What do you do when you have a REALLY bad day??

[LoveLife]

I'm talking calorie wise. Today has been off the charts for me as far as eating goes. Its been awful and I feel terrible about it. I'm talking 630 calories between chocolate milk and a mint 3 Musketeers bar (which by the way tastes like a fluffy peppermint patty. LOL) Not to mention the tortilla chips, pita and hummus along with my usual breakfast and lunch!

I feel like a glutton. I don't know how to recover. Part of me wants to just chuck the whole day and just eat a ton more junk. But I know that won't make me feel better.

So what do you do when you eat a gazillion exta calories? Do you fit an extra work out in? Do you not eat the rest of the day? What gets you back on track?

Ugh, I'm just at a loss as to how to bypass this icky feeling and keep myself from going deeper. Thanks for any suggestions!

[umami_mommy]

i restart my day anytime i need to. i forgive myself and i move on as soon as possible.

one of the things i really liked about the v-trim diet when i read the book was that it asks you to really think about and write down your triggers and how to deal with them and how to recover from a lapse so it doesn't become a relapse. it's good planning for those of us who have a tendency to be slide easily into unconscious eating.

[JustVanessa]

I tend to junk the whole day and start again fresh in the morning.

[fek&fuzz]

If it's late in the day, I'll say "stop eating" and stop. But that's if it's dinner time and I'm way over calories for the day.

If it's earlier I'll just get back on track. And I'll eat within my calorie allotment for the next day as usual - not fasting or anything.

It's only one day. Forgive yourself and move on. Maybe take a walk after dinner. And figure out what triggered you to go way over since if it becomes common, you will gain weight.

[mommajb]

I find it so hard to stop and start over right then but I think that is healthiest.

You can't undo what has passed but you do not need to take more actions that you will regret. Accept it, take a walk with the little ones of that will help, and just get back to where you want to be emotionally.

No extra workout, no extra caloie restriction, just stop and move forward.

[happyhousewife06]

I tend to trash the hole day also and just start over in the morning. i might go for an extra walk or something also if I feel to down about it.

[425lisamarie]

Saying trash the whole day keep eating junk and start over tomorrow is a really bad binge eating mentality. I'm a strict eater, but every now and then I get a craving so I always say, i'll eat it on sunday if i still want it. Not everyone can have the will power, so if you eat it, let it be that and just go on with your day. Don't say you trashed the day start over tomorrow. What was maybe 600 calories can turn in to 6000. Not to mention your metabolism will take a while to recover, which sets you back even longer.

I'm not saying this without sensitivity btw, i battled an eating disorder for years, and this is the same though pattern

[JayGee]

I want to just chuck it and eat whatever the rest of the day, but rationally, I know that makes no sense. For me, I wait until I feel actual physical hunger again to eat. Sometimes it's later that same day, and sometimes I'm not hungry again until the next day. Minimize the damage by listening to your body's clues.

[sarah_bella1050]

Well, since I'm on Weight Watchers I just whoops I used some of my weeklies and put it behind me. Besides it doesn't sound like you ate THAT bad sounds like you ate some snacks maybe your body needed the extra calories. If I feel to sluggish because I ate a little to much going for a nice walk really helps.

[Mommyintraining2]

I realize this is a flag trying to tell me I'm neglecting myself somehow or that my brain is trying to tell me something. I try to figure out what it is: why am I eating my feelings instead of feeling them? Was I angry? Tired? Bored? Then I accept that I used food to fill that hole, recognize that it served a purpose at the time, talking kindly to myself since this is how I chose to care for my needs. Then I figure out how I can healthfully take care of my need in a proper way.

This has taken a lot of practice, especially trying to figure out what I was actually feeling when I ate and what the actual need was. But it's gotten easier with time. And when I mess up and eat to fill a void, I am gentle with myself now instead of beating myself up. I realize I was just taking care of my emotions the best I could at the time. Now it's time to face the emotion and take care of what the true need is.

[ryleigh'smama]

I tend to try to stop as soon as I realize what I am doing, and go on with the day eating normally. I try to adjust and stay as close to my calorie goal as possible. If I don't do that...which sometimes I do give up the day...I just try to do better the next day. I workout a lot, so I don't usually try to get in an extra workout, but I will make sure to workout on my days that I give myself an option (2 days a week I leave "open" so I can either choose to work out or not, 3 days a week are not optional....I find that I almost always choose to work out on my optional days cause it makes me feel good).

Don't beat yourself up, there is a lot of good advice here about figuring out what you were needing when you eat extra stuff and being kind to yourself.

[FitMOmmyOf2]

Originally Posted by Mommyintraining2

I realize this is a flag trying to tell me I'm neglecting myself somehow or that my brain is trying to tell me something. I try to figure out what it is: why am I eating my feelings instead of feeling them? Was I angry? Tired? Bored? Then I accept that I used food to fill that hole, recognize that it served a purpose at the time, talking kindly to myself since this is how I chose to care for my needs. Then I figure out how I can healthfully take care of my need in a proper way.

This has taken a lot of practice, especially trying to figure out what I was actually feeling when I ate and what the actual need was. But it's gotten easier with time. And when I mess up and eat to fill a void, I am gentle with myself now instead of beating myself up. I realize I was just taking care of my emotions the best I could at the time. Now it's time to face the emotion and take care of what the true need is.

