Boredom snacking!!??!!

carrieswartz05

I need help!!! Does anyone have any tips on how to have more restraint with snacking due to sheer boredom?? I was doing so well today, had 400 kilojoules left at bedtime- didn’t need to eat at all. I also hit sugar and fat goals, yet just had a small scoop of ice cream. I was still hungry though! But I can’t justify cheating like that!

janejellyroll

Wait . . . you had calories left, you had a scoop of ice cream. How is that "cheating"?

carrieswartz05

I don’t know. I just feel bad about it? I’m trying to cut down on sugar in a major way. It wasn’t exactly sugar free ice cream. I guess it’s a mindset I need to work through?

psychod787

carrieswartz05 wrote: »

I don’t know. I just feel bad about it? I’m trying to cut down on sugar in a major way. It wasn’t exactly sugar free ice cream. I guess it’s a mindset I need to work through?

If the ice cream causes you to over eat, binge, or be hungry, then worry about it. Sugar and fat goals? I go over my sugar everyday. So, no big deal unless you have an underlying issue. I suggest you set a fiber and protein goal and hit them. Let carbs and fats fall where they may in the range of your calories.

Dogmom1978

Yeah unless you have a health condition where you need to limit sugar, don’t worry about it.

That said, if you ARE going over on calories and eating just because you’re bored, I want your free time! 😜

Beard_Life

I find a diet soda or flavored tea helps curb my sweet tooth.

quiksylver296

I plan for ice cream or chocolate every night!!! I freak out and binge if I try to cut them completely out of my diet.

NovusDies

Enjoy your treats. The person that loses weight eating the most treats wins. Ok that is not true... eat treats in moderation but have them.

Also if you are bored you can work at being okay without something to occupy your time and/or find more to occupy your time. I love time when I am still and quiet but not everyone does.

sandypoint1267

Bored eating is a thing for me as well. I try to do something. Anything. Go for a walk. Pick up a book. Drink a large glass of water. Brush my teeth. Just change my mind set. As for sweets. I like one square of dark chocolate as a treat ( if I have the calories left). I enjoy every morsel. Also frozen yogurt with fresh , or frozen, fruit on top. I will never stick with this healthier eating way of life ( not calling this a diet !) if I feel deprived , so within my calories I enjoy !

wilson10102018

Boredom is a symptom. Its a symptom of unresolved worry or dissatisfaction. Distraction is the best treatment - you can't cure your brain with your brain. But, you can distract it. Work out, work with others, Act as if you are interested in something. Try to make it wholesome. Avoid addiction and destructive compulsions. When the time is passed, get your snack.

Diatonic12

@wilson10102018 Good advice, Wilson. I like it. You're sooo right. You can't fix your brain with brain or with a lil hair of the dog that bit you in the first place, neither. It just doesn't work.

busyPK

If you have calories left come nighttime, and you're accurately tracking your food by weighing it, then enjoy the nighttime snack!

If you do not have the calories to spare, what helps me is drinking a hot drink (coffee, tea, hot cider), chewing gum and keeping my hand/mind busy. Reading at nights helps me, as well as relaxing in a space that isn't right next to the kitchen.

chocolate_owl

OK, I'm gonna make a big assumption here, and I'd really like to hear that I'm wrong. I'm going to assume you have MFP set up to give you 1200 calories a day, because that's what most women get when they set up MFP (it may be appropriate, their goals may be to aggressive, but it's very very common). You had 400 calories left over, which means it's possible you only ate 800 calories before the ice cream... And you feel bad about eating:
1) when you were still hungry
2) when you hadn't eaten enough calories yet
3) a reasonable portion of a treat you had room for

You definitely should not feel bad!!

If my big assumption is correct and that's the situation, please take a hard look at your mindset around losing weight. Those who eat the least are not the winners. Those who stress their bodies to the point of exhaustion and hair loss are definitely not the winners. Those who eat in a sustainable way that they can maintain forever are the winners, because they will have long-term success in losing weight and keeping it off. Eat all of your allotted calories. Don't go to bed hungry when you have room to eat more. Don't feel guilty over a reasonable treat that fits in your calories.

janejellyroll

chocolate_owl wrote: »

OK, I'm gonna make a big assumption here, and I'd really like to hear that I'm wrong. I'm going to assume you have MFP set up to give you 1200 calories a day, because that's what most women get when they set up MFP (it may be appropriate, their goals may be to aggressive, but it's very very common). You had 400 calories left over, which means it's possible you only ate 800 calories before the ice cream... And you feel bad about eating:
1) when you were still hungry
2) when you hadn't eaten enough calories yet
3) a reasonable portion of a treat you had room for

You definitely should not feel bad!!

