Overeating ALL THE TIME

[honeybeedreams]

I think some of it is retraining our brains to understand that satisfied doesn't mean completely stuffed.  I LOVE the feeling of being so full I almost can't breathe - to me it means safety and love - it brings back memories of being a child and feeling free and not judged (most of my family memories revolve around copious amounts of food.)

 

This is only my first Whole30, but my thought isn't unique to it - I've been actively re-orienting my brain for the past year or so to find satisfaction at being full and not stuffed.  It's really, really uncomfortable and I failed more days than I succeeded in the beginning, but months later, I'm starting to tip the scale in the other direction - more wins than losses.

 

I don't know if this will resonate with you at all, but I often think about how uncomfortable I was doing the Couch to 5k program.  It was awful and terrible at times, but after 10 weeks of diligent work, I was able to train myself to deal with that discomfort and move with it instead of against it.  I now run 3-4 times/week and it's something I look forward to with anticipation (and it isn't any easy or more comfortable - it's the same level, maybe more since I push myself harder these days).

 

If I take that same thought and apply it to my overeating (which is frankly YEARS in the making...) I realize that logically I'm going to experience some discomfort around changing the way my brain works and perceives food.  Food isn't merely a fuel source for me, it's comfort and safety and a million other things (just like so many others...) but if I can consciously CHOOSE a different path when the instinct to overeat arises, I have a good chance of changing those neural pathways and building new ones where food =/= comfort.  Taking a very basic principal from some recent brain research, and this is VERY watered down, but it absolutely works, if I can move myself form the emotional connection, even if I can't quiet pinpoint what that is, just that I FEEL it would be awesome to have that overfull feeling (regardless of cause) and get into the thinking part of my brain, the logic, I can often move past the desire to overeat.  This is why leaving and taking a walk often works, not in the exact same way, but it moves the activity center from that feeling part of your brain to another part.  I use this with my kids sometimes - my son is prone to some anxious almost panic attacks, like his mother, and if I can get him answering questions where he has to think (we play a backwards question game - where I ask a question and they have to give me ANY answer other than the right one - this moves him into thinking vs automatic response (what's your favorite color?  he can't say blue - he has to say 12 or dog or something else random.  And it goes on and on until he has moved that activity center from the upset to the thinking.)

 

I know this is long and maybe none of it resonates with you, but this is work I've been doing and thoughts I've been working on for years and feel like I've made some significant progress.  If I used to overeat say 3 or 4 times/week, it now only happens once/month or even once a quarter.  You're right, it's not about the food, it's about the feeling.  Good luck working through this - I'm not sure how the pregnancy hormones might also be adding an additional layer of trigger since hormone-wise, your body's sole goal right now is to grow and birth a healthy human.

[runninglawyer88]

Thank you honeybee--I actually HATE being overly stuffed and this is relatively new for me to overeat with regularity (usually it's your typical event-related overeating and that's it). I really really really appreciate your perspective and experience. You are doing fantastic and it sounds like you will certainly meet your goal of retraining your brain and developing healthier habits. 

[AmyS]

Along with all of the heartfelt and thoughtful posts above, I'd like to bring back to the forefront the fact that you're pregnant.  You may think that this has little or nothing to do with pregnancy, but I'm willing to make an actual cash bet that it does.  I look back on how I ate when I was pregnant, and if I had gone by that particular way/amount of eating to evaluate myself and my priorities, I would be reduced to a quivering, sobbing mass on the floor, desperately afraid that my life would be shortened by my eating habits.  (My memories of pregnancy are not, in general, pleasant, and since I was pregnant with twins, my eating was just something I really don't ever care to do again. Heh.)

 

I'm saying all of that in order to suggest that you google Melissa Hartwig, Whole30, and pregnancy, and see if any of what Melissa wrote during her recent pregnancy resonates with you.  This is not to take away from all of the wisdom of this really fantastic thread, but to suggst that anything you might be experiencing is going to be compounded and perhaps, for a time, altered significantly, while you're pregnant.

