I know what it feels like when you can’t stop compulsive eating. You may have to find a way on how to stop binge eating to break your normal cycle.
Binge eating can feel like a monster inside you, waiting to pounce on the next pizza or candy bar that comes your way.
I’ve downed a 1/2 gallon of cookies and cream ice cream… all in one sitting.
Binge eating is a hard cycle to break, but I was able to do it once I tackled the underlying causes.
The Shame of Binge Eating
Binge eating is not something I’ve talked about much. Eating an entire pizza wasn’t exactly something I wanted to brag about.
In fact, I was downright ashamed every time I ended up on a binge.
A ton of shame surrounds binge eating. Out of control eating feels like a moral failing.
I should be able to willpower through my cravings. I should be able to just eat light salads for lunch and not complain. Should, should, should.
And that’s exactly where the shame comes from – all those shoulds.
Shame comes from believing there’s something deeply wrong with us. Guilt, on the other hand, is about behavior.
I might feel guilty about eating too much ice cream because I know it wasn’t a healthy choice… but shame goes deeper.
Shame says I am seriously messed up for eating that ice cream. A failure. A fat pig. (Notice the name-calling – shame often comes with name-calling attached.)
Restriction. Obsession. Binge. Shame. Repeat.
The problem is that shame and silence keep us stuck. So I’m here to say if you can’t stop binge eating – you’re not alone. You’re just human, and it’s okay.
Here are a few interesting facts about binge eating:
- 8 percent of adults in the United States have problems with binge eating at some point or another. That’s millions of people. You are absolutely not alone.
- It’s estimated that about half of the cause of binge eating is genetic – which means, when combined with other factors, some people are simply more susceptible to binge eating. (source)
Binge eating may not be a healthy behavior, but shaming yourself isn’t either. And two wrongs don’t make a right. 😉
For me, binge eating was part of a larger cycle – all centered around shame – that I put myself through for years. It went something like this:
- I hated my body and losing weight felt like an easy way to gain control during times when my life felt increasingly out of control.
- A restrictive diet gave me something to obsess over and dive into. It was easy to feel in control when there were “good” foods to praise and “bad” foods to blame for everything I thought was wrong with me.
- But as soon as I started restricting large food groups and cutting calories to lose weight, my obsession with food became constant. I was always hungry and thought about food all. the. time.
- Cravings kick in and now I can’t stop thinking about everything I want to eat but can’t have because it’s “bad” food. I hate myself because I want to eat everything I shouldn’t.
- Eventually, I just can’t take it anymore and end up binge eating a ton of pizza, nachos, pasta, cookies, candy, and ice cream.
- I feel horrible and hate myself even more, and the cycle starts all over again.
Binge Eating vs. Splurging vs. Unhealthy Habits
Before I move on to how to stop binge eating, I want to talk about what binge eating really is… and what it isn’t.
Binge Eating
Binge eating is when you eat a very large amount of food in a short window of time. Binge eating feels compulsive and out-of-control.
You may feel full to the point of sickness, but still, feel compelled to eat even more.
Binge eating disorder is defined as having a binge eating episode at least once per week for three months or more. To learn more about binge eating disorders, please go here.
Splurging
I like to make an important distinction between binge eating and what I call splurging.
I’ve seen a lot of women talk about binge eating when actually they simply ate an extra slice of pizza and some ice cream for dessert.
Splurges are normal and part of being a healthy human. We all eat an extra piece of cake at a birthday party, indulge a little too much at a holiday dinner, or have a burger and fries now and then.
This can feel like a binge if you’re stuck in a mindset of restriction and trying to eat as little as possible. In some cases, the “binge” was actually just eating a normal meal when you’re trying to stay on an extremely restrictive diet.
Yes, sometimes this can feel very compulsive… because you’re starving yourself. When your body perceives a famine (even when it’s a self-inflicted famine), its reactions can be extreme. More on that in a minute.
Unhealthy Habits
Unhealthy habits are when you might splurge too often, maybe even daily, or you might tend to eat foods that are easy to overeat on a regular basis.
So while you might not even sit down and eat an enormous amount of food in one sitting, you tend to always eat a little beyond the point of fullness, or snack out of boredom, or indulge in treats for fun.
Unhealthy habits are less compulsive but can still feel difficult to overcome.
