This might be long
[FONT="]That plays a big part. We don’t feel hungry and that certainly helps, but then when did hunger come into it? If we are honest, I don’t reckon anyone of us here ate solely because we were hungry.[/FONT]
[FONT="]I do think ketosis takes many of the cravings away, but still there is more to this. I think a fair amount has to do with the rituals we perform in our day. We get up, which means it’s breakfast time (obviously
) , which may need a coffee or two to go with it. Then comes mid morning. Well…don’t we all need a snack then? Meal times grow bigger, because it’s so easy to do and before you know it, they are double what we need, but then, you have to have something sweet to follow. It’s just what we do.[/FONT]
[FONT="]It’s the whole palaver. Thinking about the food, getting the food, eating the food in a certain way. It’s all a part of the self-medicating ritual. The thought of not acting out is scary once you set the chain in motion. We assume that it is impossible to stop it. That’s what we do.[/FONT]
[FONT="]We go to the pub and have to have a drink. If we didn’t go there, perhaps we wouldn’t need one. We have a coffee and have to have a biscuit with it, yet perhaps be quite happy not to have that biccie if we were somewhere where we couldn’t take a break.[/FONT]
[FONT="]It’s all part of the ritual.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Now….when we start a VLCD, it’s a type of food that we haven’t had before. There are no rituals to go along with it. It doesn’t taste or feel the same somehow and we are determined to stick with it. We don’t set off that chain reaction. In fact we learn a new one. Shake, then nothing:clap:[/FONT]
[FONT="]But! Some people start adding bits and pieces. That’s when it gets difficult, because rituals are so easy to learn and so hard to get out of.[/FONT]
[FONT="]So, that’s why I think your first time on a VLCD is the golden time. You break those rituals when you are feeling very motivated. As long as you keep the ritual as shake then nothing, you are fine. It’s not so easy to add a little bit more shake, so we often don’t start getting into a habit of doing that. The rituals just aren’t there.[/FONT]
[FONT="]This is one of the reasons that some people fear AAMW. They know that thinking/preparing/eating ‘normal’ foods might start that chain reaction, but it’s one of the reasons that I consider AAM to be so important. It’s a chance to learn a new ritual. Chicken and veg, followed by nothing.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Ack…wordy again.[/FONT]