 

Also - congrats and sending best wishes for happy eating and stress-reduced living (don't laugh too loudly at that one, I know, I know...)

[runninglawyer88]

 

 

I'm saying all of that in order to suggest that you google Melissa Hartwig, Whole30, and pregnancy, and see if any of what Melissa wrote during her recent pregnancy resonates with you.  This is not to take away from all of the wisdom of this really fantastic thread, but to suggst that anything you might be experiencing is going to be compounded and perhaps, for a time, altered significantly, while you're pregnant.

 

Also - congrats and sending best wishes for happy eating and stress-reduced living (don't laugh too loudly at that one, I know, I know...)

I'm sorry you had a rough pregnancy but you got through it and have 2 beautiful babies to show for it! Thanks for the pointers--I hesitate to bring pregnancy into it because it FEELS like a cop-out for inexcusable behavior.

 

For example, after having PLENTY to eat at an event last night I came home and had an orange, bag of nuts (individual serving), 2 bags of freeze dried fruit (.4oz each), and a chicken burger w/ avocado with a small sweet potato w/ almond butter on the side. That is simply RIDICULOUS! I know I could blame it on pregnancy but I just feel in my heart of hearts that it's something more. Does that make sense? Like really...WTF...why would I do that? For dinner I had already eaten approx. 1 pound of shrimp cocktail (no sauce, only lemon juice), 6 large strawberries, a salad with oil/vinegar and pears, large piece of halibut, huge serving of brussel sprouts, and a couple pieces of eggplant. I had plenty for lunch and breakfast as well (3 eggs, chicken sausage, and sautéed veg for each of them), plus a bag of nuts, an orange, and 2 oz serving of salmon for "snacks" while out shopping before I could get home for lunch. 

[SalsaEzz]

Here's the tough love.. It doesn't seem diet or pregnancy related to me.. This seems like a fairly typical binge eating pattern... A habit/impulse rather than an actual need.

But I'm not an expert!

Good luck with everything!!!

[AmyS]

I'm sorry you had a rough pregnancy but you got through it and have 2 beautiful babies to show for it! Thanks for the pointers--I hesitate to bring pregnancy into it because it FEELS like a cop-out for inexcusable behavior.

 

For example, after having PLENTY to eat at an event last night I came home and had an orange, bag of nuts (individual serving), 2 bags of freeze dried fruit (.4oz each), and a chicken burger w/ avocado with a small sweet potato w/ almond butter on the side. That is simply RIDICULOUS! I know I could blame it on pregnancy but I just feel in my heart of hearts that it's something more. Does that make sense? Like really...WTF...why would I do that? For dinner I had already eaten approx. 1 pound of shrimp cocktail (no sauce, only lemon juice), 6 large strawberries, a salad with oil/vinegar and pears, large piece of halibut, huge serving of brussel sprouts, and a couple pieces of eggplant. I had plenty for lunch and breakfast as well (3 eggs, chicken sausage, and sautéed veg for each of them), plus a bag of nuts, an orange, and 2 oz serving of salmon for "snacks" while out shopping before I could get home for lunch.

 

 

OK I know I should have paid attention but all I got out of that was wordswordswords CHICKEN BURGER wordswordswords SHRIMP COCKTAIL - note to self: reading posts on this forum when one is hungry is inadvisable. 

 

It's possible that you feel more full during pregnancy because, well, there's less room to fill up.  And it's possible that you need more than three meals - maybe if you plan 4-5 meals, like deliberately plan them, you can figure out what portions don't make you feel too full.

 

Also, I'm indeed happy that my girls are healthy ten year olds (where did THAT decade go?!) and that Whole30 has helped me get so much healthier. :wub:

 

In any case, it sounds like you've gotten some really helpful insights here about emotional eating, and that's pretty fantastic.  And now, I have a hankering for chicken burgers and shrimp cocktail.  Together. 

[SalsaEzz]

Two good books

1) the Gabriel Method

2) You Can Heal Your Life

Both life changing for me!

[runninglawyer88]

Two good books

1) the Gabriel Method

2) You Can Heal Your Life

Both life changing for me!