How to Stop Binge Eating
“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” This old saying definitely applies to binge eating.
At the moment where you feel compelled to binge, it can be extremely difficult to stop. The best way to stop binge eating is to prevent the triggers that cause it in the first place.
How to Stop Compulsive Eating
Several years ago, I was convinced I had no power to stop binge eating. In those moments when my stomach felt like a bottomless pit (even when I technically felt full), the idea of willpower was laughable.
I tried distracting myself. Silly things like painting my nails or reading a book did absolutely nothing to take my mind off food.
And when I was craving brownies? No amount of carrot sticks could stop me from wanting those brownies.
Best case scenario? I end up eating the carrots and then the brownies. There was never once an occurrence when I ate the carrots instead of the brownies.
Nothing I did to stop binge eating actually helped me. But I had way more problems than just binge eating.
I had worse acne than when I was a teenager, insomnia that left me exhausted every day, scary mood swings, and the smallest stress felt like the end of the world.
Binge eating felt like small beans compared to everything else I was dealing with. But as I explored what it means to be healthy and happy, my binges slowly became a thing of the past.
It’s Time to Stop Dieting
Did you know… restrictive eating can trigger binges? Like I mentioned earlier, dieting triggers a famine response in the body.
This means that when your brain thinks food is scarce, it laser focuses on what you’re going to eat next. And if high-calorie food is available, your brain says, “Eat it! Eat it all or you’ll starve to death!”
The thing is, your brain can’t tell the difference between an actual famine and a low-calorie diet. (One might argue that there’s not much of a difference anyway.)
It took me a few years to break free from the dieting mindset, but I finally did and it made all the difference. Read what happened when I stopped dieting here.
Think about the long game when it comes to your physical and mental health and your weight. It’s the small, everyday habits that keep you healthy and happy.
What is the dieting mindset?
For me, letting go of the dieting mindset meant letting go of way more than just dieting. It’s how you approach food, exercise, and health in general.
Here’s what I changed while letting go of the diet mindset:
- I quit restricting food groups and going on restrictive diets. I stopped labeling foods as good or bad, and I stopped thinking of myself as a good or bad person based on what I last ate.
- I stopped overexercising and using exercise as a punishment for eating “bad” foods. I began exercising in a way that empowers me and helps me feel in tune with my body, with a focus on my long term health rather than a short term scale drop.
- I rest and give myself downtime. I prioritize things like sleep, reading on the back porch, creative projects that bring me joy, time with my family, and taking leisurely walks outside.
- I learned to practice self-compassion and reject shame-based thinking. I credit Brene Brown’s work for helping me a lot in this area.
All this did not happen overnight. It was a slow (sometimes painful) dance of two steps forward and one step back.
But eventually, I was able to strike a pretty comfortable balance of eating well, enjoying a wide variety of foods in moderation, and being active in a way I really enjoy (without overdoing it).
Then Binge Eating Disappeared
I never tried not to binge. I just wanted to feel healthy and happy again. And slowly, my sleep got better. My moods became more balanced. My skin started glowing more.
And something else happened during this time. Without even trying – without even thinking about it – I stopped binge eating.
It didn’t happen all at once. At first, my binge eating episodes just occurred less frequently (like maybe 3-4 times per month instead of twice a week).
Then a few weeks would go by without a real binge. Then a couple of months. Pretty soon my all-out binges were few and far between.
Now? I can’t even remember the last time I really binged on something. It’s been that long.
Why? Because I was finally listening to my body and giving it what it needed: plenty of quality food, good rest, and the right amount of exercise. I found my balance.
The more I paid attention and gave my body what it needed to thrive, the more binge eating became a thing of the past for me.
The Nourished Metabolism
You can also read more about how I learned to eat and exercise in a way that nourished my metabolism (without stressing about it!) in my book The Nourished Metabolism.
No gimmicks or magic pills, just a balanced perspective on how you can improve your metabolic health and possibly help you about how to stop binge eating with simple changes to your diet and lifestyle. Click here to check it out.
Elizabeth is the founder of The Nourished Life and has been writing about natural living for 12 years. Her work has been featured at Shape, Bustle, and Mother Earth Living. Her mission is to help you lower your stress levels and find fun ways to become happier and healthier. Read more about Elizabeth here.