Wow! Thank you for writing this, Mommyintraining2! I needed that tonight!
Not only did I quit smoking (finally!) 4 weeks ago and struggle with much more snacking (not always healthy choices..) since then but emotionally I'm also currently on a roller coaster!..
Especially tonight I had waaaay more chocolate than I wanted to eat and came to a point where I was close to saying "What the heck, I might as well eat the entire bar!".. (I ate half of it..)
I suffered from anorexia but more bulimia many years ago and tonight was actually the first time in a loooong time that I considered purging!..
Instead I came online and across this post (thank you, OP!) and I realize that I have been using food for a lot more than I thought!.. (Or maybe I should say I used nicotine to supress a lot more than I was willing to admit to myself!..)

To the OP, my apologies for not having any suggestions really. I didn't mean to take over with my 'story' here!.. I'm just glad I came across this post, really!

[Mommyintraining2]

Originally Posted by FitMOmmyOf2

Wow! Thank you for writing this, Mommyintraining2! I needed that tonight!
Not only did I quit smoking (finally!) 4 weeks ago and struggle with much more snacking (not always healthy choices..) since then but emotionally I'm also currently on a roller coaster!..
Especially tonight I had waaaay more chocolate than I wanted to eat and came to a point where I was close to saying "What the heck, I might as well eat the entire bar!".. (I ate half of it..)
I suffered from anorexia but more bulimia many years ago and tonight was actually the first time in a loooong time that I considered purging!..
Instead I came online and across this post (thank you, OP!) and I realize that I have been using food for a lot more than I thought!.. (Or maybe I should say I used nicotine to supress a lot more than I was willing to admit to myself!..)
To the OP, my apologies for not having any suggestions really. I didn't mean to take over with my 'story' here!.. I'm just glad I came across this post, really!

It's amazing to me how when I stop using something to suppress my feelings (drug of choice is usually chocolate) how hard it is to face the feelings. But it's nice to be able to figure out what the feelings are instead of covering them over or numbing them. Congratulations on quitting smoking! I'm so proud of you!

[FitMOmmyOf2]

Originally Posted by Mommyintraining2

It's amazing to me how when I stop using something to suppress my feelings (drug of choice is usually chocolate) how hard it is to face the feelings. But it's nice to be able to figure out what the feelings are instead of covering them over or numbing them. Congratulations on quitting smoking! I'm so proud of you!

Yes, it really is hard! The problem for me is that I have figured out already quite a while ago what I'm trying to 'cover up' , but I don't know how to 'fix' it since it involves other people and they're not willing to open up/talk, so I'm facing a dead end. I need to find out how to make peace with that kind of situation!..

Thank you for your kind word regarding my quit!

[lab]

Originally Posted by LoveLife

I'm talking calorie wise. Today has been off the charts for me as far as eating goes. Its been awful and I feel terrible about it. I'm talking 630 calories between chocolate milk and a mint 3 Musketeers bar (which by the way tastes like a fluffy peppermint patty. LOL) Not to mention the tortilla chips, pita and hummus along with my usual breakfast and lunch!

I feel like a glutton. I don't know how to recover. Part of me wants to just chuck the whole day and just eat a ton more junk. But I know that won't make me feel better.

So what do you do when you eat a gazillion exta calories? Do you fit an extra work out in? Do you not eat the rest of the day? What gets you back on track?

Ugh, I'm just at a loss as to how to bypass this icky feeling and keep myself from going deeper. Thanks for any suggestions!

I know exactly what this is!

You are getting ready to start your period.

Girl! It happens to me every month.

And you know what I do? I go with it. I figure my body needs the fat or carbs or whatever........

I do keep the workouts pretty hard. But really - what can you do. If I am absolutely craving it and I keep heading to the kitchen, I find if I ignore it then the next day could be worse. Now - it's not like I do this every day for endless weeks. We are talking one or two days about every 3 or 4 months. I will have a spike once a month. But I seriously go crazy about every 3 or 4 months.

HTH!

[nj's_mom]

Forgive and forget. Try to figure out why it happened, remember the reason for next time, be gentle with myself and (usually) follow the resulting cravings for healthy foods.

[greenmom4]

I've been following the Gabriel Method which is a non-diet. Basically, he says to stop thinking in terms of good days and bad days because that triggers stress and mentally flips on the "fat switch." His whole deal is you don't change your way of eating consciously, and rather than taking away any kind of a food you add in some of the "good" things (slowly). This, along with some visualization will eventually take away your cravings for the junk. But there's no pressure at all to eat or not eat anything. This has completely changed my life; I don't feel like every day is a battle against food. Anyway, just make sure that you eat some things with nutritional value and don't worry about the rest

If anyone is interested, his website is www.gabrielmethod.com; it looks scam-ish, but there's solid references behind his work and he knows his stuff (I feel the same way about Mark Sisson's "Primal Blueprint" website).

[nolansmummy]

As long as its a once or twice a month thing, it's really not a big deal, i think. Sometimes your body just needs a 3 muskateer bar (those things are so good). If its late in the day, i just make sure to drink as much water as i can before bed, get up, workout, and drink water and eat extra healthy the next day. If its after lunch, i restart the day and vow to eat a healthier dinner, and a healthy snack.

One more thing, if its before my period starts- i just get over it,even though i feel like i'm taking in so many extra calories. I eat salt, chocolate, and am so hungry. If i try and fight it, it backfires and i eat more.

IF you want to , adding in an extra walk will help with digestion and not make you feel so full, and will probably help with the guilt.