The FastDay Forum

I have been pondering for a few days on how to word this thread. So I am not sure if it will come out right. Here goes...

I am overweight because I eat for emotional reasons. It took me AGES to work this out because I kept hearing people say I have an emotion and I want to change it or celebrate it so I eat (or words to that effect). I tried to be in tune with my feelings and I thought I was but still I wasn't realising I was comfort eating. I would say, I ate that massive pack of sweets, crisps, ben and jerry's because I wanted to, not because I am bored, lonely, happy .....whatever. So probably explaining what you all know, it was like a light switch going on...when I thought "But WHY do I want to eat it". Because I have the house to myself and I want to ENJOY it, or I have had such a rubbish, busy, stressful day I want to RELAX. So Obvious,so much literature and reading on it but it just did not click. So anyway, now I feel I have that worked out I can make my journey easier (hopefully).

So what I was wondering was... how has fasting affected your mood, feelings, control? Do you think that you have regained perhaps what you didn't have if you were eating for emotional reasons? I am recovering from quite severe post natal depression (I say recovering because I had no idea quite how long the recovery would take, but I am a lot better now!)and with fasting what I have gained (at least once) is control..but in a good way.

Please share x x

I have recently had a light bulb moment too. Different from yours though. Mine was if food is restricted, I want it more, no not just want, I NEED it now and better eat all of it plus more.

I had the epiphany when I cut sugar out of my diet. That was well over a month ago, and I'm still bingeing on all things sugar to make up for it. I think it's why I have never dieted successfully until 5:2 - as soon as food is limited, I want to eat constantly. As soon as a particular food is limited, I want to binge on it.

So for me, 5:2 works because I have 2 days a week where I just don't think about food (I liquid fast, drinking just tea and water) and then 5 days where I only think about food in terms of yumminess (I tend towards good healthy food when there are no restrictions in my mind).

I used to use alcohol for emotional issues - but that is something I dropped a decade or two ago.

Hi Debsie, please can you change the colour of your post from red to black to help peeps read and respond. Many thanks Lizbean.

@debsieall the best for getting through your recent trauma. And such an inspiring post, thank you.

Yes for me there was a lot of comfort in just eating and eating and eating. Had a stressful working time plus some personal crises and it just felt good to eat. Even started baking slices and cakes and 11pm and then eating almost without thinking of just how much i was consuming in a given day.

I was very slowly adding a kilo to my weight and nearing the 80kg mark so somewhere in my head was I better do somethimg about it but i would brush it aside enjoying that wonderful dessert in the fridge or the chocolate or whatever I could find. I am sure i found it harder to walk and watching my sis have similar problems at the same time due to her weight did give me cause to worry.

Lucky for me this problem was just for say 2010 to the early part of 2013. I watched the BBC Horizon program and my life changed in April 2013.

I feel so much in control of eating behaviour. So aware of the effect of food on ones physique and overall health. Feel better, walk great and look great in a swimsuit and jeans (in my opinion)

Hi debsie! So sorry to read of yr postnatal depression, i hope it will soon lift for ever..well done on recovering so far,it must have been very difficult for you xx
I eat for emotional reasons too,whether happy or sad...after all, eating IS pleasurable so its either eat to celebrate or eat to commiserate! And like Katamac said, if a food is restricted i want it all the more! So with all those things in place, you wd think fasting would be well nigh imposs for me,but the miracle is,it isnt! I find i can fast, i can take control.
My fast and repair days are very varied tho ..had a great one tuesday..i got lots of chores i had been procrastinating on out of the way,which is a fast day habit ive got into..makes me feel twice as good coz i am helping my body repair and get smaller while i keep myself busy with tasks Other fast days are not so good, i dont feel motivated or i get too hungry No rhyme or reason which way it will go!
I' m sticking with it tho,it has its ups and downs,but i have faith in this WOE
Good luck with yr journey,don't beat yrself up, be kind to yrself as youve been thru a bad time.Hope you'll keep posting and reading on here..some of us are struggling but we give each other a helping hand..lots of success stories too to inspire and encourage! X X

Hi Debsie, I can totally empathize with your post. I myself had six children. I have never been diagnosed with depression but...? I can go through periods of feeling totally lonely even though I am surrounded by people and family. Doesn't make sense but that's the way it is. My switch still goes on and off. And the pure pleasure of food can be like maternal comforting. There is a need deep inside us that needs nurturing and somehow food soothes us. I have found one substitute and that is lying in a tub of warm water protected from the outside world. I swear it all relates to the comfort of the womb. I know I probably sound like some kind of weirdo but I am trying to be honest. I have been somewhat successful with 52 and I keep on trying. But what 52 has done for me was to reassess the comfort of foods. I can no longer overeat. Good. I can savor the taste and texture of food. Good. Nothing is more pleasurable than a truly ripe piece of fruit. Good. My taste buds love vinegar of all things rather than sugar. Good. Mindless eating gone. Good. I do falter at times but not too badly. I think fasting has to become a life long habit as it teaches self discipline. As for nurturing the inner child...warm baths, long walks, sitting in the morning light, smelling the salt air...you will find what's most comforting for you besides food.