I love this. I’ve struggled majorly with binge-eating. Usually thanks to diet “deprivation” and obsessive exercising. I finally feel like I’ve struck a pretty good balance, by eating whole unprocessed foods 90% of the time. There’s so much freedom in it. Thanks for sharing.
Exactly. The binge doesn’t happen in the absence of deprivation. It’s the body’s desperate response to caloric deficiency. I don’t think it’s a good idea to um, think of the binge as a bad thing. Because, you know, it’s the dieting, and restriction, that’s the bad thing. The body is just communicating it’s need. 😛
Well said!
I don’t agree. I feed my body plenty of whole real food. If I have even a morsel of sugar I end of binging on it for days or even weeks. I have tried the approach of allow myself to have as much as I want and gained 10 full pounds in one month and felt horrible. I am addicted to sugar and this causes my binge eating. No sugar = no binges. But the problem is I trick myself and read articles like this and think YES I can have sugar in balance!!! Then a month later I’m a heavy bloated mess until I muster up the courage to give it up again.. this is great it worked for you but sometimes sugar actually is addicting for certain unlucky folks like me and what causes the binges.
I get a similar thing. I’ll be doing really well, like be eating normally and losing weight, and then I’ll be like ‘okay, I’m doing well, I can treat myself,’ and that ‘treat myself’ slice of cake or whatever turns into weeks or even months of not being able to control my eating again. It’s not even a conscious thing, just one day I notice my weight has gone down (like 5-6 stone last year) and I just cannot stop eating crap, until I suddenly can again, and it just cycles like that again and again…
I agree I am sugar addict too. The only way is not to eat anything sugary at all just one bit triggers a month long.
Look into improving your gut microbes by eating more veggies especially look up foods that are good prebiotics (like cacao, chicory root, apples, jicama, banana, asparagus, etc. Look it up). Prebiotics are what the good microbes live on. Bad microbes live on sugar, high fructose corn syrup and foods that become sugar quickly like white bread, white rice, and other refined flours. There is some research out there that says that our food cravings are influenced by our gut microbes see: https://chriskresser.com/do-gut-microbes-control-your-food-cravings/.
If you can give the good bacteria the right food, add more of the good bacteria through probiotics and fermented foods (like kefir, kimchi, kavas, kubucha, and sour kraut) and starve the bad bacteria, your cravings will be greatly diminished. I know that binge eating can be a multifaceted issue but why not give your body all the help you can? Your body will then help you! By helping your gut microbes and following the other advice in this article your binge eating will become a thing of the past. Also look into bodyecology.com they are experts on the gut microbes!
That’s good to hear, Christina! I agree, there’s a lot more freedom in the balanced approach, on so many levels.
I have to chip in that there are other sources of binge eating. For me, when things around me start flying out of control and I’m feeling stressed or depressed, that is when the 1/2 gallon of ice cream disappears.
I’m currently reading Julia Ross’ The Diet Cure, where she talks about using amino acids to help with the emotional/physiological reasons behind binge eating (amother other forms of addictive behavior).
You can stop this type of binge eating by bringing more balance to your life too though. I used to binge every second day and it was not because I was hungry most of the time, in fact I eat LESS on a daily basis now than I did back then, even on my non-binge days. But I think finding the right balance in your life is the key and by balance I mean finding other hobbies, passions and interests away from food!!!
So true, Sarah. Finding balance in other areas in your life can help a lot too.
Amanda, I definitely agree. Binge eating is a multi-faceted issue. For me, eating well addressed the issue on more than one level. I was getting more energy, more nutrients, more protein. I feel all of this contributed to a healthier mental and physical state where I was not only less deprived, but also in a place where I could handle stress better, and so binge eating in response to stress was also reduced in the process.
Thank you for all your insights, your ideas and recipes! You are a breath of fresh air 😉
Thanks, Margo! 🙂
I don’t know if I binge eat or not. I have an insatiable appetite on some days. People might look at it like binge eating but to me I’m just hungry and satisfying a need. Maybe I’m wrong. I have a demanding job and three kids and I’m nursing. I can start the day with say…buckwheat pancakes with sunflower butter and coconut nectar. About 10:30 I make a bowl of berries, 12:30 brown rice, sardines, kale, kimchi with gomaiso, 3:30 a few oz of cheese and an apple, and then for dinner at 5:30/6:00 small salad and half a pizza – might top that off with a root beer float (6 oz.). That’s a bigger day. Some days I will graze like crazy and eat at least 2 cups of nuts, carrots, apples, and tons of protein. It seems that my brain craves fat and my body wants veg, carbs and protein. When it is a difficult day it seems like I’m eating more fat and protein. It doesn’t seem like I’m over eating – I don’t even eat after 7:00, but before then I eat a ton because something is telling me I need more. Sound abnormal?