If my big assumption is correct and that's the situation, please take a hard look at your mindset around losing weight. Those who eat the least are not the winners. Those who stress their bodies to the point of exhaustion and hair loss are definitely not the winners. Those who eat in a sustainable way that they can maintain forever are the winners, because they will have long-term success in losing weight and keeping it off. Eat all of your allotted calories. Don't go to bed hungry when you have room to eat more. Don't feel guilty over a reasonable treat that fits in your calories.

400 kilojoules is just about 95 calories.

chocolate_owl

janejellyroll wrote: »

chocolate_owl wrote: »

OK, I'm gonna make a big assumption here, and I'd really like to hear that I'm wrong. I'm going to assume you have MFP set up to give you 1200 calories a day, because that's what most women get when they set up MFP (it may be appropriate, their goals may be to aggressive, but it's very very common). You had 400 calories left over, which means it's possible you only ate 800 calories before the ice cream... And you feel bad about eating:
1) when you were still hungry
2) when you hadn't eaten enough calories yet
3) a reasonable portion of a treat you had room for

You definitely should not feel bad!!

If my big assumption is correct and that's the situation, please take a hard look at your mindset around losing weight. Those who eat the least are not the winners. Those who stress their bodies to the point of exhaustion and hair loss are definitely not the winners. Those who eat in a sustainable way that they can maintain forever are the winners, because they will have long-term success in losing weight and keeping it off. Eat all of your allotted calories. Don't go to bed hungry when you have room to eat more. Don't feel guilty over a reasonable treat that fits in your calories.

400 kilojoules is just about 95 calories.

Then I would be wrong I missed that it was a different energy measurement, not used to seeing that.

glassyo

chocolate_owl wrote: »

janejellyroll wrote: »

chocolate_owl wrote: »

OK, I'm gonna make a big assumption here, and I'd really like to hear that I'm wrong. I'm going to assume you have MFP set up to give you 1200 calories a day, because that's what most women get when they set up MFP (it may be appropriate, their goals may be to aggressive, but it's very very common). You had 400 calories left over, which means it's possible you only ate 800 calories before the ice cream... And you feel bad about eating:
1) when you were still hungry
2) when you hadn't eaten enough calories yet
3) a reasonable portion of a treat you had room for

You definitely should not feel bad!!

If my big assumption is correct and that's the situation, please take a hard look at your mindset around losing weight. Those who eat the least are not the winners. Those who stress their bodies to the point of exhaustion and hair loss are definitely not the winners. Those who eat in a sustainable way that they can maintain forever are the winners, because they will have long-term success in losing weight and keeping it off. Eat all of your allotted calories. Don't go to bed hungry when you have room to eat more. Don't feel guilty over a reasonable treat that fits in your calories.

400 kilojoules is just about 95 calories.

Then I would be wrong I missed that it was a different energy measurement, not used to seeing that.

But still a masterful post and I'm not unliking it now!

(I thought it was 400 calories too.)

Toviathan

I agree with everyone else on not denying yourself an indulgence if it fits within your daily calorie goal. Denial, for me, is the first step to falling off the wagon completely.

That said, boredom eating is my enemy when I'm at work and if I'm not careful I will raid the snack machine. And all of my favorites are, of course, the mega calorie bombs.

One of the things I do now to avoid it is have more snacks on hand that are less calorie dense to munch on when it's not really about hunger and more about doing something. Baby carrots, bell pepper slices, some frozen berries, etc. I also keep chewing gum at my desk, which really helps as a last line of defense.

Beowolf95

My boredom snacking got so much worse when I started working from home, and none of it was good. I've routinely not only gone over my calories but blew right past them and didn't look back, which is why I put on the Covid19 in just a matter of a couple months. But, I'm working on righting the ship, being mindful of what I put in my mouth, logging it, and working on not stressing out because I have something that's not good for me. That's the hard part for me because I have an all or nothing mentality.

angelexperiment

Buy some sugar free ice cream and get rid of the regular one