Thanks for the suggestions although I wouldn't characterize this as "binge eating" ---I think that's a rather particular (and serious) medical diagnosis that would rise to a much more serious level. I suffered from anorexia many years ago and I don't use eating disorder labels lightly. Thank you for your input though.

[runninglawyer88]

OK I know I should have paid attention but all I got out of that was wordswordswords CHICKEN BURGER wordswordswords SHRIMP COCKTAIL - note to self: reading posts on this forum when one is hungry is inadvisable. 

 

It's possible that you feel more full during pregnancy because, well, there's less room to fill up.  And it's possible that you need more than three meals - maybe if you plan 4-5 meals, like deliberately plan them, you can figure out what portions don't make you feel too full.

 

Also, I'm indeed happy that my girls are healthy ten year olds (where did THAT decade go?!) and that Whole30 has helped me get so much healthier. :wub:

 

In any case, it sounds like you've gotten some really helpful insights here about emotional eating, and that's pretty fantastic.  And now, I have a hankering for chicken burgers and shrimp cocktail.  Together. 

I am much more used to more frequent feedings (especially since I workout almost daily) which probably also makes it difficult to eat an appropriate amount. I think I might be afraid of hunger so I eat too much at meal times so that I can sustain myself until my next meal. But I don't ALWAYS do it so I think it's a combination of fear of getting too hungry and the feeling of restriction leading to overconsumption of fruit and nuts. I'll work on it though and try to develop strategies to combat that sort of eating. 

[yeage20c]

I've found that when I don't slow down, and really savor my eating experience, I feel less than full. I also feel as if I haven't REALLY eaten, so I want to eat more in order to create that feeling.

 

I've found taht having tea, or brushing my teeth, after a meal helps a lot too. Kind of like a ritual to signal "I'm-done-eating-now"

[runninglawyer88]

I seem to be past it with no real effort on my part--maybe it was just a phase. I ran out of nuts so that could be part of it.

[AllyB]

I think since you are pregnant, you need to not be so hard on yourself.  There were times when I was pregnant that I devoured food and couldn't get enough.  Then sometimes I didn't eat because I felt sick.  Pregnancy is a weird thing, your body starts telling you what to do.  It has plans of it's own

 

Try the suggestion of leaving the kitchen right after eating (don't do the dishes or put the food away for a little while.)  That helped me not give into cravings or 'graze' while cleaning up.

[EsTher]

Two good books

1) the Gabriel Method

2) You Can Heal Your Life

Both life changing for me!

 

I have read this whole thread and I really relate to you on your comments about the overeating. I also have this problem and I have put on and drop 10-15 kg several times in my life (with all the consequences... physical and mentally). Did you find that Whole30 helped you? I think this might be the solution for me... grains and flour, and of course sugar,  make me go off control so I am thinking this the way to stay "balanced". 

[littleg]

Maybe it was an active baby growing time...?  Like kids and growth spurts - they eat and eat and eat.  And then they stop.  But their pants are too short  I think this is great that you are doing this during pregnancy!  Is your MD/midwife/? on board with it?  I would imagine it might be hard to find a practitioner to support this (well, the MDs I know anyway!).  

[runninglawyer88]

littleg--I have a lot of food allergies so I basically HAVE TO eat whole 30 (except I can eat dairy products) in order to keep my symptoms at bay. So, I've not had to really discuss my diet at all. I'm sure my doctors would approve though--I have very good doctors. 

 

Also, it may have been active baby growing time because I only gained 1-2 pounds in 4 weeks which is on the low end of "normal" but still totally fine. I haven't been whole 30ing as of late but intend to start again on the 21st. 

[mlissa]

Wow, I am so comforted by everyone's suggestions and honesty about their own experiences.  I am on day 75 (or so), and hope to stay with it because of how good my mind feels since starting the Whole 30.  There is a mental clarity and focus I've never had before, and I am not struggling with depression or lethargy the way I used to.

 

HOWEVER, I am definitely struggling with overeating and weight gain in a way that just horrifies me.  I seem to never be satisfied. 