That does not seem abnormal or like binge eating to me.
Nope, not abnormal. Eating to appetite, is rarely abnormal. Your body knows what it needs!
Recently I found out that women tend to drastically underreport their usual caloric intake. So the 2000 calories guideline, is less than most women, especially active women, need or eat under normal circumstances (meaning, those who are not dieting or suffering from an eating disorder).
Yep, I think for most women 2,000 calories is probably the bare minimum, except maybe if you’re very small and not very active.
I agree with Sarah and K, that doesn’t sound abnormal at all. I think it’s really important to listen to your body and your appetite. Your body definitely needs energy to fuel your life!
Women do need plenty of food, more than 2000 cal typically, but it is not normal to feel the need to snack all day long. Try more protein in the morning (the equivalent of a piece of meat) and see what happens.
I meant a “full serving of meat”, 4oz.
Soooo wish I had seen this earlier in the day! I just ate an entire sleeve of Thin Mint cookies……hating myself right now. And will now battle the sugar addiction for the next few days! 🙁 Thanks for the great article tho!
Oh, Linda, those dreaded Thin Mints… This was the first year I didn’t eat the whole sleeve (or box). This was also the first year that I only bought one box, and gave one of the sleeves away. Did I mention I’m the ‘Cookie Mom’ of our troop…sigh. Hang in there girl!!!
There’s no such thing as a sugar addiction (at least, according to the science). Don’t hate yourself for eating! Your body is wiser than you think, and knows what you need. Maybe it’s just hungry for carbohydrates. It can take time for it to find a balance after stress or dieting. Sometimes binging is a way to do that. At least, this seems to be the case for me.
Are you kidding me? http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/researcher-sugar-addictive-cocaine-obesity-diabetes-cancer-heart-disease-article-1.1054419 This is just the first article I came across on a quick search. The research is hard and heavy that sugar is absolutely addictive, and there is plenty of it in major journals and from major research institutions.
I think your research needs to go a little deeper… On the CBC a few months ago, a scientist stressed that there was simply not enough evidence to prove that sugar is in any way addictive.
It isn’t logical for it to be addictive. Once my mother complained to my doctor (I was a young teen at the time) about my habit of consuming butter mixed with honey by the spoonful. You know what the doctor said? “Maybe her brain needs it.”
Our brains run on glucose. How could we possibly become addicted to a substance we would die without? That would make no sense whatsoever. Would be like saying some people have an oxygen addiction. More like an addiction to staying alive.
Sugar is not glucose. It’s sucrose. We can easily obtain glucose without sucrose. Sugar has many of the same effects on dopamine that heroin does. Even if it does not create a physiological withdrawal, it absolutely can create the same neurological dependence on the neurochemicals it activates.
Sugar does stimulate the reward centers of the brain – so does great music, watching an exciting movie, winning a race, buying a new purse… and many, many other everyday things. Not that sugar should be a significant part of our diets, but restricting it actually stimulates a more drug-like effect when you *do* eat it. This article shares a much more balanced perspective on how sugar impacts our brains: http://behavioralscientist.org/no-sugar-isnt-new-heroin/
“Not enough evidence” doesn’t mean it isn’t true. It just means there isn’t enough evidence.
Don’t sweat it, Linda! It’s okay to eat the Thin Mints sometimes. Even if you feel it was more than you needed, like K said, this is a good opportunity to see if your body’s trying to tell you something. Whatever you do, don’t beat yourself up about it! Guilt and shame are just another source of stress that nobody needs.
