Food at the office - HELP

Livingfreetoday

I am looking for some strategies and help from my fellow MFPers. I work in a large office in a rather open environment. There is ALWAYS food around the office - chocolates, cakes, etc. I do pack healthy snacks but I hear the junk singing my name.

Anybody have to deal with this? What to do?
Thanks,

-

dbmata

Yup.

I choose not to eat it.

Self discipline is much like a muscle. If we exercise it, it gets stronger. If we ignore it, it atrophies.

verptwerp

Imagine it covered in mold ..... or maggots ..... you get the idea

ana3067

Either don't eat it or eat it if it fits your calories for the day.

SergeantSausage

Obesity is a choice.

Choose otherwise ... or don't.

It's completely up to you.

TahoeSki

This might sound a little "fluffy" but I recently read that dieters have more success acknowledging a craving or desire instead of saying to themselves "no I'm on a diet" and then trying to distract themselves. Be mindful and aware of the craving but remind yourself that you don't need to act on it. I successfully stared down cookies and cream ice cream cake today with this mindset! Also, stop for a minute, take a deep breath and remember your goals.

Livingfreetoday

Thanks!

kristen6350

I have a rule. If I didn't bring it into the office, I don't eat it.

seltzermint555

I'm fortunate currently to be in an office where they DON'T do that...but believe me, I've been there a million times.

My best advice is to be strict about your everyday habits. Some people like to snack, which is great and in that case I'd say bring your own snacks and stick to them. I am more of a "3 meals a day" person so I really don't eat at the office, period. I eat breakfast before work, lunch away from the office, and dinner after work. I know it's not that simple for everyone due to preferences, schedules, commutes, etc. But it helps me.

Another thing I do is have a few "exceptions". For example, at Christmas my office does get a lot of gifts sent over like chocolates, caramel apples, etc. Mostly from vendors. I don't partake of these with 2 exceptions...a family member of my boss makes homemade caramels, and I "allow" myself 1 per day because they're seriously amazing and I fit them into my calorie total for the day...and See's dark chocolate nuts & chews, which I'll allow myself 1-2 per week when they're available...limiting that to when I'm feeling low energy in the afternoon and enjoy it with a cup of hot tea. But if it's anything else, I avoid it. I try to decide what is truly "worth it to me" and stick to those things ONLY.

jgnatca

Sometimes I can walk by without an issue, other times I choose to take a snack. I work on taking the snack within my limits for the day. Take one, not five. Take at the end of the day, not five times during the day.

Exercising self-discipline is fine, but you can wear out all your reserves, too. Look at self-discipline as a muscle. Working it hard for a while is good. Working it to strain and injury is bad.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/jgnatca/view/halting-a-binge-session-715131

I have to say that all the MFP snack threads is bad for me during the day.

Branstin

Work some into your calories budget or ignore it. Another option is to keep a few of those 100-200 calorie cakes or brownies in your desk for the times you really want some.

af_wife2004

I will eat a little of the treats once or twice a week. Take time to sit down and enjoy the taste. If after one bite it doesn't taste good, throw it out. I've noticed when I eat healthier, I lose a lot of my taste for sweets and chocolate. It just doesn't taste good anymore.

WilmaDennis91

It's all about control and moderation. One won't hurt, but one every hour will.

yoovie

Perfect WILL POWER TESTING GROUNDS.

wear a helmet.
diamond strength willpower.

temptation will not sink you!
RAWR!!!!!!!!!!

SingRunTing

Sometimes I choose to eat a little and log it into my day.

But it's usually not as tasty as you think it will be and I'd rather save my calories for ice cream. So I avoid it most of the time. Just think about someone sneezing all over it or the office nose picker touching them all while selecting their piece, if that helps.

Sydking

Yes, I choose not to eat them, ive put my hand in the cookie jar once in the last 4 months.

It get refilled twice a week with about 3 packets. There is only about 15 of us here too....

