A disclaimer
If anyone tells you that reading a blog post is going to stop your Binge Eating, they’re lying to you.
I do not want you to expect that reading this article on its own will stop your Binge Eating. I want it to open up a new perspective for you. I want to provide you with ideas that are going to start the creation of your life without Binge Eating.
Why are you here
You're struggling everyday in a battle with yourself. A battle between wanting to take care of your body, and a drive to Binge Eat that feels uncontrollable.
A battle between wanting to make positive, healthy decisions, and a desire to lose weight.
The cycle you're in is beyond frustrating. You don't understand why you can't stop Binge Eating. You start most days clinging on to every hope that today you will not Binge. Today you will stay strong.
Yet every evening when you start having thoughts about Binge Eating, you're powerless. The Binge Eating side of you takes over and the regret, guilt, disappointment and sadness kicks in.
You don't want to continue this way. Binge Eating is holding you back from living in the moment. It's taking away opportunities and stopping you from fulfilling your potential.
It's completely blasted your self confidence and has left your sense of pride and self esteem in bits.
How do I know this? Because I've been there. I understand how it feels because I lived it for almost a decade. For the majority of that time I didn't know how I would function without Binge Eating. It was so ingrained in my every day I thought I'd live with it forever.
I can remember countless moments where I would have a burst of motivation, a sprinkling of hope. Today I'll stick to eating healthy. Today I'm not going to let myself Binge.
Only to break the promises I was making.
Over and over.
After breaking this promise too many times I lost trust in myself. I had no confidence that one day I'd actually be able to stop.
But I did. I overcame Binge Eating and I want to share with you how I did it.
How reading this article could be the start of your life without Binge Eating
The journey will have its ups and downs.
You can stop now, today, with the right tools.
It's okay if things don't go to plan.
It's okay if it takes a bit of time.
You're here. You're searching for the right kind of help. You're on the right path and pointing in the right direction.
You might not believe in yourself right now - but you can stop Binge Eating and this article is going to get you started.
The first section will ask questions to give you a better understanding of your Binge Eating.
The second section offers points for you to take action right now. Things you can do to kickstart your journey.
Part 1a - Your perspective
Are you ready to make a change? To challenge yourself to try something different?
What do you want from your body?
What do you want it to be capable of doing?
Write down the answer to this question. As much detail as you can. Be honest.
Once you've written down the answers, ask yourself why?
Why do you want that from your body?
Why do you want to be able to do that?
It's okay if fat loss is part of your answers. There's so much pressure on us to look a particular way from when we're so small. It's very reasonable to want to change your body and feel like it's attractive in the eyes of society.
Yet, this is something we need to question.
You are ready for this journey only if you can admit Binge Eating is the single biggest problem.
Body composition needs to be a lower priority. It doesn't mean you're abandoning it forever. It doesn't mean you're against striving to live an active and healthy lifestyle.
It means you know and understand that Binge Eating overpowers it all.
Some ideas:
I want my body to live a long and healthy life. I want to feel confident in my body. I want to love what I see in the mirror.
WHY? To enjoy every moment, to be able to walk into a room and feel like I can chat to everyone with energy and confidence. To stay active and able into old age.
I want to learn to handstand walk and do pull ups and muscle ups in the gym. I want to run a marathon one day.
WHY? To be proud of myself and what I've achieved. To do something that inspires others. To get to the end of life knowing I did some epic things and had a bloody good time.
Read yours again.
Is Binge Eating holding you back from achieving it?
Part 1b - Your internal narrative
We all have a voice that chats away to us in our head. Truthfully, what is yours saying?
Imagine the following scenarios:
I present you with a plate of food. What thoughts run through your head? If you're Binge Eating it might sound like this:
I should/shouldn't eat too much of X
That's a lot of food, I'll need to eat less later
I've already Binged today, I can't face eating this
I present you with a mirror. You can see your whole body. What runs through your head? If you're Binge Eating it might sound like this:
I hate X Y Z
I wish I had less body fat
I wish I was leaner or had less fat around my stomach
I know I'm not crazy overweight or underweight, but I still hate the way I look
I present you with how much you weigh in stone or kgs. What runs through your head? If you're Binge Eating it might sound like this:
That's far too heavy, I should weigh less
I've let myself go
I can't stand it if I get any heavier
You never know when you might face some of these triggers.
If you relate to the responses above, you're likely to use Binge Eating as a coping mechanism.
To stop Binge Eating, you need to learn to respond to these thoughts in a different way.
In the Cooki program we ask many more questions like this.
We dig into your thoughts and reflect on why you feel out of control. We bring the moment of reflection closer to the present moment of Binge Eating.
Eventually you'll be able to make a new decision in the moment.
This takes time.
So what can you do right now to start your journey?
Part 2 - Your actionable tasks:
Get a pen and paper - or notebook
Set an alarm on your phone for the morning or evening, and commit to writing a sentence or two about how you feel today.
Try for a week. Can you spot any patterns?
Question it
When you catch yourself thinking of your body in a negative way, write down the thought.
Then ask:
Who has made me think this?
When did I start thinking like this?
Is this context dependent? Do I always think this, or does it depend on where I am?
Given your answers to the above, what do you really think? What is your true opinion?
Practice with the thoughts you had when you answered the questions in Part 1b.
Challenge yourself post Binge
It is not possible to undo a Binge. You might feel that it's possible to undo it calorie balance wise by eating less. But it's not possible to undo the physical, social and emotional damage of that specific Binge.
The only way to stop this damage is to stop the cycle. To give you the best shot at this, we need to know that you are not experiencing physical hunger.
We need to know that your body is adequately fuelled.
Binge Eating is your body's survival mechanism if you're under-eating. Your body will relentlessly push you towards food if it's in physical need.
I want you to challenge yourself to eat as normal. It's okay if you Binge, but in the hours and days after you're going to eat breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks as normal.
I know it's scary, but it's one of the most impactful steps.
To summarise:
Start questioning your perspective, your thoughts and emotions.
Get a notebook or journal.
Set an alarm to remind you to write every day for 1 week.
Challenge yourself to eat as normal post Binge.
Consistently eat enough throughout the day, allowing your body to trust you again.
As I mentioned this is only the start, but these actions will give you a strong foundation for your life without Binge Eating.
Let me know how you get on. Message me on Instagram or drop the team a message here. Tag me in your Instagram story with an update of how you find it.
To stop the cycle now, apply for coaching here.