[kreg]

I tell myself to stop thinking of food as entertainment and think of it as a necessity for life. I have this theory that people look to eating as a replacement for unfulfilled goals in life. I mean food becomes a source of emotional thrill, fun, amusement. You can say the same about spending money. It becomes a replacement for working on something you'd like to achieve even if just as a hobby. You see it as too much work or you fear failure.

[aveoni]

Hello there!

Interestng theory. In my view, or rather in my case it's more of a coping mechanism. When emotions get too much for me to handle I overeat. My top triggers are anxiety and loneliness, with boredom coming third.

I've tried quite a lot of things but cannot find the correct wat to teach myself to see food as a way of nutrition and not something more.

I don't really know why I overeat.

I just... do it.

strangely enough, I don't actually like/ enjoy food.

many times people have asked me.. so is the food good?

and i'm always like- food's food, if their was another way to survive, that does not involve food, i'd do it

[Hoasis]

I think we all have different underlyinng reasons for overeating, and they may vary from time to time. Maybe some people use it as entartainment as they are bored without even thinking about it. I am often bored (most days) but not sure that is the main reason I eat.

[Standup2me]

Do we eat to keep others away?
When I am overweight I become very closed off from people.
I don't go out.
Am I eating to hide? To put up walls?

[kreg]

Originally Posted by aveoni

Hello there!

Interestng theory. In my view, or rather in my case it's more of a coping mechanism. When emotions get too much for me to handle I overeat. My top triggers are anxiety and loneliness, with boredom coming third.

I've tried quite a lot of things but cannot find the correct wat to teach myself to see food as a way of nutrition and not something more.

Yes I guess that could also be a cause. My theory is that if you don't pursue a bigger goal in life then you are left kind of like in a go nowhere whirlpool. So then mealtime and snacking become an emotional reward an attempt towards fulfillment. Same with spending money. Unconsciously of course. So you can't be a quitter. You can't say I'm not pretty-well work on it. From my observations of life there are many who by taking extra care with their appearance make themselves look very nice. Anyway personality and attitude is 99%. You gotta confront your hesitations. You can't say Gee I've always wanted to be start that business or play piano but I just don't have any talent. If you crawl into a hole or retreat from life the hole just gets deeper.

Maybe this will help. I've found losing weight is not a matter of eating less-at all. It's a matter of eating better. Works for me. Stop the bad carbs and fatty foods. Go to good carbs(that take time to digest) and lean meats. Then watch the weight drop off-and quickly too. And you don't need a bit of exercise for weight loss-any exercise. Of course it is good for other reasons. The science is that your body can only process a couple teaspoons of sugar at any time and if you overload then the excess feeds your fat cells. Bad carbs are what they call hidden sugar because it quickly breaks down and again the excess is stored as fat. You want to switch to better foods/fewer carbs and better ones(veggies and not fruits as they contain sugar) YOu want to get your body into burning fat for fuel not sugars. No low fiber starchy processed foods. Potatoes and many breads are some.
And if you look at for example Atkins.com you'll see you can still eat any meats as before. Many people bad talk Atkins but they don't understand how it works and anyway all you need from Atkins or any low carb plan is the understanding about the carb overload being stored as fat. One thing that works is to get a protein powder or shake. (read the label-no or very little sugar or carbs) This gives you a full feeling stopping the cravings for snacks or junk food. You can quickly get to where you have a shake for breakfast and that will last you a few hours and your stomach shrinks in the process. Excess protein is passed as urine so no fat storage. Veggies and lean meat for other meals. Once you get closer to your weight goal you can start with some bread and fruit and potatoes again. So whadaya think?