Oh, this hit home for me. I DO know the difference between the splurge and the binge… I, like you, have noticed that through learning to balance my binging has curbed quite a bit. My last binge was a couple of months ago. I had begun eating clean, and was exercising 5 days a week. However, I was putting a lot of restrictions on myself. We’d had a party and someone had brought brownies and cookies, both of which were ‘forbidden’ at my house. So the next day, I was thinking I would splurge and have half a brownie and half a cookie, just to satisfy my sweet tooth (which I DON’T have), but next thing I knew, I’d eaten 4 brownies and 2 cookies… Yep. I can totally relate. I am so grateful to you for sharing this. It’s so difficult because the guilt and shame that come with binging can be as frustrating as the actual binge. Thank you!!!
I’ve always noticed that restriction immediately triggers food issues for me–sometimes making me crave foods I normally don’t even care for.
I completely agree, the guilt and shame that often come after binging are way more harmful than the binge itself.
Be careful. Those of us with severe bingeing CANNOT do moderation. Ever. Not until/unless the root cause of the cravings (biochemical/emotional) is gone.
Telling us not to restrict is like telling an alcoholic to be sure and have half a glass of wine each night. Literally.
If we think of each “issue” on a continuum or a bell curve, there will be a few who are not at all bothered by the issue and there will be a few others for whom the issue is a serious illness. Of course this blog is not intended to cure everyone, however, there are some words of wisdom that may click and make sense for many. Take what you like and leave the rest. One blog post can never apply to everyone reading it.
I have enjoyed the post and have found many pearls of wisdom that will make sense for my life.
Thanks
So I feel like I don’t binge eat, but splurge eat A LOT! Any suggestions for not doing that as often as every meal?
Splurging with moderation is something I’m still working on myself. Sometimes it’s not a big issue, then other times I notice I “splurge” a lot more. I try not to worry about it too much, and just take it as part of the ebb and flow of life. But the book “Shrink Yourself” was helpful for me in addressing eating for reasons other than physical hunger, though.
One litre of ice ream or one pack of cookies, one loaf of bread, one family bar of chocolate or one whole cake …. even all of them, on the same day …. isn’t anything like one of my binges.
I agree there is NO point eating what you “should have” trying to avoid bingeing … just adds even more calories. I am trying eating real food, avoiding restrictions etc. So far the result is fewer binges yes, but also significant weight gain.
Maybe in the long run I can have balance … and lose weight without building bridges to a binge.
Hmm… This makes me think of Your Eatopia:
http://www.youreatopia.com/blog/2012/10/31/bingeing-is-not-bingeing.html
Might be worth a read.
Denise, it’s definitely a journey, and not always a smooth one. My thoughts are to keep working on nourishing yourself physically and emotionally, and working toward balance. I mentioned above that the book “Shrink Yourself” (and there’s an online program I took as well) helped me gain some insight into the mental/emotional side of the equation.
Yes, eating what you should does decrease binges, and yes, it can cause weight gain. But that weight gain can save your life.
My habit for years was to binge, and then skip all my meals. I created countless diseases in myself by eating nothing but carbs. When I finally decided to eat 3 square meals a day, I started gaining, and fast. But the decrease in the binges made up for it after a few months, and over two years, I lost the weight and then some.
I still have binges – major ones – occasionally. But it’s not every day every week every month all year anymore. I can live again. I am reducing diseases now instead of piling on. It takes a big picture approach from many angles, continually adding tools that help and discarding those that don’t. I pray you read my first post on this page (at the bottom), or just go get The Diet Cure for yourself, and maybe some inpatient help. I will pray for you, and ask you to do the same for me.
I have always been puzzled by binge eating because I am that girl who can sit in front of a chocolate cake without touching it and then crave a bowl of leafy greens. And I don’t attribute that to willpower! I just nourish myself with real food and don’t deprive myself of any nutrient, and I don’t have any foods that I consider to be “off limits” or “bad.” If it’s real food and it looks and smells good, and if I’m hungry, I eat it! More often than not, things like liver and veggies look and smell much more appealing because of their nourishing qualities.
Great comment, Jamie! I think when we don’t label foods as “must eat” and “must not eat” then we give our bodies more freedom to crave what we really need. I used to only crave junk food, but now I notice I crave a much wider variety of foods. Sometimes I crave ice cream, but then I also have cravings for other things like seafood or fresh fruit and, yes, sometimes even veggies!
