Snacking - really tough

tomnev1

I made a few mistakes recently....ok just made one. Didn't stick to the plan. But here are the root causes.
1. I didn't get enough sleep. Watched crap tv and movies I had seen before. Leading to late nights.
2. I did grocery shopping when I was hungry. Bought snacks (just in case the Pope dropped in.)
3. I switched off at weekends.
4. I convinced myself that I had done enough.
5. I rewarded myself for putting up with my insanely perfectionist boss by having candy.

All this has culminated in one big issue...snacking...in general. I had a few beers last Friday. As it wasn't a meal I'm counting this as a snack. I eat a few (4.5) kit kats last night (yeap that's a lot of calories).

I need to get my head back in the game and stop snacking. Anybody else feel the same way?

AllanMisner

I think you answered yourself. Don’t have bad foods around and your snacks will he healthier (I didn’t know the Pope likes kit kats). But a bigger question is, do you have to be perfect to meet your health and fitness goal? Can you mix in the occasional beer or three and still be successful? For any weight loss program to be successful, it has to be sustainable in the long-term.

[edited by MFP mod]

Therealobi1

AllanMisner wrote: »

I think you answered yourself. Don’t have bad foods around and your snacks will he healthier (I didn’t know the Pope likes kit kats). But a bigger question is, do you have to be perfect to meet your health and fitness goal? Can you mix in the occasional beer or three and still be successful? For any weight loss program to be successful, it has to be sustainable in the long-term.

I dont think there are any bad foods, but I do agree though until you have the moderation thing down, to have certain trigger foods limited at home.

Op I do think you can enjoy your loves and be successful. just work on eating in moderation

missh1967

Mindless snacking is a tough one. It took me a while to get over the mindset of: "Oh, I had one piece of candy, I may as well have 50 more since I blew it." Now I really think long and hard if I really, REALLY want a certain snack and I work it into my calorie allotment. Or sometimes if I want it bad enough, I'll have a portion even if I go over.

Practice makes perfect. You just keep on trying to rein in the mindless snacking and you will get better over time.

tomnev1

I think I just needed to write down the above post so I could articulate it for myself. We all know that empirically it's not rocket science; eat less, evercise more.
I agree that there are no bad foods, just bad portions. I had 5 beer pints last Friday as I felt like I was being let off the leash. (I live beside a pub - literally 80 yards away.) But we all know that one beer is fine, even five is fine if you use up your calories....and even allow yourself an off day.
But the key is to get back to good disciplined days. I might eat bacon tonight, but if I do, I will ensure that I am still under my calorie target.

Cheers guys, really cheered me up reading your responses.

PS My gag about the Pope eating Kit Kats....we all convince ourselves of crap if it facilitates our own behaviour.

dubird

Something that helped me was to find something to do with my hands that required at least partial concentration. If you're hungry because of snacking from habit or it's emotional eating, distracting your brain helps shut it down. And if you're still hungry an hour later, go ahead and have a snack.

Another thing I did was not have any snack foods in my office. That's where I spend a lot of my down time, and since it's now upstairs, if I want a snack, I have to get up and go downstairs. Well, my inherit laziness doesn't like that, so most of the time I don't. Same principle of not having what I consider snack foods in the house. If I really really want something, I have to go down to the store or gas station to get a small bag of whatever it is, and again, laziness pays off! XD

tomnev1

dubird wrote: »

Something that helped me was to find something to do with my hands that required at least partial concentration. If you're hungry because of snacking from habit or it's emotional eating, distracting your brain helps shut it down. And if you're still hungry an hour later, go ahead and have a snack.

Another thing I did was not have any snack foods in my office. That's where I spend a lot of my down time, and since it's now upstairs, if I want a snack, I have to get up and go downstairs. Well, my inherit laziness doesn't like that, so most of the time I don't. Same principle of not having what I consider snack foods in the house. If I really really want something, I have to go down to the store or gas station to get a small bag of whatever it is, and again, laziness pays off! XD

Good thinking.
As regards emotional eating, I like my job but my boss puts serious pressure on me. I do find the vending machine purchases are increased when the chips are down.

dubird

tomnev1 wrote: »

dubird wrote: »

Something that helped me was to find something to do with my hands that required at least partial concentration. If you're hungry because of snacking from habit or it's emotional eating, distracting your brain helps shut it down. And if you're still hungry an hour later, go ahead and have a snack.

Another thing I did was not have any snack foods in my office. That's where I spend a lot of my down time, and since it's now upstairs, if I want a snack, I have to get up and go downstairs. Well, my inherit laziness doesn't like that, so most of the time I don't. Same principle of not having what I consider snack foods in the house. If I really really want something, I have to go down to the store or gas station to get a small bag of whatever it is, and again, laziness pays off! XD

Good thinking.
As regards emotional eating, I like my job but my boss puts serious pressure on me. I do find the vending machine purchases are increased when the chips are down.

Yeah, most people have issues with stress eating. I do as well, which is why I don't keep snack foods in the house anymore. About the only thing I can suggest is keeping low calorie snacks in your desk so you don't go down to the vending machine. I would suggest those 100 calorie packs they put out, but I sometimes have trouble eating just one package! XD

SueInAz

tomnev1 wrote: »

dubird wrote: »

Something that helped me was to find something to do with my hands that required at least partial concentration. If you're hungry because of snacking from habit or it's emotional eating, distracting your brain helps shut it down. And if you're still hungry an hour later, go ahead and have a snack.

Another thing I did was not have any snack foods in my office. That's where I spend a lot of my down time, and since it's now upstairs, if I want a snack, I have to get up and go downstairs. Well, my inherit laziness doesn't like that, so most of the time I don't. Same principle of not having what I consider snack foods in the house. If I really really want something, I have to go down to the store or gas station to get a small bag of whatever it is, and again, laziness pays off! XD

Good thinking.
As regards emotional eating, I like my job but my boss puts serious pressure on me. I do find the vending machine purchases are increased when the chips are down.

What's helped me at work is to stock one of my desk drawers with healthy snacks I can choose from. I always have low sugar protein/treat bars, multigrain crackers, and some low calorie treats. Today there's a tiny York peppermint patty sitting in there that may soon disappear.

The protein bars are often breakfast and sometimes lunch if I don't bring one. As a result, I can't remember the last time I bought something out of a vending machine that wasn't a Diet Coke.