Clients bring in cake all the time, Sandwich platters left over from meeting ect

And if i do want one, I eat one and log it. but its never worth it

I always have my snacks at work too which helps ALOT

adge1475

Weird method: Wait til you get sick.
Naw, seriously, enough people touch that crap that gets left out in break rooms. All it took was me getting a nasty stomach bug, along with a couple other people in the company, that now I'm happily terrified of touching the stuff anybody else brings. Not worth throwing up.

emmooney235

For me it depends on the day. Today the thought of the cheap donuts disgusted me, but there are days I wait for a vendor to show up. On those days I'll split one with someone else. I won't deny myself anything, but I make sure I control the portion size. I slice my own pie/cake, I cut donuts in half or smaller, etc. By "giving into" a craving I won't raid my hubby's snack stash when I get home and go overboard. That plan works for me, it may not work for you. Do what's comfortable for you, or what you can keep under control.

lemurcat12

seltzermint wrote: »

My best advice is to be strict about your everyday habits. Some people like to snack, which is great and in that case I'd say bring your own snacks and stick to them. I am more of a "3 meals a day" person so I really don't eat at the office, period. I eat breakfast before work, lunch away from the office, and dinner after work. I know it's not that simple for everyone due to preferences, schedules, commutes, etc. But it helps me.

This is great advice. I typically eat 3 meals, so mostly don't think about the office food. Sometimes, for something really special, I might make an exception. For a while I was doing a snack in the late afternoon, so I'd bring something. Not thinking about whatever it is as a possible food source for me makes it a lot easier.

The hardest times for me--consistent with this--is when I'm here all day on a weekend or expectedly at night well past when I want to eat dinner, and am tempted to just eat whatever is around (and want to justify it as a tradeoff for having to be at work then). I am dealing with that by making sure I have some "just in case" foods available at the office that I will also look forward to.

WithWhatsLeft

dbmata wrote: »

Yup.

I choose not to eat it.

Self discipline is much like a muscle. If we exercise it, it gets stronger. If we ignore it, it atrophies.

^^^ What she said.

It's completely true. The more you can walk away from it, the easier it gets.

Livingfreetoday

kristen6350 wrote: »

I have a rule. If I didn't bring it into the office, I don't eat it.

This is an excellent rule!!!

Livingfreetoday

So much thanks for all the great thoughts. This really helps.

FatFreeFrolicking

SergeantSausage wrote: »

Obesity is a choice.

Choose otherwise ... or don't.

It's completely up to you.

I didn't choose to be obese. Medications and other metabolic disorders did that for me.

OP: Yes. I work at a private school and there are goodies everywhere… Break rooms, classrooms, etc.

If I am unable to fit the goodies at work into my calorie goals/macros, I eat my own snacks that I bring from home.

rcottonrph1

Stock your desk with healthy goodies. Always have a healthier option available. Walk out of your way places so the junk is out of sight!

dopeysmelly

Giving up office goodies was one of the first things I did because it was so obvious they didn't fit (and they generally weren't actually that good anyway). I found that the first time saying "no" was the hardest, but it only took a few goes to develop the habit of not having them, and every single time I say "no" I'm empowering myself even more.

flabassmcgee

Just don't eat it.

It's that simple.

segacs

I used to feel like I *had* to eat all the office goodies. I'd grab a chocolate or two from the basket every time I walked by. I'd have a big piece of cake every time it was someone's birthday. I'd eat all the baked goodies that people brought in, and I'd sample all the stuff that suppliers would send over at Christmastime. It was like, free food = I'm in.

Now I no longer look at it as free. All this food has a cost: it "costs" calories, of which I have a limited number to spend. It's much easier to pass up the cupcakes that my colleagues brought in when I know I have a nice dinner planned that I want to be able to eat later.

kristishrider

We have a bottomless candy jar at my office too... three of them actually. And a filing cabinet drawer with bag of candy. It's hard. But I have only had one piece in the last month. U kno, menstrual problems

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

One of the first things that I learned when I started counting calories is still one of the most important-- some things are worth making room in your calories, but most things people bring to the office are not. If it's one of the few things that's worth the calories to me, like my boss's homemade cake, then I shift things around, go for an extra walk, or borrow calories from another day. If it's one of the many many things that just aren't very good I don't have any trouble passing it up.

neveragain84

dbmata wrote: »

Yup.

I choose not to eat it.

Self discipline is much like a muscle. If we exercise it, it gets stronger. If we ignore it, it atrophies.

This. There will always be temptation. Only you can decide what is special enough to treat yourself with. If you don't want to eat it, then don't. You have the ability to say no.

pjs2780

furioushummingbird wrote: »

Just don't eat it.

It's that simple.

and if someone forces it on you, take it, wrap it in a napkin "for later"...and throw it away.