You’re right; it’s not willpower; it’s biochemistry. You’re like my husband: normal. You have a normal ongoing supply of brain chemicals. When my diet is nutrient-dense (including the things I need most and excluding the things that hurt me most) and my supply of amino acids is sufficient, I feel exactly like you describe.
When any – ANY – one of those things is less than optimal, I can’t think of anything but sweets. It overtakes my brain, fills me with absurd thoughts all day long of how to plot to get more of it. As Ross describes in The Diet Cure, the need for these brain chemicals is so critical that the drive for them is stronger than the drive for heroin. It LITERALLY replaces my normal thoughts with substance thoughts.
I just came to the conclusion this week that after 3 years of being mostly Paleo I don’t feel good anymore. I have severe cravings for potato chips and have been craving bread and rice like crazy. I decided that I was going to go back to a regular diet but of course focusing on real food that is organic and as close to its original form. I feel good quality, grass fed and free range protein is important. And continuing to keep sugar to a bare minimum also best for me. Fortunately I do not have a sweet tooth. I will be interested to see if I sleep better, have more energy, and feel satisfied after eating instead of thinking about the next time I can eat. I have also just added a whole food multi vitamin/mineral complex by Dr. mercola. I am thinking I may be missing some crucial nutrients. We will see. Thanks for this article. I appreciate your website and newsletter.
Deanna- after being Paleo for a while, I too craved potato chips. When I finally allowed myself to eat a potato, I sliced several up thin -but not chip thin- and fried them in coconut oil with a heavy sprinkling of sea salt. And then I savored each and every bite. It was amazing!
I am a blood type O and supposedly I am supposed to achieve better health by following a more Paleo diet. It just didn’t work for me after a while. Then I started replacing carbs while maintaining a real food diet, I immediately began to sleep better, have more energy, have easier periods and just felt overall more mellow.
Now I allow myself to be like Elizabeth: If I wanted some ice cream, I had it, if I wanted a piece of pie, I had it, If I wanted only potatoes for dinner, I had it.
But just make sure your severe craving for chips is not just a craving for a crispy potato, but a craving for salt. Many of the symptoms you’ve expressed COULD be mild adrenal fatigue. The adrenals love salt and a craving is often your body telling you it had a very valid need!
I tried refeeding, bingeing daily all the while. It didn’t do a thing for me.
I’m glad for those of you who can just “eat more carbs” and presto your cravings disappear. I was eating carbs like a pro when my cravings began.
Thanks, Deanna! I really do think it’s best to listen to the body’s wisdom. Like Susan said, cravings can mean a lot of things, so it’s important to tune in and listen to what you body really needs. It might just need some more carbs or salt to function better. I know I never had more intense cravings than when I was trying to follow a strict low-carb diet. I craved peanut butter like crazy (which I barely ever want to eat now) and I really, REALLY wanted some donuts (which, weirdly, I rarely want now and I don’t think I’ve even had one in over a year?). The more balanced my diet is, the less I have intense cravings.
I understand the idea of eating more whole foods, fewer processed foods, & decreasing stress, etc. … but I don’t understand how to eat ‘according to appetite.’ For instance, if I’m technically full but considering tacking on an extra slice of cake, my mind often tricks me into thinking I’m still hungry. Even if I walk away, I will immediately return for the cake as soon as I get hungry again, rather than choosing healthy foods as my next meal. Which creates constant sugar cravings. This is even when I’m eating plenty of fat & protein.
Another question I have is: How do I lose weight (which, rest assured, has been suggested by a medical doctor) if I eat to my heart’s desire, but don’t exercise hard? I need to lose at least 5 lbs, but 10 to 15 would be even better, as I felt the best of my life at that weight. This is not a sarcastic question. I am truly in search of a healthier, happier life!
Also, to those on the Paleo and grain-free diets… I don’t deny that going gluten free helps many people (including myself), but it’s unreasonable to skip grains altogether. We can still eat oatmeal, rice, potatoes, etc. depending on what our food allergies/intolerances are. It may boost overall health to choose fermented foods like yogurt or kefir as your dairy & skip milk & cheese, which are heavy foods and also cause discomfort due to the widespread condition of lactose intolerance. I, for one, am lactose intolerant, but I eat yogurt every single day. I also take fish oil (Barlean’s organic oils), evening primrose oil, & a multivitamin daily, and I find that my gut generally rewards me for this practice.
