Too much food working from home.

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jaga13
jaga13 Posts: 1,149 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am working from home this week and finding it tougher to stick to my eating goals. When I go to the office I prelog, bring in my food, and Don't stray from the plan. At home I'm finding it too easy to snack when I don't need to and don't have enough extra calories saved. I need to figure out how to stick to my plans at home because I will be working from home permanently in the near future. Weirdly, I am much busier at home (with my child and errands). In the office I am often bored. At home I'm not bored yet reaching for snacks. I guess it's simply the opportunity is here. I need to change this mindset and fast.

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  • socioseguro
    socioseguro Posts: 1,679 Member
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    HI:
    I telework too.
    I keep healthy snacks in the pantry and the fridge such as: fruit, almond butter, smoked salmon, greek yogurt, smoked almonds, celery, carrots, cottage cheese, hummus, etc
    If I feel like having a doughnut, I have to change, drive the car to the store and buy it. Usually, it does not happen.
    I drink a lot of green tea or infused water (plain water with lemon and cucumber slices), if I feel hungry. Sometimes my brain confuses thirst with hunger.
    Keep the kids snacks separately, out of easy reach. I put them high enough that I need a chair or a step ladder to reach them.
    Good luck in your healthy journey
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,982 Member
    edited July 2015
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    Have your routines changed at all? For example, are you eating different foods? Different times?

    Or is the temptation of snacks the issue?

    When you feel hungry, do you have a proper lunch or go straight for the snacks?
  • jaga13
    jaga13 Posts: 1,149 Member
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    socioseguro wrote: »
    HI:
    I telework too.
    I keep healthy snacks in the pantry and the fridge such as: fruit, almond butter, smoked salmon, greek yogurt, smoked almonds, celery, carrots, cottage cheese, hummus, etc
    If I feel like having a doughnut, I have to change, drive the car to the store and buy it. Usually, it does not happen.
    I drink a lot of green tea or infused water (plain water with lemon and cucumber slices), if I feel hungry. Sometimes my brain confuses thirst with hunger.
    Keep the kids snacks separately, out of easy reach. I put them high enough that I need a chair or a step ladder to reach them.
    Good luck in your healthy journey

    Thank you. I've lost almost 30 lbs and lose .5 lb a week now. I realized this week that I thrive on routine and was totally out of my routine this week. I usually drink coffee but may include tea just to have something to Taste when I'm not actually hungry.
  • TheBoldCat
    TheBoldCat Posts: 159 Member
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    Funny, I mostly work from home. And stick to calories. But if I go to work from office, I usually snack much more. I think it's habit
  • jaga13
    jaga13 Posts: 1,149 Member
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    kshama2001 wrote: »
    Have your routines changed at all? For example, are you eating different foods? Different times?

    Or is the temptation of snacks the issue?

    When you feel hungry, do you have a proper lunch or go straight for the snacks?

    Most of the week I are the same breakfast and lunch, and at the same time, as I would have at work. I are a proper lunch. It's just the temptation. We don't even have a lot of snacks for the kids but I can easily over eat anything, even healthier snacks, when I want to. Need to work on my new routine
  • rainbow198
    rainbow198 Posts: 2,245 Member
    edited July 2015
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    I also mainly work from home. Plus my home office is right next to the kitchen! Gulp! Here are some things that has worked for me:
    • Keeping water and/or a glass of unsweetened tea at my desk at all times.
    • Moving from grazing and snacking to eating bigger meals which keeps me full for hours. I usually got into trouble snacking. Plus it was very easy to go over when I was bored or stressed.
    • Keeping most treats out of the house. If I want it I have to go out to get it.
    • Have a lot of fruit and veggies on hand.
    • Pre-planning my meals for the next day the night before. This way I know what I'm going to eat and it takes the guess work out things. Plus I no longer stand in front of the fridge or a cupboard searching for food.

    Doing this helped me to change my mindset and the way I looked at food and it no longer has power over me. I've been able to lose and now I'm maintaining.

    Good luck everyone!
  • FlyingA
    FlyingA Posts: 7 Member
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    rainbow198 wrote: »
    I also mainly work from home. Plus my home office is right next to the kitchen! Gulp! Here are some things that has worked for me:
    • Keeping water and/or a glass of unsweetened tea at my desk at all times.
    • Moving from grazing and snacking to eating bigger meals which keeps me full for hours. I usually got into trouble snacking. Plus it was very easy to go over when I was bored or stressed.
    • Keeping most treats out of the house. If I want it I have to go out to get it.
    • Have a lot of fruit and veggies on hand.
    • Pre-planning my meals for the next day the night before. This way I know what I'm going to eat and it takes the guess work out things. Plus I no longer stand in front of the fridge or a cupboard searching for food.

    Doing this helped me to change my mindset and the way I looked at food and it no longer has power over me. I've been able to lose and now I'm maintaining.

