A Baker's Dozen Binge Buster Tricks

 

The mind of a binge eater
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A Baker’s Dozen of Judy’s Binge Busters.

There are lots of tried, and true ideas out there about how not to binge like: take a bath, take a walk, knit, scream at your kids, etc. My little list is a bunch of things that aren’t the usual generic binge stopper suggestions, BUT THEY HAVE WORKED FOR ME!

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you are feeling out of control, try my little tricks before, during, or after a binge. 

1. If you feel a binge coming on or during a binge, put on tight jeans or slacks—Do not allow yourself to wear sweat pants or jammies that allow denial. Tight clothes make you aware of the feel of your body against the fabric. It just isn’t as much fun to eat a lot in tight duds.

2. Get enough sleep—this IS on other lists, but I would add having a glass of milk before you try to sleep can help.

3. Before, during or after a binge, drink grapefruit juice.

     a. BEFORE: This little trick has stopped me from even starting many a binge. The acidy feeling you will get in your stomach likely won’t want to be joined by cookies or fudge.

     b. During: In the midst of a grand mal binge, grapefruit has stopped me.

     c. After: Try this when you feel you are back in control and ready to eat sensibly. However, your stomach feels icky from all the garbage you have eaten, but nothing sounds tasty except more carbs and fat. The thought of eating veggies sounds horrible. Grapefruit to the rescue.  Once again, it has a neutralizing effect on your tummy and carbs and fats lose their appeal and your body almost wants healthy food.

4. There is more you can do than just drink grapefruit juice after a binge to lessen your misery.  The temptation is to go cold turkey on an austerity program immediately.  My suggestion is to not go gung ho on some strict diet. With all those carbs and regret in your system, you can lessen your tummy ache and heart ache by GRADUALLY getting off your carb and fat wagon. Don’t fast do or any other extremely restrictive actions.   If you are like me, you feel yucky. That first day or two (usually a Monday, right?) GRADUALLY come off the carbs—do not starve yourself or make other extremely austere actions.  Deprivation is self-abuse as is binging. By Wednesday, those salads don’t look so repugnant and the chocolate kisses don’t look so enticing.

5. Peppermint gum. (I prefer Mentos) There is something magic about peppermint gum. Try popping a chew and see how it staves off your hunger. PG is useful even if you are eating healthfully, but hungry.

6. Suck on some peppermint hard candy. (Same deal as the gum.)

7. Brush your teeth. You know the taste of many yummy foods are not so yummy if you have the taste of toothpaste in your mouth.

8. Pleasure yourself–OR let  someone else pleasure you.  (You didn’t think you would get such a sexy suggestion from an old gal like me?)

9. This one is hard to do because in the midst of a full blown binge you are in an altered state of thinking. However, if you can get yourself to write everything down—descriptively–that you have eaten since this fat attack started, it can help bring you back to your senses. If you are really strong, you can write the calories you have consumed also. Stare at the paper for a bit. It just may disgust you into halting your aberrant eating behavior.

10. Stop, yell at yourself a bit, maybe even cry a bit.

11. Then forgive yourself.

12. Then, make a goal sheet with activities and dates. Don’t write down what you will lose by a certain date. Just make behavorial goals under your control.

13. Move on.

This is just a quick list. I will have tons of help in my blog and there is, of course, the entire 4-step approach to losing and keeping it off in my book: Judy’s DietGlue. See: www.judypayne.com