::the:binge:cycle::

Last week was c.r.a.z.y.
Meaning it was super duper busy...I was going to lose my mind...so therefore, and naturally, I was absolutely beat by the weekend. I literally did nothing...well, that's untrue, I cleaned and did all the adulting that I needed to do but I also bailed on the gym both days and ate so much junk it wasn't even funny...definitely gained a few which I am not super proud of...which leads me to today's post...which many people struggle with and I am most certainly one of 
them and that is bingeing.
Now you can binge on pretty much anything these days...whether it be binge-watching your favorite shows, binge-drinking, binge-eating...binge-anything! But the most common form would of course be gorging yourself on food. 
I will admit that there have been times where I will plan a cheat meal and oftentimes it can turn to cheat "days"...which I know doesn't help my progress at the gym whatsoever...not only that, it's mindless. 

Many people say that emotional eating can quite often lead to binge-eating episodes...eating in general I feel is quite emotional. Whether we eat out of camaraderie or celebration {birthdays, anyone?}, seasonal changes {apps and drinks on the patio}, sadness {ben & jerrys + break up}, nervousness {constantly snacking}, etc. We tend to eat what we feel...or rather feel like...but there is a difference when we begin to "eat our feelings". 
But then there are many that say that eating can become unemotional for them...thus leading to these episodes of binge-eating. I for one, can attest to the fact that my binge-eating can be quite unemotional. It's strange, I will get it into my head that i will have a cheat meal here or there and plan it out, get excited as I romanticize the comfort and happiness I will feel {even though afterwards it leads to regret and guilt} eat it...feel guilty and then MORE cravings will kick in to the point where I throw all caution to the wind and just go crazy with food...and I don't even think about it. I just think about how much more food I can stuff down my throat without feeling disgustingly sick. How messed up is that? Usually it's just the THOUGHT of the food that gives me pleasure...going out and getting it and the excitement of eating it...but during...there isn't a lot of that going on...nor do I feel great doing it during and especially not after the fact. 
It almost sounds like what an alcoholic would do to get their fix for liquor...romanticize, get excited, purchase it, and then finally drink it...and drink so much of it that it just leads to a blackout and then hangover and it wasn't ever enjoyable in the first place! But..you can't help but continue on this self-destructive path!

Now I know that binge-eating can be a lot trickier then what some of the below will suggest in helping curb it, but it's a start. And if you feel like it is really beginning to interfere with your life on a physical, mental, emotional, psychological level then perhaps it is time to seek professional help. 
It's going to take time...it would take time for anyone! But it is also important to follow some of the following tips and really get mindful about things. 
You can get some more thorough tips and answers if you click the link for this site - called Nia's Shanks -- lots of good advice to go on here. 

But here are some that spoke to me and my take on it. 

ADDITION INSTEAD OF RESTRICTION
In the blog post it shows something along the lines of this: 
Restriction-->Binge Eating-->Guilt-->Restriction-->Binge Eating-->Guilt
And so on and so fourth it goes...it's so incredibly true! I definitely feel and agree that the next day you should not restrict your calories to "make up for" what you did the day before...if you do this then you are basically training your brain to think that what you did was wrong to the point that you need to starve yourself and this isn't the case! You slipped up! People do it all the time! If you end up restricting your calories you're either going to slip up that night, or the next day...either way you look at it - restriction is not the answer - because in the long run it's going to bite you in the ass.


STAY OFF THE SCALE
This is one that I have difficulty with...because I weigh myself daily to stay accountable to my work-outs and clean meals...at the same time, it's probably not the smartest idea because the scale cannot differentiate between fat and muscle mass. 
So you may be a helluva lot leaner and your clothes may fit completely differently but if you lost fat and put on muscle then that scale is going to be higher then what you probably want to see. It's incredibly hard to wrap your head around it when you've been conditioned from such a young age that the number on that scale is the be all and end all.
So at the end of the day - measuring oneself and using fat cal's might be the way to go over that scale of yours, especially if you're lifting weights.


CELEBRATE ALL VICTORIES & DON'T DWELL ON MINOR SETBACKS
Its' so funny how we never focus on the positive...all the good stuff we throw to the wayside and just put all of our energy on the negatives. Once we do this...focus all of that energy on the unfavorable then we tend to manifest that in our environments - it will then begin to attract even more negativity. 
So there is no point in dwelling on the negatives! The should-have/could-have's...they why's...and what if's...you did it, it's done, you can't rewind time, get over it and move on! Focus on ALL of your victories...even if you made it the morning without binging! It doesn't matter what it is or how small - once you get into focusing more on the positives then you can't help but bitch slap those gloomy notions away.

BE PATIENT, BE KIND
This sort of goes hand in hand with the previous one - when you celebrate your victories you are celebrating YOU. It's so important to be patient and kind to yourself - there is only ONE you! I know you probably have heard that time and time again but it's so important to inform and educate yourself on all the wonderful things that you can do. Meaning, read up on some A&P books and you'll be blown away by the incredibly things that your body can do! You'll learn all the scientific bits and bobs about how your incredible body heals itself, repairs itself, nourishes and grows. Once you realize how fragile...and how much of a delicate flower you actually are {fuck you, Tyler Durden!} then you might just appreciate yourself a little more. 
I'm sure you'd heard this one before too...but if you can't imagine saying certain things to other people...then why would you say it to yourself?

Overall - there is definitely a lot to be said of each individuals relationship with food - not everyone is the same. 
Some people thrive on strict and regimented eating - oftentimes once you eat healthy for a long period of time you can't even imagine going back to eating junk foods. You just have to LISTEN to your body. It'll tell you exactly what it wants...not your brain - that's going to try and trick you..listen to the visceral feeling that you get in your gut. 

What are some tips and tricks that you swear by to stay on track? 

-S.*