    Good luck everyone!

    This! I work partly from home also and I found that logging, keeping sweets out of the house and planning makes it easier. I also keep my office door shut. No idea why that helps but it seems to.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,150 Member
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    Prelog from home as well.
  • jaga13
    jaga13 Posts: 1,149 Member
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    Yeah I prelog as well. I follow all of the above tips at work. I need to follow through with them at home. I guess I'm used to "home" time just being weekends which often call for exceptions. But to stay on the right track I'll need to behave the same way at home during the week as I would have at work.
  • jaga13
    jaga13 Posts: 1,149 Member
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    Thank you for the tips and letting me vent. I weighed in today and still losty usual .5 lb (now down 30 lbs!) so I guess it wasn't that bad being home. Still, when I am permanty home I will need extra effort to follow through with my preloged meals until I get used to it.
  • SaffronSunrise
    SaffronSunrise Posts: 182 Member
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    Maybe meal prepping would help you. If everything is pre-packaged (and weighed) you could put all your food for the day in one place.
  • jaga13
    jaga13 Posts: 1,149 Member
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    SaffronSunrise wrote: »
    Maybe meal prepping would help you. If everything is pre-packaged (and weighed) you could put all your food for the day in one place.

    Good idea. I may continue "packing " my lunch and snacks as if I'm going to the office. And tell myself everything else is simply off limits until dinner time/weekends.
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,626 Member
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    Weight loss begins in the grocery store. If you don't buy it, you won't munch it. :)
  • WeddedBliss1992
    WeddedBliss1992 Posts: 414 Member
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    i am a SAHM and i actually find that i do better at home. if i am out, i eat worse. if i'm home, i have so much more control. the key is like kalikel said, only buy the good stuff. if i buy donuts, i will eat them. yesterday i bought tons of berries and grapes and some fresh sourdough bread and yogurt. when i reach for a snack, now i have good things from which to choose. being in an office environment, you are subject to what people take to the office. control is key!
  • SuggaD
    SuggaD Posts: 1,369 Member
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    I have this problem too. I just start chewing gum or emptying house of anything snacky.
  • mokaiba
    mokaiba Posts: 141 Member
    edited July 2015
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    jaga13 wrote: »
    I am working from home this week and finding it tougher to stick to my eating goals. When I go to the office I prelog, bring in my food, and Don't stray from the plan. At home I'm finding it too easy to snack when I don't need to and don't have enough extra calories saved. I need to figure out how to stick to my plans at home because I will be working from home permanently in the near future. Weirdly, I am much busier at home (with my child and errands). In the office I am often bored. At home I'm not bored yet reaching for snacks. I guess it's simply the opportunity is here. I need to change this mindset and fast.


    I work from home. I keep my foods simple and weigh them (more so to extend my food use). e.g., I buy ground turkey in one of those long plastic packages. I take it out and weigh 5-6oz of turkey then bag it. I do the same with my veggies (each type) is all in a bag weighing 4oz. when I make a meal, I grab 1 turkey bag and depending on the meal, 3 or 4 bags of veggies (carrots, green beans, corn, etc that all are 4oz). I then throw it together and make the meal. If I want to snack, I weigh out 4oz of cottage cheese and eat that. basically, weigh all your food and package it beforehand and only take out (from freezer) what you need for that day. If all your food requires cooking time to eat it then youre less likely to snack.



    when I say throw it together, I literally mean throw it together:

    yex16vet26q4.jpg
  • zaxx1953
    zaxx1953 Posts: 389 Member
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    Keep eating fibrous veggies and lean protein sources....it's the best way to stay satiated. If I don't eat for awhile and then have some carbs, the floodgates open and everything in the house gets eaten.

    I deal with that reality and stop looking for the magic trick to make carbs good for me.
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
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    jaga13 wrote: »
    SaffronSunrise wrote: »
    Maybe meal prepping would help you. If everything is pre-packaged (and weighed) you could put all your food for the day in one place.

    Good idea. I may continue "packing " my lunch and snacks as if I'm going to the office. And tell myself everything else is simply off limits until dinner time/weekends.
    Yes, Absolutely. That is a great plan. Pack the food the night before, work with your door closed, and eat at the same time as you would at work. :)
  • sopzysparkles
    sopzysparkles Posts: 5 Member
    edited July 2015
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    I struggle being at home, and the temptation of the fridge being around. I try to keep to 3 main meals with a lot of protein and fibre such as baked potatoe, tuna,might Mayo, sweetcorn and a massive salad, and snack on grapes in between. I find after a while if you do have a protein/ fibre rich based diet the nibbling diminishes. And I'm the worlds worst snacker! Ps I'm looking for home based work, is it possible for some to PM me a link to acquire this work, as I home educate my 6 year old. I'm in a bit of a trap work wise as a single parent.

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