty of people here who love food, I'm wondering what the rest of you do to keep yourself from eating a) food that isn't even that good or b) food that is just too tasty-looking to pass up or even c) food that just happens to be available.
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13 Comments:
Life's too short to eat bad food. So I don't, unless it's a social obligation and then I eat enough to be polite. I don't normally eat when I'm not hungry (social obligations excepted) and I don't stuff myself. Since most of the food I eat is stuff that I've made, it's not like I can't have the same thing tomorrow if I want it, so there's no need to keep eating after I'm full.
dbcurrie at 12:14AM on 12/22/08
I often cook meals and then sit down and sip wine and not eat. Why? Saturation point. If I smell it, taste it, and play with it for hours I am pretty tired of dealing with it.
I find later that night or the next day I can have a better taste for my work.
Like making 4000 cookies and someone saying to you have a cookie.
JerzeeTomato at 12:45AM on 12/22/08
Addicted? Let me tell you a story, and then you decide if this is an addiction:
My cousin Rick and I, in the car, on our way to a new Chinese restaurant we've heard about. All we're talking about is what we hope they have on the menu.
We get there, and we are not disappointed. The place is a dump, but the food is extraordinary. We talk about what we're eating while we're eating it, we share, we order too much, we take the leftovers with us.
On the way home, we talk about the meal we just had, then we talk about what we're going to have for breakfast in the morning. We talk about a good place for lunch, and we start planning the menu for dinner.
Once home, we sit down and eat the Chinese food we just brought with us. While we're eating it, we talk about how great it is at room temperature and about the superlative ham in the fridge that was a gift from one of Rick's clients.
During the night, I wake up to sounds downstairs. I venture to the top of the stairs, and I find Rick fixing himself a ham sandwich. I run downstairs and join him for a sandwich of my own.
The next morning, Rick's wife wants to know why there are what she calls "hamprints" all over the fridge door.
Think we're addicted?
Womandingo at 1:00AM on 12/22/08
I physically cannot eat when:
*I don't feel well
*I'm too tired
*I've cooked/baked all day (like the laat couple of days -- about 18-20 hours a day every day since Thursday. That's what happens when you fall ill and start your holiday baking/cooking late.)
*I'm upset or stressed or nervous about something.
See, I don't have that much time left to eat:-). But seriously, I don't crave/buy/eat bad food - why would I? I can only eat as much as I can eat, and I certainly don't eat when I'm not hungry - I just don't want to. Sometimes it actually takes me a while to realise that I'm hungry (the realisation may come when my hands start shaking :-)). But more importantly, I love food, and I love enjoying my food when I eat it (in fact, sometimes I need particular settings for particular foods in order to really savour every bite). So I reckon that's it.
brooke29 at 1:44AM on 12/22/08
I approach food two ways. First is Quality instead of Quantity. At potlucks, restaurants, dinners, etc, I don't waste my time on the bread, sweets, chips, etc. I focus on the high end proteins and veg. I eat my food in small portions. Number two: small portions of your favorite foods. I eat all my meals on a lunch plate. If anything looks real good you can always save some and eat it tomorrow.
lamora at 2:26AM on 12/22/08
I tend not to eat as much when I cook.
I try and eat small portions and to savor them more.
I try not to drink much soda because it it very calorie rich and it's very easy to drink a lot of calories that way.
I haven't read up on it, but I'm pretty sure some people are genetically predisposed to addictions and food is one of them. I think it comes down to willpower at that point, nobody's shoveling the food into your mouth, it's all you.
I'd deal with "food that isn't even that good" and "food that happens to be available". Don't eat it, it's crap. Even if it's free, they should be paying you to eat crap. Have a bite, realize it's junk and toss the rest, that's taking control of your eating habits. That's why I rarely refill my fountain drinks or make a choice to get plain iced tea instead of coke, they should be paying you to drink it. I've been 195 pounds and I'd rather not have my thighs rub and chafe against each other again. Also if you eat smaller meals, you will get used to it and you will train yourself to be satisfied with less in your belly. These are all conscious choices you need to make, if you have a problem with it you need to try harder than other people, chew your food more, savor and enjoy it more but eat less. Eating is a very sensual experience, and people gain comfort in it, I know I have, but it won't make you feel better ultimately, you'll just get fat.
