Off Day Offerings: My Feelings Taste So Good!

I've decided to use this off day post to discuss and organize the feedback from the last off day post in which I discussed that I need to figure out WHY I eat. Here are the reasons I and my wonderful supporters came up with (organized by approach style, of course):

1) The "Take It At Face Value" Approach
+ Does it just taste really good? - Amanda J.
+ Carbs just taste good....And carbs are everywhere. And they taste good. -Stephanie M.
+ Taste - seriously, carbs are delish! - Kiley H.
+ It's something to do when we are bored issue too. . .Mindless eating, it tastes good, makes you feel good (momentarily) why not there is nothing else going on. -MT
+ They are the most convenient. Of course, they taste good, too - Julie F.
+ The easiest answer is the taste of course! - Lois E.

2) The "Deep Internal Factors" Approach
+ Are you afraid of reaching your weight goal because when you get there and everything still isn't perfect you might have a breakdown because it was an end all be all??? - Amanda J.
+ Food issues tend to be about control...as things feel like they are spinning out of control, food or the controlling of what goes in or doesn't is comforting. - MT
+ Maybe I use it as a reward. -Julie F.
+ Eating is something that one can control and therefore can be changed at any moment by that person depending how they are feeling... because maybe for that one second the taste of food feels good and makes you feel whole. - Meagan M.

3) The "Scientific" Approach
+ [Carbs] give a quick seratonin rush. - Stephanie M.

4) The "External Factors" Approach
+ Lots of things in this country center around food. -MT
+ We learn very young "that food makes us feel better". -MT

Friends, you came out in full force and supported the heck out of me! Which I am so lucky to have friends like you who care enough to take the time to do this. <3>1) It was easy. Doing nothing is easier than you might think.
2) It protected me from potential pain and rejection. I think that subconsciously I allowed myself to be unhealthily overweight so I could use that as an excuse for men not wanting to date me. Additionally, if men did not date me then they could not hurt me (like they all inevitably do...and we inevitably hurt them too, ladies...that's what imperfect people do...).
3) I'm sure I hid behind it. This may be the same as #2, but I think it may be bigger than that.
4) I ate when I was bored.
5) I ate when I was upset.
6) I ate to reward myself.
7) I *love* the taste of food.

I am sure there are more... But this is a start. The next logical place to go is why now that I have lost the weight and reached a healthy weight do I still struggle? Initial guesses (not saying that any or all of them are accurate):

1) I still have the fear from #2 (above) and am self-sabotaging?
2) This really is an addiction and I will struggle daily for the rest of my life?
3) I am lazy?
4) Food tastes good?
5) I eat my feelings (This is definitely true. My stressful week at work was accompanied by many bad foods.)
6) I don't think I deserve to be fit?
7) Devon is passing me subliminal messages in my lifting routine to get me to struggle so that he remains gainfully employed? (Come on, guys...you *know* I'm kidding...)
8) The control thing? I have no idea how this even works, but I *love* to control things in ALL aspects of my life...so this must be a factor somehow...

Ok. I feel overwhelmed with introspection. Again, please weigh in on this post (pun intended!!!!!).

::heart::