Living With People That Buy Lots of Tempting Snack Foods
HeyJudii
Posts: 264 Member
How do you cope? So far, I have been able to work some temptation into my calorie allowance for the day. But, I prefer to use my calorie "dollars" ("$"1200/day) for healthy stuff, because I know I need the nutrients.
But man, I just went to get a bottled water, and there was a new box of something fattening and non-nutritious.
(How do roomies handle it? They eat those foods instead of lean protein, veggies and complex carbs. I'm eating baked salmon and steamed veggies and quinoa, and they are eating Jelly Bellys, Snickers Bars, fried take away and biscuits. So, they may also be on low calorie eating plans, just different end games.)
I feel anti-social taking my meal into my room to avoid the tempting sights and odors. But what else can I do. I don't feel right dictating what they can purchase and bring home.
But man, I just went to get a bottled water, and there was a new box of something fattening and non-nutritious.
(How do roomies handle it? They eat those foods instead of lean protein, veggies and complex carbs. I'm eating baked salmon and steamed veggies and quinoa, and they are eating Jelly Bellys, Snickers Bars, fried take away and biscuits. So, they may also be on low calorie eating plans, just different end games.)
I feel anti-social taking my meal into my room to avoid the tempting sights and odors. But what else can I do. I don't feel right dictating what they can purchase and bring home.
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Replies
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How do you cope? So far, I have been able to work some temptation into my calorie allowance for the day. But, I prefer to use my calorie "dollars" ("$"1200/day) for healthy stuff, because I know I need the nutrients.
But man, I just went to get a bottled water, and there was a new box of something fattening and non-nutritious.
(How do roomies handle it? They eat those foods instead of lean protein, veggies and complex carbs. I'm eating baked salmon and steamed veggies and quinoa, and they are eating Jelly Bellys, Snickers Bars, fried take away and biscuits. So, they may also be on low calorie eating plans, just different end games.)
I feel anti-social taking my meal into my room to avoid the tempting sights and odors. But what else can I do. I don't feel right dictating what they can purchase and bring home.
Have you always eaten like that? It's cool you're asking a question but... Advice: don't judge, it'll bite you back.
As for your question - my family members can afford more treats than me so there are always some lying around. And it is difficult. I'm two years in and find it as difficult as when I started to walk around chocolate and stuff. I guess you need to be determined and to keep prioritising. Sometimes I give in. But mostly I don't.
P.S. No food is fattening on its own. You get fat by eating too much of it.
P.P.S. Snickers is nutritious.13 -
Eat your good food with a smirk..in front of them.14
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gebeziseva wrote: »
Have you always eaten like that? It's cool you're asking a question but... Advice: don't judge, it'll bite you back.
As for your question - my family members can afford more treats than me so there are always some lying around. And it is difficult. I'm two years in and find it as difficult as when I started to walk around chocolate and stuff. I guess you need to be determined and to keep prioritising. Sometimes I give in. But mostly I don't.
P.S. No food is fattening on its own. You get fat by eating too much of it.
P.P.S. Snickers is nutritious.
I am not sure why you say I am judging. I am stating facts. That is what they eat. I asked how others cope.
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After I started eating "clean" I don't crave junk food as much. I'm surrounded by people who don't always eat heathy. If I want to indulge in something, I just eat a very small portion of it or will figure it into my macros.5
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Is this a roommate situation? I just kind of ignored any food that wasn’t mine when I was sharing space with roommates. If I didn’t buy it, I didn’t eat it.
Living with my family that indulges in treats more often than I’d like to, I kind of just eat what fits in my day and try to ignore the goodies when they don’t fit.
It’s not always easy and when I feel myself hankering, I try to make room in my day for it to head off a binge.0 -
Eat your own food with pride and soon enough....you and them will see the results
Deprivation is an element you identify too strongly with! What can you have in moderation and make it all livable!5 -
gebeziseva wrote: »How do you cope? So far, I have been able to work some temptation into my calorie allowance for the day. But, I prefer to use my calorie "dollars" ("$"1200/day) for healthy stuff, because I know I need the nutrients.
But man, I just went to get a bottled water, and there was a new box of something fattening and non-nutritious.
(How do roomies handle it? They eat those foods instead of lean protein, veggies and complex carbs. I'm eating baked salmon and steamed veggies and quinoa, and they are eating Jelly Bellys, Snickers Bars, fried take away and biscuits. So, they may also be on low calorie eating plans, just different end games.)
I feel anti-social taking my meal into my room to avoid the tempting sights and odors. But what else can I do. I don't feel right dictating what they can purchase and bring home.
Have you always eaten like that? It's cool you're asking a question but... Advice: don't judge, it'll bite you back.