Great thoughts on this topic, Hope. I think it can take some practice to find the balance between indulging and moderation, and it’s a really individual thing. For some people (especially anyone with a history of dieting or restricting foods), the act of denying themselves a splurge will trigger them to want that food even more, and make it more difficult to eat it with moderation later on.
I personally feel that healthy habits are more important than a number on a scale when it comes to our health. Eating generally well, keeping stress low, getting plenty of sleep, and exercising in a balanced way all help. Hard exercise isn’t necessary. Simply walking every day has been shown to have significant health benefits. Yoga and strength training on a regular basis can also be a healthy way to stay active. Exercising to the point of exhaustion is definitely not necessary (or healthy, for that matter).
Gosh, how did humanity survive, thrive, & advance for all those tens of thousands of years before the advent of agriculture?
How can you claim you’re lactose intolerant, but insist that avoiding grains is unreasonable? How do you know what I tolerate?
BTW, exercise doesn’t lead to weight loss. Do the math. It takes TONS of aerobic exercise to burn off enough calories to make up for excess eating. I lost 50lb without any exercise at all (CFS prevented it), by eliminating the foods I don’t tolerate and by taking nutritional steps to stop the cravings that lead to bingeing. It wasn’t hard at all once I got my body nutritionally ready.
Thank you so much for this! I have been struggling to binge eating pretty much my whole life and recently after my third child it got really bad when I tried a vegan diet. I am now “balanced” as you say with going back to my high fat(good fats) diet and I fill nourished and thriving once again. Thanks so much for this, sometimes I feel alone in my struggle and it is nice to know that I am not alone 🙂
You’re definitely not alone, Jade! I think a lot of people struggle with binge eating, but there is a stigma attached to it, especially in a society where women are “supposed” to stick with eating dainty salads and fat-free yogurt cups. When you look at binging as a signal from your body that it needs something, I feel like the shame is removed, and we get the opportunity to do something proactive and positive as a result, instead of just feeling bad about eating so much.
The type of binge eating you did weekly, I do multiple times per day. I have for as long as I can remember. And, I eat real food and already do the advice you offered. : (
I’m sorry, Jennifer. 🙁 In some cases it can definitely be worth it to talk with a professional, especially if you have trouble making progress on your own.
I’m glad this subject is being addressed. I have struggled with this for 15 years.
YES! I love everything about this article. This is exactly the same thing that helped me to overcome my own BED. Thank you so much for writing this, Elizabeth!
Thanks, Kim! 🙂
I had to laugh because I just ate a handful of small chocolate donuts before reading this! I have been down the healthy rabbit hole intensely for several years now and after reading your book, I realized that I was keeping myself from getting enough for for something as basic as having enough energy! So every time I eat more than “normal”, I remind myself that my body just asked for it because it has a million functions its trying to perform and who am I to tell it that 2,000 calories is enough?! Maybe it isn’t! Zoe Harcombe enlightened me to the fact that the whole calorie in/calorie out mathematical calculation has no factual basis at all! No one can explain how it exactly came to be, yet we use it all over the world! So I try not to pay attention at all to calories. As for the donuts, I’ve been gluten free for two years because of an intolerance, and now I learn that it could be related to adrenal fatigue which I have healed, so I am reintroducing gluten slowly and having no ill effects! So when I bought donuts today (gasp) for my kids, which I never do, I went a little overboard. But hey, it won’t kill me and I enjoyed them… I honestly won’t feel any effect from it next week so why get all worried about it? I probably don’t need another donut for a long time now! Elizabeth, I love your blog and your book, and I recommend it to everyone I know!
Wow, thank you, Beth! I agree, it’s darn near impossible to nail down exactly what our bodies need with a mathematical equation. Our needs fluctuate from moment to moment, and it’s so important to tune in and be flexible. And eat the donut sometimes! 😉
I have been helped quite a bit by a book called Potatoes Not Prozac. The author works in addiction recovery. She discovered that some people are sugar sensitive and respond much more poorly emotionally to fluxuations in blood sugar. Reading it and trying the bedtime potato as suggested I believe that yes I had lower seretonin and had been self-medicating with my sugar and sugary fat cravings. I mean, I’d been on antidepressants before kids so I knew it had been low. Big hits of sugar eaten alone could add to my anxiety off & on for days and that in turn led to emotional eating.