You have a chocolate bar, you can eat it in a couple minutes or take a square and savor it, then repeat once more, and that will take a couple minutes. What do you have after that time? You have the taste of chocolate in your mouth in both instances, but you still have most of the chocolate bar in the second instance to savor tomorrow or later.
If you really don't want to stop your inputs you need to raise your outputs, hit the gym, do strength training and cardio, get a personal trainer if you can afford it. I started doing pilates for a back issue and as a fringe benefit I noticed some weight loss (along with slight diet change). You really don't need anything but an area to exercise in. I can recommend some easy exercises to start if you want.
the_o at 3:00AM on 12/22/08
@Jerzee If someone asked that after 4000 cookies, that's where the rolling pin comes to use. I would say I would have an addiction to food (my father's side), I have learned control and try to do some sort of physical activity as much as my lazy ass will allow. I am 5' foot tall and small frame, but gaining five pounds as to compared to say someone who is 5 foot 6" will show on me much more then on the taller person. I just graze small stuff throughout the day which works for me. But I will say this on my own behalf CONTROL.
pjracz10 at 3:07AM on 12/22/08
I go to Costco and do not try samples. The sample people cannot believe it. I just do not like anything they ever have samples of. To say I am a picky/finicky eater would be about right.
We often go to a new restaurant read the menu and leave.
I can stave off being hungry for a long time. In my busy days I can forget to eat.
I am also a picker. If there is something I like I pick at it. Friday I ate a pretzel for 4 hours while I was baking.
If you are choosy about what you eat I find the caloric issue is easier to manage.
JerzeeTomato at 4:15AM on 12/22/08
This is cheating a little. My mother didn't like food. Sort of. She was not a picky eater, just a picky preparer? She was anal about how food was presented and prepared. Yet, she loved Little Charlie's pizza from the frozen food section.
She always felt overweight when she was 100 lb. Then again, she didn't quite make 5' tall either -- same with me. Her thought on eating (when it was something prepared to her satisfaction) was to eat until you're one bite from sated. It keeps you wanting more the next time.
Cassaendra at 7:46AM on 12/22/08
I can totally relate to your post as I was overweight throughout my teens and early twenties simply because I was addicted to bad food and trapped in a vicious cycle whereby I didn't want to exercise because my self-esteem was so low but instead of doing anything positive about it, I used food as comfort and felt worse. Somehow I broke that and that's when I started to really love good food and despise junk. It's similar to what happened to me with cigarettes: once I'd stopped for good, I started to feel physically repulsed by them as if a defense mechanism in my brain had been activated to protect me against the temptation to do myself harm. However, I do have times when I eat a bit more and put on a bit of weight but somehow I know I will naturally slip back to my normal weight as my body seems to ask for it. Some of the things I try to do to keep temptation at bay are drinking lots of green tea, chewing gum and keeping low-cal snacks at hand such as rice cakes, fresh fruit with fromage frais, natural yogurt and some dried fruit to fill me up when I'm hungry. Don't beat yourself up, though...We all have ups and downs and it takes a long time to know what works for you as long as you don't sacrifice your love of food. Never deprive yourself and try to balance the moments of weakness with moderation.
HappyMuncher at 11:21AM on 12/22/08
I recently lost 20 lbs, and here's how I did it:
1. I chew more. I try to chew each bite of food 20 times or so, really savoring the flavor...then i don't eat as much.
2. I don't eat processed food (most of the time), and if I do, I "taste it, and waste it"
3. I try to think about what I'm eating, and if really want it
KateRuby at 12:12PM on 12/22/08
Thanks so much for all your advice! I think the hardest thing for me is that when I was younger I was trained to clean my plate no matter what. I'll give a lot of this a try and let you know how I do!
Skythe at 11:33AM on 12/23/08
I eat good food but I always eat in moderation. You also have to be incredibly picky, meaning that if a food isn't a 7 or higher on a scale of 1-10 you should probably pass. I'm a big fan of healthy (aka not artificial) low calorie foods that are also tasty that help me keep my weight in check. Some favorites are fage yogurt, string cheese, trail mix, chocolate covered cocoa nibs. Good luck!!
amandalovesfood at 6:32PM on 12/29/08