Stuff to do that's not eating

riginthering
riginthering Posts: 67
in Motivation and Support
So on a cold winter night (OK, I live in CA and its only 55 outside, but whatever), when you've hit your calorie count, what do you do? I want to go out and do something, but everything I can think of that's open around here involves food/alcohol/caffeine.

Movie theater: I should walk there, but a) cold and b) scary (the theater is in the hood), and c) popcorn smell of temptation!
Cafe: Go...pay too much for some tea so I can sit around the fashionable youth?
Yogurtland: I usually bike here with my dog, but yeah..the calorie thing.

I feel like whenever I'm on a diet/working out, I become a shut-in because I don't want to go where there's food/caffeine/alcohol. Surely there is something people do without calories or caffeine attached?!

**I should mention my go-to nervous behavior is baking/cooking, so staying in is not usually a good idea either.

Replies

  • scottkjar
    scottkjar Posts: 346 Member
    - Join a group on www.meetup.com: board games group, or a stock investing group, or a quilting group, or a religious group, or a political organization.

    - Clean the garage.
    - Groom a horse.
    - Get a hair cut.
    - Go to Walmart and look at new television sets.
    - Go to the mall and walk all over for exercise.
    - Go to the clothing store and imagine what you will wear when you have lost all the weight.
    - Write letters to old friends.
    - Go Dancing
    - Volunteer at the food bank
    - Visit a shut-in
    - Volunteer at the local hospital
    - Watch a high school basketball game
    - Join a gym and go work out
    - Bowling
    - Read a book
    - Golf Driving Range
  • knittnponder
    knittnponder Posts: 1,953 Member
    If the creativity in cooking or baking are what draws you then maybe consider a class of some sort? I have so many crafty things I like to do that my husband has decided my hobby is "having hobbies". If you joined a class or group it would get you out of the house and if you didn't feel like going out you could still work on it at home. When I'm creating I'm not eating.
  • danielle_jeanne
    danielle_jeanne Posts: 58 Member
    Volunteer at a food kitchen? Make cookies or meals for the elderly? Go dancing? Kinect games? Online Classes?
  • riginthering
    riginthering Posts: 67
    Thanks, you guys!

    Some of these aren't practical at night, since stuff (including the mall!) shuts down pretty early hear. I should definitely check out meetup.com because I'm really bad at meeting people.

    I think you're right in that creating is part of what draws me to cooking; one of the reasons I've worked so hard at my cooking is because my hands don't work very well for more delicate applications. I do build websites though, and I reckon I ought to spend some time on those.
  • livingleanlivingclean
    livingleanlivingclean Posts: 11,751 Member
    What about something like ice skating? Or indoor sports centres - become part of a team that meets regularly to play?
    A play/theatre? Concert?
  • riginthering
    riginthering Posts: 67
    OMG! I would *love* to get into a theater! I have no idea how to go about it, but I would love to get back into play production!

    My sport is MMA; I can't get back into it until I drop some weight and up my crappy, crappy endurance again. *snifflesob*
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,329 Member
    bowling
    book club
    group that plays board games
    knitting groups
    dancing
    karaoke
    sports playing or watching
  • Lleldiranne
    Lleldiranne Posts: 5,516 Member
    I love to put on a movie at home (or Netflix … or you can take a walk to the nearest redbox), then sit and do my needlework as I watch. Or, if I'm not up for needlework, cuddle with my hubby. We may pop a bag of butter flavor popcorn but that's a lot fewer calories than a bucket at the theater.

    Or, a family game can be tons of fun. Curses, Catan, Ticket to Ride, even Battleship or Monopoly can be fun.

Categories