I’ve heard great things about that book. I need to get around to reading it! I know I’ve always done well on potatoes, so that’s interesting to me.
If you’re read The Diet Cure, you won’t find anything new in PNP except maybe the beta-endorphin boost concept. Eating the potato at bedtime is supposed to be a mood help, not a binge help.
I did Radiant Recovery (PNP) for several years and DesMaisons’ seven steps were what helped me to be adamant about having 4oz protein every single meal, and really helped start to drive the binges away. But Ross says the same things about protein. She just doesn’t give the steps or have the culty yahoo groups. I did find most of the steps helpful, but what was LEAST helpful was DesMaisons’ insistence that everyone eat tons of “browns.” Browns kill my digestion, caused me major clinical fat malabsorption, huge bloating, weight gain, etc. Vegetables, yes. Tubers, other veggie starches, sure. But most people who get to the point of bingeing cannot handle all those browns. There’s a reason retention is terrible in RR. Almost no one loses weight with all those browns.
Sigh. I’ve done it all. RR, OA, primal, paleo, much more. It’s been a long battle. I’ve accumulated a lot of tools that really work. I feel the light at the end of the tunnel is really drawing close now with the help of the amino acids.
Thank you for this article! I was also like that before I decided to eliminate refined sugar, and add more healthy fat to my daily diet. I’m reading Eat Fat, Lose Fat (www.eatfatlosefat.com) and have found that when I get enough coconut oil in my diet, as well as zero refined sugar, I have tons of energy and no cravings. If I slip on one or the other, minor cravings start, which turn into huge binges as I just “give up and give in.” I have also found that you are totally correct about making sure we are eating *enough* calories to balance our exercise. That’s another biggie for me.
This article is fantastic!
Well done! I could seriously relate to this, except the binge-eating for me resulted in Bulimia, which I overcame by eating all foods, and like you said.. Listening to what my body needed! Which is so true!
Thanks for clarifying!
I’m so glad you liked this post, Alana! That’s awesome that you’ve been able to overcome eating issues by eating all foods and listening to your body–it’s so simple (though sometimes easier said than done!).
I can’t tell you how much this article means to me. I am an acupuncturist/oriental medicine practitioner, and it is extremely hard to be so obviously out of balance and try to promote healthy living to others. I am 100 lbs overweight after having 3 children in 4 yeas and breast feeding for 5 1/2 years straight. To say the least I have some issues with my thyroid, as well as sleep and stress issues, but your honesty was really striking to me. I am a frozen yogurt binger at about the same caliber that you described, and that, along with all the other issues, has brought me to where I am today. I know what to eat, but have always swung between being “good” and binging. I am currently trying to start over and really listen to my body, as you advocate, which I love. It’s funny because as a mother I have always trusted my instincts and as a medical practitioner I have to trust my instincts everyday. This is the one area of my life that for every reason I have forgotten to listen to my instincts. Thank you for your honestly and your gentle approach to help all of us trust ourselves more.
Thank you so much for your comment, Jennie! I am really amazed how much this issue resonates with so many people–binge eating feels like such an isolating behavior than no one else could understand, but I think it’s much more common than it feels like. Like you said, we just need to learn to trust our instincts (in every area of life!).
You are a beautiful person and this is a beautiful article. Thanks so much for writing it and being honest!
I too have felt the shame of regular binging (usually on weekends, or if I was feeling accomplished or down about something). But I do want to point out something – sometimes a “restricted” diet CAN help, for some people. I was having a lot of health problems no matter how healthy I ate, and the frustration, depression, and lack of positive results was what often fueled my binges. But now, after finding a good nutritionist, I’ve learned that there are simply many healthy foods that aren’t healthy FOR ME.
So yeah, my diet is restricted – no beans, dairy, few grains, few fruits, and even many vegetables are off limits. But only with those restrictions is my body able to get the nourishment it needs from other foods. But, now that I’m finally digesting things properly, I don’t want binge – not even on foods on my “ok” list 🙂
Thanks, I’m so glad you enjoyed the post! What’s needed definitely varies from person to person. Digestion and food sensitivities can play a role in binge eating, but in general I recommend opting for as few restrictions as possible. That said, listening to your body is the most important thing!
Thanks 🙂