Binge Eating Dietitian Podcast

8 steps to binge freedom

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Picture this: You're free from the shackles of diet culture, guilt, and obsession with numbers. Sounds liberating, right? That's exactly what we're exploring today.  I'm revealing eight strategic steps to overcome binge eating. As someone who has personally grappled with this and is currently pursuing a doctorate in the field, I can assure you that it's possible to break free from the cycle of binge eating. I demystify the societal norms and pressures that often derail recovery and share how embracing all foods and shedding guilt can create a healthier relationship with food.

Thank you for listening to the Binge Eating Dietitian Podcast! As well as over 130 episodes, what else do I have in store for you?

  • Grab my free CHECKLIST for a binge-free week here.
  • Join me for a free WEBINAR on What Is Really Keeping You Stuck in Binge Eating here.
  • Come say hi over on INSTAGRAM @binge.eating.dietitian

Take care of yourself, Jo x

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What I could talk about today. That's going to be positive, optimistic and really get you geared up for overcoming binge eating in the not so distant future. So I've come up with eight first steps to get you towards binge eating recovery and I think that these steps will be helpful for you no matter where you're at in your binge eating journey. You may have struggled with binge eating for years and you've seen therapists or dieticians and have had lots of support in that. And even if you have, I do think these eight steps will help to just bring you back to the basics and get you tuned in to the very foundations of overcoming binge eating. Likewise, if you have never thought that you would ever be able to be free from binge eating, I really think you will value these steps and be able to put them into practice in your own life to get you well on that road to binge eating recovery. Just want to give my usual disclaimer Please don't take healthcare advice from a podcast. Any information that I give in this podcast or in any podcast is for entertainment and education purposes only. Please do talk to your GP if you're really worried about your binge eating, all right. So, without further ado, let's get cracking with eight first steps to overcoming binge eating. The first step is to acknowledge that the society we live in really wants you to lose weight, and I know that sounds like an unusual first step to overcoming binge eating, but it's important because, as you are on the road to getting over binge eating, you are going to be tempted and you're going to be thrown off your binge eating recovery with some diets or wellness plans or something is going to convince you that what you're doing is not right and that you should be trying to lose weight instead. Having an awareness of the diet culture that we live in and all the messages that come from loved ones, colleagues, schools, workplaces, tv media, social media all the messages about weight loss are all there trying to get us to dislike how we look so that they can sell us something and so add to the already multi-billion diet culture that we all exist in. I just want you to be aware that you are going to come up against barriers and you are going to feel tempted to go back to some kind of diet or wellness plan. So that's why the first step is just to have an acknowledgement we do live in a culture that promotes weight loss all the time and, as I said before, when you're trying to overcome binge eating. Seeking weight loss probably isn't the most appropriate thing right now, and I would always recommend getting over binge eating first before trying to seek weight loss in the future.

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Step number two is to recognise your reliance on numbers and slowly start to detach from that reliance. You might be wondering now what am I talking about? I am not a numbersy person. I don't do numbers. Let's just take a closer look.

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Disordered eating, eating disorders and binge eating are all rooted in a devotion to numbers. It becomes ritualistic to weigh our bodies every single day, even multiple times a day, to weigh out our breakfast cereal and, of course, weigh up our moral level in society based on how perfect we are with those numbers. Relying on numbers is deeply entrenched in perfectionism, because numbers are cold hard data. Right, they're either black or white. It's input and output. It's right or wrong. There's no room for error. If you haven't reached the weight that you wanted to reach, or that your meal plan told you that you'd reach, you failed, it's really likely that your binge eating is rooted in numbers. So I invite you to, as much as possible, scrap your reliance on numbers and remember that human beings survived long before we could ever collect and analyze data from our daily lives. We have survived well before we ever even knew what a calorie was, without food scales or bathroom scales, and certainly without apps such as MyFitnessPal. All these new technologies and sciences. They all aim to make our lives easier, make us healthier, put us in a better place than we were before. And while I agree to that to some extent, it's not healthy if you are obsessing about numbers. That is never healthy. So if that means deleting your apps, throwing out your bathroom scales and maybe even throwing out your food scales, then I am here for that.

