No more binge eating = Weight loss?
By far one thing people always want to know is when they stop binge eating, will they see weight loss… It’s hard to say. Of course we all want to stop bingeing so that we can lose weight. Who doesn’t want to lose weight, right? And I totally don’t want to be a “Debbie-Downer” in this post, but the magic of weight falling off of you when you don’t binge eat anymore is not too likely to happen. Frustrating, I know.
It does seem logical enough - You used to binge on 1,000 extra calories per day and now you don’t. That has to be reflected in your weight, right… I thought the same thing too and was pissed off when I stopped binge eating and didn’t see any pounds coming off. Trying to look on the positive side of it (as always), at least I wasn’t gaining more pounds from binge eating, but still… It’s annoying.
I maintained my I’m-still-at-the-same-weight-even-though-I-don’t-binge-eat-anymore weight for a while until I decided I had had enough of being overweight. You know the story, I started eating more healthy when my grandmother was diagnosed with lung cancer… and the rest is history. I lost a ton of weight and have maintained it for over 1 year now.
So my point in this blog post might not be too obvious, I realize. Oops!
When you are at the point when you want to stop binge eating, focus on only that. I know it’s hard. I know that you hate your clothes being too tight (or ripping, in my case). I know that you hate feeling fat. Believe me, I KNOW. I’ve been there and it’s hard. I know. But focusing on getting more healthy and overcoming binge eating disorder solely is the best thing you could do for yourself.
Once you feel good about not binge eating anymore, then you can focus on losing the extra weight. That’s just the way that it works. (Of course, you can still exercise and do little workouts to curb a binge, but just don’t focus on the wrong thing initially.)
I honestly believe that ending binge eating disorder can be done (I’m proof of that), but I know from experience that it takes some time. Most importantly, it’s good if you do into it with real expectations and not crazy ones, like when you stop bingeing all of the weight you gained will come right off. Just give yourself time and you will achieve all that you want - overcoming and ending binge eating disorder for good, and losing the extra pounds after that.
(Pictures above are from 2006.)
Very insightful. Most recently I tried to not binge eat and also diet at the same time. I was successful for a month. The next month I binged more times than in the previous 4 months together! So, I definitely agree with taking it slow. Even though I’d like to be back to a normal weigh right this minute I am learning how important it is to completely stop and get control of the bingeing before even thinking about losing weight.
wow, this was really sad for me to read. i was hoping that it can be simultaneously done with little effort. Now there is just no way i can be back to my pre-binge body weight.