 

I've had overeating and weight issues my whole life.  Being a vegetarian (not a healthy one--just a non meat eater) and a runner for the past 20 years helped keep my weight down, which allowed me to convince myself and everyone around me that I did not have an eating disorder. I started the Whole 30 because I suspected that I had an unhealthy relationship with food.  But now I am just scared and confused.

 

Since introducing meat and all of these colorful vegetables and fruit back into my diet, it is as if I am trying to eat 20 years' worth of it all at once! Turkey bolognese on a bed of spaghetti squash and spinach tastes better than any donut or cheesecake I've ever had. It has been no trouble at all to stay compliant every day, just nearly impossible to stop eating. I count the hours before I can legitimately eat again, and oftentimes give in to snacking ravenously. I've also put on a solid 7 pounds, my belly is always distended and I no longer fit into my clothes.  I've been telling myself that this is an emotional thing that I need to work through--but now I am wondering if the fact that my entire diet consisted primarily of legumes, dairy, gluten, sugar and soy prior to the Whole 30, that maybe I am just malnourished to ridiculous degree.  Any thoughts on this?

 

I am hoping that someone else out there has come through this.  I am praying that this is a phase, and that my body is healing (as someone mentioned earlier in this thread) and that this will all level out here soon.

 

Here is the past 2 days of food for me:

BKFST: 3 eggs scrambled w/ ghee, one sweet potato drizzled w/ olive oil, handful cherry tomatoes and half a banana. Coffee with almond puree and 2 dates

LUNCH: One can tuna w/ paleo mayo, 3 celery stalks, 2 carrots, 2 cups shredded spinach w/ olive oil and lemon, handful of cherry tomatoes.

SNACK: 2 dates, one carrot, homemade kale chips, handful of almonds, 4 strawberries

DIN: 2 slices of roasted chicken on a bed of kale sauteed with olive oil, tomatoes and olives, two large carrots, half a can pureed pumpkin w/ cinnamon and a handful of pecans, half a banana and 4 dates

------------------

BKFST: 2 eggs fried in ghee atop 2 cups spinach and one sweet potato sliced and baked w/ olive oil. Coffee w/ almond puree and half a banana

(ravenous after 2 hours, but forced myself to wait 4 hours to eat again)

LUNCH: 3 pcs roasted chicken and sliced red peppers on a large bed of kale sauteed in coconut oil, 2 carrots, 1/2 sweet potato w/ olive oil, handful of olives

SNACK: 2 dates, 4 strawberries

DINNER: 8 oz ground turkey cooked in chicken stock, tomatoes and ghee atop half a spaghetti squash w/ capers and chopped spinach, one carrot and one zucchini diced and sauteed in olive oil

 

Thanks for any insights!

[Tina R]

It could be the nuts or coffee. Both of these can irritate your gut, have you tried giving them up for a few days to see if you feel better? It also could be raw veggies. I am struggling with this my self, I love salads but I might have to eat all my veggies cooked to reduce the bloat. Good Luck!

[Robin Strathdee]

mlissa - Welcome! We are so glad you've taken this on as a part of your health journey!  A couple of things stand out to me.  

1) you were likely under-fed to begin with. So, your body is taking in as much nourishment as it possibly can in case things swing back in the other direction.

2) You could experiment with adding another serving of fat to each meal to see if that helps trigger your satiety hormones

3) Ditch the nuts for a week or so. Those cause major bloating for many folks and could be the cause of yours

4) Make a switch to primarily cooked veggies for a few days to see if that helps the bloating as well.  

[LadyM]

Mlissa, what Robin and Tina R said. Also, in my experience, really limiting fruit (especially sugar bombs like dates and bananas) really helps slay the sugar dragon and compulsive eating. Looks like you're getting plenty of starches so you don't need the added sugar. Good luck!

