it's confession time.

For me, by far, the hardest transition into this healthy lifestyle business is revamping my diet.

I don't mean diet, as in, the Atkins Diet, or the South Beach Diet, but my everyday eats.

I am a binge eater.

binge: an unrestrained and often excessive indulgence; an act of excessive or compulsive consumption

I am a balls-to-the-wall kind of girl when it comes to junk food. I will have 5 pieces of pizza instead of just one, or the entire chocolate bar rather than just one piece. My downfall is when I'm tired, and I get a craving and just have to run to the corner store for a chocolate bar, or bag of chips, or some fat-laden dip of some kind. Then I eat all of it (remember this post? I ate that whole container of spinach dip). This is not a new revelation - I've done this ever since junior high and high school. My mom used to hide the chocolate chips from me, because I would eat handfuls of them. I know. That's bad.

I've noticed there are a combination of factors that contribute to a binge:

1. If it's rainy or dreary outside, I want to curl up with comfort food

2. When I've had a bad day, or I'm upset or lonely, I am more likely to binge

3. A lack of self control

4. An inability to register that if I only have one piece, the rest will be there waiting tomorrow

I have also determined that if I prevent these "trigger" foods from being in my apartment, it prevents a lot of binges. I think one solution to my problem is to buy individual sizes if I'm treating myself, rather than the large bag (even though my thriftiness and environmental side scream, "NO!"). Dividing up the large bag or chocolate bar won't do any good at this point, because I'll just go back for more. It's like I'm two people - one with good intentions, and lots of self-control, but then when I get in a mood or get a craving, all hell breaks loose and there's no saving it.

I know I'm not the only one out there with this problem, but I feel like it's a gross thing to talk about in every day conversation. I'm really hoping that this Booty Camp will provide me with some accountability buddies for this sort of thing.

Stay tuned!