is mcdonalds addiction an eating disorder? perhaps.

[Guest eliza.d]

hi everyone. Eliza here.

i apologize for the triviality my little eating disorder may place towards all of the very serious, potentially life threatening eating disorders. one of my best friends died a few years ago from morbid obesity. he was a great man and a wealth of historical knowledge. he is missed.

heres my dilemma:

is being addicted to mickie ds and eating disorder? perhaps. i have always loved the golden arches. i used to eat there for breakfast, lunch, and sometimes dinner too. all in the same day. i have managed lately, since coming out and trying to reverse the damage of years of neglect and supersizing on my male body in attempt to reclaim the body im stuck with. im a 33 yo o mtf tg just beginning my journey thru transition. i still eat mcds once every two or three days...ok maybe once a day. but now i get a cheeseburger happy meal with unsweet tea+ splenda. and itt comes with an awesome hello kitty toy that would cost you 20 bucks at sanrio/hello kitty. wooohooo! lol! i was in the army and they did a wonderful job of breaking me of my love for excercise. even jumping jacks, they made painfull. no lie! so i was up to 200lbs, im 5'11". im atrucker and oneday the emts pulled a 27 yo out of his truck beside me at a truckstop. dead of a heartattack behind the wheel. he had a bit more belly fat than i. i know i have a fast metabolism and not much to complain about and he probably had a hereditary condition, but it spurred me into action. i now eat about 1200-1400 calories a day and have lost 15+ lbs and gone from a size 38 to a 34 in two months. im not trying to be rail thin, i like curves, so long as theyre in the right places. lol! i have more energy and fell better than i have since high school. maybe ill even start exercising again. i dunno.

anyway, hope my story helps eventhough its not really an eating disorder.

bless you all,

Eliza D

[Carolyn Marie]

Eliza, I don't think you can be addicted to a particular brand of food, but I've seen news reports about studies that indicate that certain types of food, those high in fat content for example, can become a habit, if not an actual addiction. Don't be fooled by ads for fast food salads either; many of them have more calories than burgers and fries.

1200-1400 calories a day is very good, and you should be proud if you stick with it. Exercise is great too, because if you don't do that, even cutting down to 1000 calories a day isn't going to help that much.

Keep at it, hon, and you'll have a figure you can be proud of in no time.

HUGS

Carolyn Marie

[Guest Kelly-087]

I think it can be. It depends on what you're eating. A cheeseburger from McD's is probably alright. I have noticed that there is a certain addictive quality to them. I'm 22, and eat from 1000-1800 calories on a normal day(usually on the lower end0, and usually work out at least an hour every day myself.

Naturally, you can do better than McDs. Not really a judgement, just a comment. A hamburger from them wont kill your diet.

[Guest eliza.d]

yep, i prefer salads, and thai and indian. being an over the road trucker, there arent many healthy choices out here, i do eat subway...usually a 6 inch turkey on wheat with no cheese, spinach, tomatoes, banna peppers or jalepenos, with light mayo....no chips no cookies. and definately no soft drinks. i usually get unsweet tea with a few splendas. arizona diet green tea, snapple diet peach or lemon, and sobe life water zero in various flavors. out here its usually the lesser of evils. at home, my wife being a culinary sorceress, i get the best food thats very good for me. unfortunately i can barely boil water. but i may let her teach me her waysof wizardry in the kitchen. but her infinite wisdom in the ways of makeup are primo on my educational agenda.

i forgot, there is one type of exercise i love....dancing! woohoo! thats great exercise. and i certainly didnt do any of that in the army.

hugs from...

Eliza D

[Guest Ann Onymous]

IMO, no, having a fondness for a particular establishment is not an eating disorder. Fast food is certainly not the healthiest stuff in the world, but in moderation, is perfectly acceptable. Personally, I have a fondness that I cannot explain for that stupid McRib, and it got me back in McD's after having sworn off of that place for several months in favor of healthier food (actually tending to skip lunch and then just do crab or steak for dinner). I am back to eating there about once a week, but am still able to at least maintain my weight (I have not been diligent about my exercise routine since moving to a new place last month).

[Cyndee]

Engineered food, designed and marketed to get you to buy more, and so available and cheap. Once and a while I''ll have a big mac on my breath, no harm, no foul, my weight stays steady with daily exercise, no worries.

Keep up the good work Eliza

C Rae -

[Guest Donna Jean]

.

Here are the nutritional values of a Big Mac.....

.................................................% of daily requirement...

Carbohydrates 47 g .....................(16%)

Sugars 8 g

Dietary fiber 3 g .......................... (14%)

Fat 30 g ......................................(47%)

Saturated 10 g ............................ (52%)

Protein 25 g .................................(45%)

Sodium 1010 mg ..........................(44%)

So, essentially a Big Mac gives 1/2 of all the fat, Saturated fat, protein and sodium that you should have in a day....