As for your question - my family members can afford more treats than me so there are always some lying around. And it is difficult. I'm two years in and find it as difficult as when I started to walk around chocolate and stuff. I guess you need to be determined and to keep prioritising. Sometimes I give in. But mostly I don't.
P.S. No food is fattening on its own. You get fat by eating too much of it.
P.P.S. Snickers is nutritious.
The very tail end of your post is spot on. My Dr and dietician told me the exact same thing. He and she both came right out and told me don't blame the food, blame yourself. Quit eating so much of it. Portion control is key..... and movement.6 -
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My family member's have different calorie needs than me.
Think if you didn't buy it then it is not your food. This mindset helps me to not eat or drink something someone else brought in. It is like there is a Not Mine sign over it. I'm not going to take someone else's thing.
I did not drastically change my diet. I do eat pretty much the same foods as my family just different quantities and sometimes I pass on certain foods that day if it doesn't fit. I tend to put more vegetables on my plate. I have food I really like all day long. I have lower calorie treats. I prelog my food for the day and save 100-300 calories for snacks.
I have not eaten in a different room to avoid their food. I do put food away in cupboards and get out of the kitchen more.5 -
bethannien wrote: »Is this a roommate situation? I just kind of ignored any food that wasn’t mine when I was sharing space with roommates. If I didn’t buy it, I didn’t eat it.
Living with my family that indulges in treats more often than I’d like to, I kind of just eat what fits in my day and try to ignore the goodies when they don’t fit.
It’s not always easy and when I feel myself hankering, I try to make room in my day for it to head off a binge.
This is what I do too. I also try to keep some of my favourite lower-calorie treats in the house at all times, too, for those times I feel tempted. Usually I can manage my cravings with these tricks!
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I couldn't. I live alone. I don't know what I'd do if I was around it all the time.4
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I have 3 kids and a hubby so my house is loaded with snacks. It does not bother me in the slightest as I eat them too but make them fit within my calorie allowance. I don't go overboard... in moderation.
PS Love snickers. Had that yesterday nd the day before. It's super filling and delicious!2 -
Enthusiast84 wrote: »I have 3 kids and a hubby so my house is loaded with snacks. It does not bother me in the slightest as I eat them too but make them fit within my calorie allowance. I don't go overboard... in moderation.
PS Love snickers. Had that yesterday nd the day before. It's super filling and delicious!
Ditto. And my desire to lose weight is far greater than my desire for haribo or cheesy wotsits. I make room for chocolate in my daily allowance and have that in the evening when kids are in bed.
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I've shared accommodation most of my adult life, like someone else said above, I would never consider eating someone else's food because it's not mine. I buy my own stuff, cook my own meals and my flatmates do the same. I've lived with people who are at both extreme ends of eating - ones that eat nothing but takeaways/high calorie food and ones that live on super "clean eating" regiments.
You do you! If you're feel you're struggling and super tempted review how restrictive you're being, is 1200 really right for you, is it too aggressive for the amount of weight you have to lose? Are your restricting foods unnecessarily and thus craving them instead of just managing your intake?1 -
living with a family that buys a LOT of sweet and salty snacks (meant for everyone, not any specific person unless specified - for example, softer cookies for my mom who had some dental issues) while on 1200-1300 calories sucks... but, I tend to eat small amounts of it and put the rest back in the cupboard
It's hard not to overeat sometimes though, especially when I get one of those "I'm really craving something sugary" days, which *always* happens 1-2 days before that time of month for me
My boyfriend, who's kinda a skinny fat (low weight but a bit soft all over) , will devour a whole 2000+kcal chocolate cake for dinner after skipping lunch... or basically live off of chicken nuggets and fries or doughnuts for days.. with literally zero exercise apart from walking to the bus station to go to work... I just have to remind myself it's 1) not really my business what he eats 2) other people have different goals and calorie needs than I do
If it bothers you that much though, could you have a separate drawer/part of the cupboard just for your food so you don't have to look at their snacks every time you go to grab something?0 -
I'm the only obese person in my household, 2 regular weight people, 1 underweight person
There's a cupboard for those higher fat items that I can't fit in my life that often.
If they leave it out on the counter I bin it. If they leave it lying around in the living room I bin it
I didn't take long for everyone kids included to latch on to taking out what they plan to eat immedietley and putting the pack back where it belongs
Fruit is kept on the counter at all times and its nice to see the kids make the choice to grab an Apple first over biscuits9 -
Living with a roommate, I wouldn't eat their food anyway, and I'd start telling myself it's not yours if you were in the habit of doing so. When my sister was living with me for a bit her food never even registered with me. If a spouse, harder, but it might be possible to do shared food and then some treats you both get for yourself that the other is not to touch.
