How To Stop Binge Eating
How To Stop Binge Eating
So you're eating great all week, getting your workouts in and then here comes the weekend. You're telling yourself that you're not repeating this. You're going to stay true to the plan no matter what.
Friday night hits and here you sit in front of a pizza, telling yourself it's a well-deserved cheat meal and it won't hurt you. It doesn't stop there. Saturday morning you eat a couple of doughnuts because you blew it last night, so what does it matter? Saturday night comes around, and you're out to eat with your loved ones.
Well, you already blew it last night and today so forget it, eat what you want. Sunday you're laying around mindlessly munching on anything in sight. This is technically your rest day, and you'll start over tomorrow.
Here goes another weekend. Next weekend will be better. Is this cycle sounding familiar? So why are you doing this? Is this normal?
These simple tips will help you rewire your brain to avoid this endless hamster wheel that you can't seem to get off.
80/20 RULE
Be super restrictive with your daily diet can be a leading cause of your weekend binge fest. Ease up with your food all week long. If you're too low on your caloric intake, your body goes into starvation mode. Your body will be craving more food to replenish itself.
Avoid restrictive dieting by using the 80/20 rule. Make 80% of your daily food intake super healthy and clean. Allow 20% of your foods to be "fun" foods.
I like to eat fresh sources of food during the day, saving my "fun" foods for nighttime to enjoy while watching TV. I enjoy a bowl of cereal or some popcorn. I also like a couple of rice cakes topped with creamy peanut butter with a sprinkle of mini chocolate chips. This keeps me from feeling deprived of the foods I crave and love.
STOP HAVING CHEAT MEALS
Working all week to splurge on a "cheat meal" sounds like a good idea. However, most cheat meals turn into cheat days. These can also lead to cheat weekend. Here is where binge eating weekends can become a problem. To avoid this, you must allow yourself to follow the above 80/20 rule.
You don't want to restrict all that you love from yourself when working towards your fitness goals. If you implement daily treats, you'll no longer need to add a "cheat meal." Take this out of your way of thinking. You're setting yourself up to fail.
This "cheat meal" may work for others, but if you're finding yourself binge eating, this may be the culprit. Easing up your daily diet will lessen your need to indulge on a large amount of "bad" food.
SAVE YOUR WORKOUTS FOR THE WEEKEND
You probably work hard all week to get every workout in so that you can rest and relax all weekend. However, this may be setting you up for the weekend binge effect.
Do you notice when you workout, you feel more accountable for your eating choices? I know when I finish a workout, I eat better for the rest of the day. I feel accomplished, and I don't want to blow it with a bag of chips. Sometimes, you should skip your weekday workout, especially if you're super busy and save it for a weekend workout. This will aid in the weekend binge habit.
You'll have more energy and a clear mind and won't feel that sluggish, too tired to fix a good meal. When you're tired, you usually grab bad carbs that give you a quick fix.
Maybe this is entirely against your setup, but give it a try. You might be surprised by how this keeps from you falling into that weekend pitfall.
GUZZLE THAT H20
Most times, dehydration is mistaken for starvation. Being dehydrated also drives our energy levels down. We all know, when we're low on energy, binge eating disaster is on the horizon.
So the minute you start feeling those hunger pangs, grab a bottle of water and start chugging! Take notice of how you feel. You'll probably feel full and a bit more energized. I suggest this to my clients for any time of the week, but especially to those that struggle with binge eating.
REMOVE THE RULES FROM YOUR BRAIN
So you tell yourself all week long, that you can't have cookies, cheeseburgers, ice cream, mashed potatoes and whatever else you deem bad for you. You stare at others downing a doughnut, and you daydream about eating one yourself. So, on the weekend, a bag of chips and two ice cream sandwiches later, you're riddled with guilt.
How does this happen? You're beyond disappointed and frustrated that you have no willpower. What's wrong? Why do you continually do this?
You're putting too many rules on yourself. Do you know the saying "the more you can't have something, the more you want it"? Yep, the more you tell yourself, you can't have this or that, that's exactly where your brain is going to go.
Let the rules go. Now, I'm not saying eat whatever you want, whenever you want. I'm telling you, rewire your brain and stop feeding it the words "I'm not allowed to have that." Instead, look at food and realize that you can have it if you want it and you'll eat it only when you're really craving it.
