Stop Saying “I’ll Start Tomorrow”: How It Keeps You Stuck in the Binge-Restrict Cycle

We’ve all likely said one of these lines–

“I’ll start eating better tomorrow.”

“I’ll start my diet on Monday.”

Do you know what’s nocuous about this mentality? 

It offers this narrative that eating flexibly is “wrong” and reinforces the idea that restriction is necessary to see progress.

I told myself an indecipherable amount of times that it would be my last binge. 

But it was never my last binge…until the moment I stopped telling myself it would be.

Sounds strange, right? But, it’s true. 

I vividly recall sitting at a park with some friends about eight years ago. It was a beautiful 70-degree day, and I felt content—something that wasn’t common for me at the time, as food or my body consumed my thoughts nearly every waking hour.  It was in that moment that a thought occurred to me—I hadn’t binged in…

I couldn’t recall. 

I actually couldn’t remember the last time I had binged. I knew I was doing better—binging less frequently—but in that moment, I realized how much progress I’d truly made. 

Why The “I’ll Start Tomorrow” Is a Trap

When you tell yourself that you’re going to start eating healthier or begin a new diet the next day, it feels like you’re taking control. Like you’re finally stepping into the driver’s seat of your habits.

In retrospect, it seems healthy. After all, we should nourish our bodies and prioritize our health. So, you feel productive and disciplined.

Until…you don’t.

Until it’s your sister’s birthday or your best friend’s bachelorette or your cousin’s graduation party. Or until it’s a perfect summer day by the pool and you’re craving an ice cream cone—or a hard seltzer (or five). 

And right here, in this moment, is where the trap reveals itself.

Triggering the Binge-Restrict Cycle

Before “tomorrow” even arrives, you're likely going to binge on all of the things you’re about to give up for the unforeseeable future. You’re pre-labeling these items as off-limits, which can only lead to one thing…

The infamous binge-restrict cycle. 

Now, on that same summer day, when you’re craving an ice cream cone or a drink with your friends, you’re faced with two options:

You stay “disciplined” while feeling deprived and left out—only to binge at a later date when the craving becomes too strong to ignore.

Or…

You give in—but the guilt is so overwhelming that you end up binging that very day, just so you can “start over tomorrow.”

The Real Problem With Starting Over

Every time you tell yourself you need to start over, you’re reinforcing the belief that you did something wrong. But you didn’t. You’re human, and humans are meant to enjoy life—which includes food!

This unhealthy stigma around “good” and “bad” foods has pervaded the minds of so many people, contributing to the increasing number of those with eating disorders, body dysmorphia, and deeply strained relationships with food.

The problem was never the ice cream cone. It was the 10,000 calories you continued to consume because it was “the last time”. 

The problem was never the Chinese takeout. It was the insatiable urge to consume all of it so that there wouldn’t be any leftovers.

What’s Actually Healthier

Eating the ice cream cone. Eating the Chinese takeout until you’re satiated, and saving the rest for lunch tomorrow.

As I explained in my last blog, How to Build a Healthy Relationship With Food (Without Restriction), when you remove restrictions, those off-limit foods lose their power. You stop craving them as intensely because they’re no longer forbidden. And, you actually begin to crave foods that make you feel good, too. A hearty salad. Grilled salmon. Some fresh fruit.

I still find it fascinating how often I now crave those foods over the ones I used to binge on regularly.

What to Do Instead (Without Starting Over)

Instead of binging, feeling guilty, and promising to “start over tomorrow,” try this:

• Get 8 hours of sleep

• Go for a morning walk/jog

• Stretch

• Drink a lot of water

• Eat normally

• Journal 

  
  

You don’t need to fix anything tomorrow.

You Don’t Need Another Monday (Choose the Life You Want)

When you’re eighty years old, looking back on your life, what will matter more? How your body looked at twenty-five? Or the memories you made?

Would you rather skip celebrations to avoid temptation? Or be fully present—enjoying the drinks, the desserts, the laughter, and the people around you?

If I know anything about the people reading this blog, I know you prefer the memories. I know you want freedom. I’m not saying the shift is easy, but it starts with a decision. And from there, the wins begin to build. 

Until one day, you’ll find yourself sitting in a moment of peace, realizing you can’t recall the last time you binged. And it will feel just as beautiful as it sounds.