That's a lot......

I still have one once in a while.....

Dee Jay

[Guest eliza.d]

fortunately ive never tasted the black magic of the mcrib or the bigmac. always stuck to the double cheeseburgers, cheeseburgers and those amaaaazing fries!

thats bad enough. i could probably resist those too if it wasnt for those delightful hello kitty toys that come in the happy meals. ive got a few of them stuck to the dash of my big rig. as i go down the road, their little heads bobble away. actually, they provide a significant amount of stress relief for me out here in the cold, lonely world of long haul trucking.

yeeaah hello kitty!

Eliza D

[Guest NatashaJade]

McDonalds' food contains a slow acting poison that requires you to continue to consume it or you will fall ill. McDonalds withdrawal is a serious problem for some and they break down and get a midnight Big Mac fix and then they're back on the McD's poison...

A terrible terrible thing...but you can quit.

xoxo

[Guest Robin Winter]

If I may inject a bit of half serious humor here...I think a McDonalds addiction would be more in the way of a mental disorder...

That stuff is icky....

[Guest eliza.d]

good one shilo! im with you on that one for sure! mental disorder.

also with you natasha jade, definately a conspiracy by ronald mcdonald.... the original drug pusher. lol!

at least a portion of the proceeds go to help support ronald mcdonald house. thats a good thing.

perhaps some good can come from our addiction to mcAddictive delights.

Eliza

[Guest Pammy]

Eliza, hello and welcome from a former OTR driver.

Eating healthy out there is tough but not impossible. So is exercise, even in small amounts. Find a copy of Truckers News. There is a column in there on eating healthy on the road. Avoid McDonalds if possible but don't deny yourself a treat now and then. Try carrying your own food in a cooler. Your wife can create individual meals in sandwich-size Tupperware (that's what I did but I'm a good cook )

All you need to do then is run into the t/s and pop it in the mike.

Quit parking up front (you KNOW you do!) and park in the back row. More spot availability and more exercise going back and forth.

That rag also has some of the best news about our profession but that's a side-benefit.

PM me and I can also offer advice wrt your decision to do your own thing vs. a company driver.

Love

Pamela

[Guest eliza.d]

im too scared to park in the back row at this moment in my life. i do walk about a good bit, however stealthily, but walk i do nonetheless. it was great when i used to bring the second love of my life, my little plump golden fleece pomerainian lou-lou with me. i wuld walk her everywhere. i decided not to bring her anymore since she only sleeps when i do, and i have been running produce otr lately and do not sleep as often as she needed. i was beginning to see her suffer because of this, so she stays at home with the rest of our little horde of ankle kissers. she misses me, as i do her. but she is happier at home. and healthier. as you all know, when we truly love someone, their happiness is paramount to our own.

we have 11 little furballs and a kitty. we are dog crazy. we have 2 papillions, three chihuahuas, three japanese chins, one pom, a pekingese, and a chinese crested. and the kitty. i know, its almost the entire toy group of Westminster. but i told you, we are dog nuts.

bark bark, yap yap yap,

Eliza D.

[JJ]

Ah-so glad to hear from someone with more furry comapanions-or children if I am being honest-than our family. Well barely. Oh no I just recounted and if you count the 2 accidental kittens (Called Thing1 & Thing2 after The Cat in The Hat with good reason. Long story. We are usually too responsible to breed our crew) we are currently attempting to rehome, we are about the same number counting the two outside dogs and the horse we surpass you.

Wish I hadn't counted now. Ignorance is bliss. In our defense all but my Newfoundland (Who lives outside because a 200 + lb dog that WILL NOT housebreak is impossible to keep inside.His pen companion is a 100lb Rottie/hound mix who has to live outside in a confined space due to a firm conviction that EVERYTHING is edible including steel wool and bleach in addition to clothing and furniture. No physical cause the vet could find. She just lives to eat and to her the world is edible), are rescues. We are suckers.

But happy suckers and they do bring joy and entertainment to our lives.

Johnny

[Guest eliza.d]

haaaahhhaaa! thats right, they are our furry children, or furless, in the cas of our chinese cret d, mei mei. lol!

fortunately, we have the good sense not to breed them either,. i get very attached to our furry companions, and i would not be able to sell even one of them. we would be overrun with hundreds of ankle kissers..... well i guess we are slightly overrun now, but the joy outweighs the pain. i just cant go in any pet stores or shelters...or even rescue websites. two of our current fuzz testicles are rescues, and they make great pets. but really we are the pets and they are the masters.

look, at least my dog addiction made it into the right topic. lol!

bless you for loving your pets Johnny,

Eliza