If all day, all you've thought about is a doughnut, go home and have one for a snack. Get over it, move on and don't beat yourself up over it. You craved it, you ate it, and life goes on.
ADD CALORIES, NOT REMOVE THEM
All week long, you're eating like a champ. You're hungry as all get out, but you're not swaying from your diet. That's great. Then here comes the weekend and you're like a machine, eating everything in sight.
Maybe you're too calorie deficient. Maybe your metabolism is needing more calories. If you are, the body will start storing fat to make up for this calorie deficiency.
To avoid the weekend binge, I'd highly recommend adding two hundred calories to your daily intake. Doing so, will keep you fuller longer and not set you up to go into the weekend, feeling starved and deprived.
If you see no weight change, that's actually what you needed. Sometimes, by doing this simple trick, you may see a weight loss occur. That's your metabolism thanking you for the extra calories. This too will lessen your need to eat mounds of food on Friday night.
START YOUR MORNING ON A GOOD NOTE
Do you wake up Saturday morning feeling like a slug from your crazy, busy week? You walk down to the kitchen feeling like a zombie just wanting something quick and easy to get you moving? Don't reach for the crusty doughnut and coffee.
Push through the fog and chug a cold bottle of water. As you're drinking your water, fix a hot bowl of oatmeal with a side of eggs. You can thank me later! It may feel like a real chore to do this, as you have worked your butt off all week long, but you'll set your day out on the right foot, and your energy level and mood will be doubled just by pushing through.
The weekend binge Saturday night will be lessened just by the mere fact that you made yourself a great meal to start the day. You'll feel better about your choices and will be more likely to keep going with it.
GET OUTSIDE
Wednesday morning, you're daydreaming about a beautiful Saturday and Sunday afternoon, lounging on the couch in your comfy cozies catching up with your favorites on Netflix. Ah, you get goosebumps just thinking about it.
Saturday hits, you get your pj's, blanket and remote and there you are, lounging on the couch. You start feeling the munchies. You grab a bag of chips; you earned it. Dinner time is getting close, and you literally can't fathom the thought of getting up and making dinner. You decide on a pizza.
In the back of your mind, you know you're eating all the wrong foods, and you should get up and do something. You'll do better tomorrow.
Well, tomorrow comes, and you're repeating Saturday's routine. You know very well, the Monday guilt is going to be real.
I'm telling you, get up and make a great, hearty breakfast and get outside. Even if it's only for twenty minutes, go for a walk, a hike, a jog or play with your kids.
Getting your body moving and fresh air in those lungs will make you feel like a whole new person and will keep you from the dreaded weekend binge that you know you don't want to repeat.
I know the weekend binge habit is real and many of us fall prey to it. It can happen to anyone. Try implementing these simple tricks into your life and see if they help ease this way of living. It may take a few weeks but tweak here and there. Before you know it, the weekend binge will be a distant memory.
Balance and consistency will be your best friends in reaching all of your fitness goals. You don't need to be so restrictive and rigid with yourself while trying to get fit. Expect yourself to mess up and fail. That's just part of the process and completely normal.
Don’t forget to pin this to your Pinterest board for times when you feel like you’re going back to your old ways. Sometimes we need reminded how to stay on track!
I struggled for years with binge eating. I followed a restrictive diet all week long only to find myself eating everything in sight all weekend long. Feeling guilty and always starting over doesn't have to be your norm. Click on the link above and use these tools to overcome this awful cycle.
“Keep your face always forward toward the sunshine and shadows will fall behind you”
You'll have those weekends that you blow it and regret every bite. Before beating yourself up, look back on this list and see where you can tweak your week to set yourself up for a better, more successful weekend. Be kind to yourself. It’s a process and you’ll get past it.
If you’d like more ideas and tips about fitness and nutrition, click below so you never miss a new article with fresh ideas and advice on becoming the best you. You don’t need to go about your fitness journey alone.
Hugs & Love,
Aimee
Aimee Schwinabart is the founder of The Purely Fit—online workouts, nutrition, and fitness coaching that actually work! She specializes in short (super effective) daily workouts combined with customized nutrition plans to help real people shed excess fat and reveal toned, lean muscles. The Purely Fit approach to looking and feeling great prioritizes small, steady, super efficient workouts and nutrition upgrades to help you stay with it once and for all!