Beyond that, there's junk at my workplace constantly (which is actually the place I tend to have more trouble controlling myself than at home (work for me can mean I struggle with stress eating or "it's late and I've been working on this project with inadequate help, I deserve a treat"), at home I can just cook a good meal. My response is either to decide it's not worth the calories or to fit it in in smaller amounts. When I really think about it, a lot of so called junk isn't even that good IMO, although of course some things are.
Best thing for me is to get out of the habit of snacking and just eat regular meals, and then I tend not to care about treats that just appear.1 -
My fiance isn't really on the healthy band wagon, so he eats meals and snacks that have me drooling all the time.
It's certainly not easy and while I try to incorporate tastier treats into my daily macros, the portion control part always has me feeling resentful. For me though, this is the part of the weight loss journey where my commitment is tested and I have to remind myself of my goals. There's a bit of willpower at work but also the understanding that if I stay the course, I will reach my goals and that will be much more satisfying than the sleeve of cookies I'm wanting to have in that moment.2 -
It is hard with roommates b/c everyone shares the spaces, the fridge and the pantry. Just remember that you are doing this for you and whatever they are eating has nothing to do with you.
I used to live with my brother and sister and neither one of their food choices were great. I was also hyper-focused and ate salmon and edemame every night during my first year of weight loss. Once I decided I didn't care what tempting food they had then it didn't matter, but getting over that hump was hard. Keep some healthy snacks around so if you need to be "tempted" you'll choose something better than the junk food.2 -
Just think ahead in the future and your roommates having to go to multiple doctors visits and taking pills for their ailments from eating junk food.
Then there’s you in stellar health, physically strong living your life not dictated by doctor visits or poor health.4 -
Lots of good tips! Thank you for replies.2
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It depends on where I am in my fitness goals. In the winter I will indulge and have some of the snacks my family eats. I'm the spring and summer I will request they move them out of my sight. there is a special cabinet for their junk. I'll ask my hubby to please not leave stacks of cookies lying about. I will be tempted to eat them. My hubby works from home and leaves cookies on a napkin in his general vicinity. Its not helpful to me when I'm trying to lose.1
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amberellen12 wrote: »Just think ahead in the future and your roommates having to go to multiple doctors visits and taking pills for their ailments from eating junk food.
Then there’s you in stellar health, physically strong living your life not dictated by doctor visits or poor health.
Hi! I've been maintaining a 50 pound weight loss for over 15 years, live alone, and have a counter full of candy that is almost disturbing in its volume. I maintain a healthy weight and always have excellent reports at annual physical; this includes excellent blood test results and borderline too low blood pressure.
Eyes on your own paper and let them be them.6 -
I don't recall this being an issue with past roommates, but this could be because they didn't leave trigger foods lying around.
I wouldn't want to see it. Studies show people have a finite amount of willpower. (There are cognitive tricks that can make it possible for willpower to not be an issue.)2 -
A 50 calorie snack size Snickers shouldn't ruin your whole day... moderation works for me as opposed to abstaining from yummy snacks. You can walk off small snacks easily.
I bought a 12 pack of the 40 calorie mini Cadbury crème eggs. One a day will last me two weeks and not knock off my deficit like the full size 160 calorie ones might.2 -
Thank you to all those that replied with their own experiences with coping with this type of living situation.0
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I buy my family mostly stuff I can't eat due to a medical issue or things I don't particularly care for, but when it comes down to things I like? I ask them to hide it from me and they go along with that.3
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It took me over a year of losing my temper and repeating myself with my husband but he's finally stopped buying the type of tempting biscuits and cakes that I can't resist or he'll hide them as he now gets my struggles.
I also make sure I have a small snack within my calorie allowance almost everyday. It's usually a small 95 calorie chocolate bar.0 -
Keep nutella away from me...and i be fine..lol
I will eat a whole jar.1 -
I have 3 young kids and a husband who loves junk food, so there's always temptation in the house. But I figure I have to learn how to handle temptations because they'll always be there. Even when I'm no longer actively cutting calories, I will live in a world of temptations - because I don't plan on being a hermit - and I have to manage those so I don't regain the weight.
Personally, I follow IIFYM and don't believe in "bad" foods. I'm following a high protein & lower carb macro spread but still have a daily treat (chocolate, ice cream, etc). Those help me feel as though I'm not deprived and I'm better able to say no to the other stuff.
I also have a weekly refeed day where I eat at maintenance and bring my carbs up pretty high. Knowing a refeed is coming up also helps me adhere to the lower calorie days.1
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