I had no idea@clairemarie that you have six children - thats quite an achievement!
I do understand what you say about feeling alone even when surrounded by people..in fact that can feel lonelier than being alone. Good on you for finding comforting non food related treats! And for ditching the mindless eating x

@candicemarieWell, I can tell you there was a time my hair would fall out in clumps! The children are all one year apart. Imagine having six teen agers. But I live to tell the tale and I can safely say we are a very close knit group that enjoys each others company. How many Mums can say their twenty somethings all show up on a weekend night to have a family game night with their Mum? I am blessed. I am probably the poster girl for what cortisol overload can do to you. Slowly but surely I will get my weight down. By God I am going to have flat abs before I die!

I am loving this thread @debsie so thanks for being brave and writing from your I have appreciated everyone's input. All the best with your goal for both you and your little one.

My story is I am a nurturing soul, come from my early childhood circumstances where I had to grow up fast. Both my parents, skinny as beans always, were interested in cooking, preserving and good nutrition. So lots of healthy fruit, growing own veggies and eating right, cooking from scratch were like a family culture instilled into me. I have always had this hearty appetite so could polish off the same sized meal as the men in my family as a child.

I think my troubles started when I thought I was doing myself a favour with high carb, low fat Pritiken way of eating in my early married days. So we know that became disastrous longterm. I also enjoy slow cooking and preserving. Not so much into cakes but making nutritious meals from scratch, so food is an interest, maybe more a passion and it also is a comfort zone. I like to be in my kitchen so if you like to cook, there is always something yummy to eat in my fridge. I have been busy worker/ mum/ wife and ate also to get energy as in habit of pushing myself to keep all the balls in the air. So I do think a lot about food, I enjoy sourcing my food, know what tastes yummy and I enjoy eating. People mostly like eating my food alchemy.

@clairemarie lovely post. I agree about the nurturing and comfort feelings. Must get back to those baths. Will be interesting to read other replies

Very interesting comments and it is amazing how complex the subject of why we eat and what we eat becomes.

Quite simply,I have no will power! I can be quite happily doing something and then I just think of food and from there I automatically head for the kitchen. Just started 5:2 yesterday so over the weekend the biscuits, home made cake and chocolate have been eaten and the fridge is full of raw vegetables to snack on so there should be no temptation. If I am upset or stressed in fact I go off food and sometimes my stomach cramps. Having said that I did not complete my first fast yesterday - I was eating healthily, but when I entered the details on MFP my calorie count was just under 1200!

Fantastic thread.
I've started eating organically which is expensive, so my conscience feels good about eating better but guilty about the higher cost, so I try to eat smaller amounts of the organic food.
It does taste markedly better, fuller flavour in cheese and eggs especially, but I don't know how long I can afford to keep it up. Pensions don't go far.

[Debs]

That's tough azureblue. Have you thought about making your own cheese and yoghurt to save money? Then the only outlay is on the organic milk. Rennet etc. I recall that there was a lovely yoghurt cheese recipe around somewhere.

This feels like a sister tent to the mountaineering tent.

Hi Debsie and thanks for the very interesting thread. Like other folk on here, with no health or drug issues, my extra weight was caused by over eating but I now believe that an excess of carb rich food played a huge part in my personal growth story. IF has changed my life in a way I would have found unbelievable at one time. Yes, I comfort ate, who hasn't but when I look back it is obvious that it was the 'wrong' type of food that brought the problems. I could be annoyed that we have all been encouraged, coerced even, to indulge in sugar laden rubbish but at my age I no longer have the time to waste on negative emotions I am just SO grateful to Michael Moseley for bringing this to the public consciousness. Without him I'd still be slouching round the house feeling lethargic, lazy and fat. I do feel in control of my life in a way that I have never felt before and I can tell you that it feels wonderful knowing that I am doing great things for my health, looks and emotions. It is very true that nothing tastes as good as being slimmer feels, good luck

Ballerina x

Like a few of you, I tended to eat when I was happy, eat when I was sad. I am also a lover of food, especially spicy food (which tends to generally be fatty too). The worst thing I am guilty of is talking myself into eating. Its that "one one hurt" or " I will make up for it later" The later never came!. I would eat rubbish and then feel guilty about it later. When I felt guilty, instead of doing the right thing and counteracting it by eating healthily I would be angry with myself and eat more rubbish. Its a vicious circle I think. I think some of it comes from having an addictive personality. When I eat I eat too much, When I smoked I smoked too much...

One last thing I believe is a contributing factor to my yearly weight gain is, when I was growing up, we were never allowed to leave any food on out plates. When I read things now about eating slowly so that the stomach has time to send the full signal to the brain, I always subconsciously think that I have to eat all the food on my plate anyway. We (myself and my brother) were also not allowed sweet and chocolate in the week (very often) and I think when I was old enough to pay for it myself I made up for it. I'm not blaming my parents because they were doing what was probably quite normal in the 70's and 80's

Fantastic thread.
I've started eating organically which is expensive, so my conscience feels good about eating better but guilty about the higher cost, so I try to eat smaller amounts of the organic food.
It does taste markedly better, fuller flavour in cheese and eggs especially, but I don't know how long I can afford to keep it up. Pensions don't go far.

Have you the opportunity to garden at all.. even in pots on a balcony? Its a good way to eat organically and usually more cheaply. things like cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce, beetroot, snow peas, spinach, herbs.. even potatoes and carrots.