What I Eat in a Day in Eating Disorder Recovery

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NOTE: I am NOT a dietitian or medical professional. I encourage anyone struggling with food or a possible eating disorder to meet with a dietitian or medical health professional. You can find a dietitian in your area at eatright.org. I’m merely sharing my own experience in the midst of eating disorder recovery.

Q: What and how do you eat these days?

A: I follow a meal plan given to me by my eating disorder sports dietitian. However, there is flexibility with it now (which my dietitian encourages).

When I was first in recovery, I used the meal plan to give me structure and a routine. Now I understand my hunger and cravings enough (thanks to my dietitian!) to change the portion sizes of each macronutrient in my meals daily, according to what my body asks for.

I follow a schedule of breakfast, lunch, and dinner with two snacks, but some days I may eat less if I’m just not as hungry (following my body signals which I’ve learned with time–not the eating disorder signals). Other days I’ll add in an extra meal (often on long run days when I’m ravenous). Each meal usually includes a fat, protein, carb, fruit, and vegetable.

Keep in mind that there were changes along the way as I recovered, and I improved little by little. I’m still improving and learning. I make sure to eat until I am full and satisfied. So far these meals (below) work well for me as a runner and as someone recovering from an eating disorder:

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What I Learned About Binge Eating, and How I Stopped

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Note: I am not a dietitian or medical professional. This is simply what worked well for me in recovery after working with a registered dietitian and therapist!

In the summer of 2010 I thought I could exert all the willpower in the world. I could restrict, could hold back on my deepest food desires. Not to say it was easy; it was difficult, but at least I felt like I could control it.

When I began binge eating, I still wanted the control. I hungered for it. But there was something about food that suddenly took control over me now. Suddenly I couldn’t tell my body what to do.

This isn’t to say that I was like a zombie stumbling around the kitchen. I was aware of what was happening. But the cravings had never felt so strong, so constant, so life-consuming that I “needed” to get rid of them to function–just to get on with my day. 

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