[runninglawyer88]

mlissa--I don't think that you're eating a tremendous amount of food to be honest so my guess is that you are undernourished and your body might be clinging to the nutrients/calories moreso than someone who had come into this in a well-fed state. Does that make sense? I'm not sure if you're considering your eating disorder binge eating but the 2 days that you posted don't seem very binge-like to me. Could you be more specific about that? What exactly makes you think that you have an eating disorder of some sort? How long have you been struggling with this? When it comes to running, how much are you running now and are you using running to offset some of the calories you're eating?

[mlissa]

Thank you each for your suggestions.  I will take each one to heart and give eliminating those possible triggers a try.

 

Runninglawyer88, you bring up some good things here too.  My eating disorder has been diagnosed as a form of bulimia by way of binging on large quantities of pizza, chips, or sugary things; and then purging via running 5 miles afterwards, followed by fasting and excessive exercise for a day or two. This has been a pattern off-and-on for 30 years (since I was 15). I quit running about 2 years ago due to an injury and then really decreased my calorie intake to make up for that. I also started existing on mostly sweets so that I never felt inclined to binge.  In hindsight, I wasn't getting any calories that were nutritious, and was even sort of addicted to the high of being malnourished.

 

Just writing my post the other gave me some insights (something therapeutic about writing and sharing). When I looked at my post, I too thought that it didn't really seem to grossly exceed the meal template guidelines. It just looks and feels like bingeing compared to what I am used to. And sometimes by the WAY I am eating it (like the snacks, which I have told myself are not okay), quickly and ravenously. Like shame. I also understand that my body image is pretty negative and distorted. I could be putting on weight because my body is healthier at a size 4, rather than a size 2 (it looks funny writing that, too).  Eating healthy feels so good on every level but this one; so I need to take a good hard look at this.

 

My goal over the next few days is to eat slower, write more, get a new pair of jeans that fit comfortably, and to cook my veggies. I can do without nuts and bananas, I think.  But I'm praying I won't have to give up coffee or dates yet, Tina-- somebody could get hurt!!!  Thanks guys What a great resource this is.

[LadyM]

Wow, mlissa, yes! Sounds like you're on to something big here. And I change my answer based on this new information you present.

 

Go ahead and eat, woman! Eat as nutrient dense as possible because no doubt your body is starved for them. I still say--in accordance with W30 rules--don't let fruit push veggies off your plate, but really let yourself eat to satisfaction according to the template, and don't deny yourself the things you truly love. Moving past shame and giving yourself permission to nourish yourself should be number one priority!

[mlissa]

Music to my ears, Lady M! I still do appreciate where you are coming from on the whole sugar dragon thing, so thank you for all of your insights.  I sauteed almost an entire bag of spinach to eat with with my eggs and yam this morning, and substituted coconut cream for the almond cream in my coffee; and I feel beyond satisfied. Robin, I'm thinking the heaping tablespoon of coconut cream might be a good way to get that extra fat you mentioned. Not experiencing the usual cravings for the banana, dates or any fruits so far today. And, honestly, the accountability and support this forum is providing for me right now feels more comforting than a box of girl scout cookies.

[peace_positive]

I did gain weight a few yrs back when i first went from 10yrs of being unhealthy vegan with binging and purging the way you described. Now a few yrs later I finally believe what the others are saying above about my body being scared to go back to being nutritionally deficient, so it holds on to everything. Since I did W30 and beyond (approx w60 now) i'm losing that weight, yet eating yummy, filling food, and the binge thoughts are slowly waning and losing their power. One thing that has helped me is to "overfill" my plate with cooked veggies so that my brain didn't perceive a lack of food. As time has passed I don't need to use that trick nearly as often, just when I feel the binge monster rearing it's head.

[Midlyfechrysalis]

Hi, Mlissa!

Your menu looks "healthy" by many, many standards. However, I think that the percentage of sugar-heavy foods (sweet potatoes, cherry tomatoes, bananas, dates, strawberries, carrots, pumpkin.

Your menu is compliant and includes lots of great foods. But, *some* people might find that the emphasis on sweet fruits and veggies triggers a craving response (I had this on low carb, and had to give up fruit until the cycle was broken).

 

It might be worth stopping the fruit for a bit, increasing healthy fat, and adding more veggies that are not so "sweet."