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If you think that you are getting obsessed with the numbers, step number three is to legalize all foods and write down as many foods as you possibly can think of that you love. Remember? I spoke about in a previous episode how we've gotten so used to eating foods regularly that we don't even like the taste of, and this can be because they are safe foods or they're high in protein, so they fit in nicely with your meal plan. But if you don't like the food, why eat it? One of the beauties about putting diets to one side and trying to overcome from binge eating is that you can focus on eating foods that you really love again, and eating those without any guilt attached. If you find this challenging because you don't know what kind of foods you even like anymore, write down what meals you would eat if it didn't have any effect on your weight, shape or size. Why not log on to your supermarket website and take a trip through all those virtual aisles and, as you look at the different foods, ask yourself if it appeals to you?

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Resist relying on what numbers are on the pack. Instead, tune into what the food is itself and ask yourself do I like this food? How does this food make me feel? Does it make me feel satisfied? Again, remember to resist relying on the numbers on the pack. So things like portion size, calorie and nutrient content. If you find yourself drawn to that, go back to step two. We survived long before we could collect and analyse data on the foods that we eat. So work on that list of foods that you really enjoy. See if you can expand it to, say, 10 foods, and if you can reach 10 foods, see if you can expand it to 100 foods.

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Step number four is to take that list of foods that you love and ask yourself which ones you have been avoiding or limiting. Ask yourself have I really legalised all foods and allowing myself to eat any of these foods unconditionally, or do I still have certain words and attributions attached to these foods? Do you still use terms like treat food or occasion or weekend food? Remember what you resist persists. So if this point is really resonating with you, I'd advise you to go back to a previous episode on how to keep binge foods in the house and not go crazy, and I'll link that in the show notes.

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Step number five is to prioritise feeding yourself regularly. Space meals out throughout the day, with snacks in between. Find a schedule that works for you, and I know I've already said that you need to break the reliance on numbers, but it is really critical that you do feed yourself with a meal at least every four to five hours, with some mini meals or snacks in between. Everyone is going to respond differently to this, so try to have a schedule that works for you and don't be tempted to follow somebody else's meal plan or their way of eating. You can play around with this. If you find that the schedule you've set for yourself actually isn't working for you, then that's fine. Don't beat yourself up about it. You can play around with the amounts that you need to feed yourself with.

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You may be naturally drawn to a bigger meal. If you say haven't been sleeping well or that you've been stressed out or you've been more active than usual, you may also be drawn to a bigger meal for no apparent reason at all. It might just be what you need to keep your hunger levels topped up. As always, there is no right or wrong to this. But if you are going for very long periods during the day without eating a meal, then I'm not one bit surprised that you are struggling with binge eating and that you find that you have to binge eat later that day, or maybe the next day or even later on in the week. Hunger accumulates. Your body will never let you miss a meal and get away with it, so keep that in mind. Prioritise feeding yourself regularly.

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Step number six is to catch any thoughts about restriction, limiting or confining yourself to eat certain foods or at certain times of the day. Write these thoughts down, because they may need a little extra attention when you're facing a food or a meal choice. Ask yourself what is my true intention here and be completely honest with yourself. You don't have to share this with anybody, but be honest with yourself. If you find that you are skipping breakfast and even though you might say to other people, oh, I'm just not a breakfast person, I'm just not that keen to eat first thing in the morning. If that is the truth, then that's absolutely fine, I get it. But if, on some level, you are hoping that by skipping breakfast, you will be able to reduce your overall calorie intake and therefore lose weight, that's worth taking note of. If you can catch any of these thoughts, I want to say well done, because it's really difficult to be honest with yourself and own up to the fact that you are doing X, y and Z with the hope of losing weight. When you're approaching this step, I advise you to do it with no judgement, just observe. Get curious as to why you're doing specific things, why you're choosing certain foods and not others. Remember no judgement, just observation.

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Step number seven is to truly allow yourself to enjoy your food. Remember, when you are overcoming binge eating, you are free from any food rules. Food rules are not a part of your life anymore. There aren't foods that you shouldn't eat or should eat or are better for you and not so healthy for you. There is none of that. All food is equal, and one of the most important things about overcoming binge eating is that you can find joy in eating and in food again.

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Right in with this step, I want you to give yourself full permission to binge if you need to and I know that sounds crazy. It's like you want to get over binge eating. Why would you allow yourself to do it? But think about it. What you resist persists. So I'm giving you permission. As a registered dietitian. I'm giving you permission to binge eat if you feel the need to Resisting. It is likely not going to be beneficial long term. It's just going to cause the urges to grow and grow and grow until you can't resist it anymore.

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What I will say, though, is if you can think about how you could make your binge eating experience a bit more enjoyable. So, for example, you could choose foods to have available that you actually enjoy, so that you don't have to binge eat on foods that you don't even like. You could set yourself some time in the week to have a sort of planned binge. So say, if you always binge eat on a Saturday night, why not, from now on, say to yourself on Saturday nights, I am going to have a proper evening to myself, I'm going to relax, I'm going to get in all the foods that I really like to eat, I'm going to stick on a movie and I'm going to enjoy it.

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Do you see, here it's a very subtle mindset shift. It's not saying that you should never binge eat again, and I'm not saying that binge eating is a good behaviour that we want to continue. But by giving yourself permission to do it, it changes how you look at it and it likely won't make you feel so guilty and so bad about yourself when it does happen. Of course, remind yourself constantly that the food that you're choosing to binge on is always going to be available. It's not a case of now or never. Remember my little poem from a few episodes ago. This isn't a case of eat it now or never. I can have it today, on Monday, in January and whenever. And lastly, tip number eight has nothing to do with food, but it's still so important, and that is fill your days with activities that make you feel good. Remember you are heading for a life without binge eating, so you are going to have a lot more headspace, free time and all this extra energy that you usually spend thinking and worrying about food, and now you're going to have that time and space and energy all for yourself. So I'll ask you what are you going to spend it on?

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While you are getting to grips with the food side of things, have a look at what areas of your life you have neglected in the last little while and see if you can start to incorporate those into your life now, before you've overcome binge eating. For example, how's your friendships doing? Is there any friends that you have let slip in the last little while that you'd really liked to catch up on? What about your hobbies? I know that the pandemic probably has stopped a lot of your interests, but is there anything that you could dip your toe into to get you back into again Something that you really enjoy? And extra bonus points if it's something that can take your mind off food a little bit. You don't have to go whole hog with this. I advise you to take it slow. Don't take on too much additional things at one time, because that might cause you to start to feel a little bit stressed and under pressure. So why not introduce one hour a week where you do something that has nothing to do with food or physical activity or anything health or wellness related, and you immerse yourself in something that you really enjoy.

Speaker 1:

All right, so they are my eight first steps towards binge eating recovery. So, just to recap, number one is acknowledge that the society that we live in wants you to lose weight. Number two is to recognize your reliance on numbers and slowly start to detach from the data. Number three is legalize all foods and write down as many foods that you can think of that you love. Number four is to take that list of foods that you love and ask yourself which have I been avoiding or limiting? Tip five is to prioritize feeding yourself regularly. Tip number six is to catch any thoughts about restriction or limiting foods. Tip number seven is to truly allow yourself to enjoy your food. And lastly, number eight is to fill your days with activities that make you feel good.

Speaker 1:

All right, I hope that that helps you, even a little bit. If it does, please let me know. I would love to hear. You can contact me on Instagram I am at bingeeatingdit and if you have ever any suggestions for content for future episodes, please do let me know. I would love to hear your insight and to answer the questions that you have you who is struggling with binge eating right now. I want to know what you want me to cover. So, on that note, I'm going to leave you now with my 30 second cereal box book review. Actually, it's another free resource which I am all about, and I'm going to see you on the next episode. Today's review is a YouTube channel and it is Stephanie Buttermore. If you are somebody who is drawn into working out the gym environment or striving to have the perfect body, I think you'll really like Stephanie's channel. Stephanie used to be dedicated to getting the perfect body and she developed an eating disorder as a result. She then found intuitive eating and went all in and healed her relationship with food by allowing herself to eat whatever she wanted whenever she wanted. You can follow her journey on her YouTube channel or link to this repost episode of the binge eating dietitian podcast.

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If you didn't know already, I am taking some time away from the podcast in 2023, so I can focus on smashing binge eating in other ways.

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I am doing a doctorate degree.

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I'm doing a doctorate of education degree in the realm of binge eating and, as you can imagine it's taking some of my time and attention away from other pursuits like the podcast.

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I am keeping in touch with you on my mailing list, though. If you go to the link in the show notes now, you'll see a link there that says get your binge free week checklist. When you sign up to get the checklist you will be added to my mailing list and I'll keep you posted on how things are going over there, and I am sharing all of old episodes because they are full of wisdom about binge eating that I know that you need to hear. So please keep listening and I'll chat to you soon over on my mailing list. Make sure you head to the link in the show notes now and sign up to get your free checklist to have a binge free week, and then you'll get my regular emails after that. Until then, please take care. It is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for individual medical or mental health advice and it does not constitute a provider patient relationship.