how do I eat "less healthy" foods in moderation?

Jade0529

I very much have the thinking of "good" and "bad" foods and I am trying to change that. I have been working on incorporating "bad" foods into my calories for the day when I feel like I want something else. My problem is that I want to keep eating it or drinking it.

So how do you stop that addiction cycle of wanting another cookie or another glass of wine. I know it's about enjoying it and incorporating it into your calories but what if you just want MORE?

It is just self control? Do you have any tricks or tips?

I am sorry if this question is silly to people. I am having a real struggle with this

bajoyba

For me, it comes down to self control and planning.

I don't believe in "good" and "bad" foods, so I eat what I like. But my nutrition is important to me, so I try to choose foods that will give me a balanced diet. However, I eat some kind of dessert every day. Sometimes it's a big dessert and sometimes it's a small dessert (depending on how many calories I have left at the end of the day), but I always try to leave room for something.

As for snacking, I've found that it helps me a lot to portion out a proper serving size in the kitchen, put the rest away, and take my food with me into another room. When I separate myself from an open bag or container, I'm less likely to over-indulge.

Iknowsaur

Not a silly question at all.

This website/forum is going to give you a lot of grief about the idea of cutting out foods entirely, but in all honesty, until you have full control over your portions and cravings, it is best to avoid those foods entirely.

There is this really great study I read once (gah, I can't find it but if you google around I'm sure it'll come up) about how your body "adopts" certain comfort foods. When you eat something fatty/salty/sweet every day (to the extreme) that becomes the new normal of eating pleasure. It becomes harder to achieve pleasure from eating without those foods. It takes about a month + of cutting those foods out for your body to get back to it's original state of eating pleasure, where whole grains and healthier foods will taste just as good. If you must eat some junk food, introduce it in moderation after achieving normality again.

I wish I could practice what I preach .-. Blah.

Dewymorning

If certain foods lead to overeating then avoid them.

No one knows you as well as yourself.

However, as to how to incorporate more foods into your diet without going overboard, I buy my chocolate in 25 gram bars. It might be more expensive this way then just buying a 500 gram bar, but this way I can only eat the 25 gram bar and once it is gone it is gone.

If you can't buy things in these small packages, make them up yourself.

EDIT: IN the same way, sometimes when I want a glass of wine with my dinner I buy those tiny bottles instead of a whole bottle. I can't drink more if I don't have it in the house.

NightWriteMermaid

For me, it helps to portion things out. I use my scale and measure the exact amount for the calories I want. For example, if I want only a 100 calorie dessert, I figure out how many grams that is and portion that out for myself. Then I put everything away, and I *walk away*. If I still want more in 20 minutes, I tell myself I can get it then. Usually, the craving is gone after that. If it's not, I go back for a little more.

Keeping an open bag of cookies on the table would be terrible for me; I don't know how some people resist if it's right in front of them. I make sure to keep my treats on the highest shelf of my pantry. I make myself work for it. (Usually, I'm too lazy, and reach for an easy-access orange or apple instead).

lisawinning4losing

I'm just getting started but I agree with everything bajoyba said. I admit my diet is not the healthiest but I figure you have to start somewhere. Today I had a healthy breakfast with two scrambled eggs one whole and one white, a small banana, and a slice of wheat bread. For lunch I had a big salad and a Lean Cuisine snack pizza. I had an apple and a low calorie ice cream sandwich for a snack after lunch, and a seven layer burrito from Taco Bell for dinner, and another good sized salad for dinner when I got home. Then for dessert, a Nabisco Chips Ahoy 100 calorie pack. Total calories for the day was 1,400 and I did at least an hour of brisk walking, for net calories of about 1,200, and I got to eat all kinds of junk food. Lol. Granted I still need to clean up my diet but I'm hoping this will at least help me lose some weight. And I'm eating organic salad and fruit every day

Jade0529

Thank you!

I had been cutting out the "bad" foods (for my thinking of course) since before I joined MFP in January simple because I wanted a total fresh start

Then i went to a wedding recently and I thought, "well okay maybe I can do this" and I didn't eat too bad that night but I did have some fried things and some sweet things. But after that it's like it sort of triggered my brain a little, and I don't want thing as much as I did before but I am feeling the deprivation more now.

Plus that glaring RED "you have gone over your calories" thing MFP does is depressing. Maybe it's just me.

Iknowsaur

Thank you!

I had been cutting out the "bad" foods (for my thinking of course) since before I joined MFP in January simple because I wanted a total fresh start

Then i went to a wedding recently and I thought, "well okay maybe I can do this" and I didn't eat too bad that night but I did have some fried things and some sweet things. But after that it's like it sort of triggered my brain a little, and I don't want thing as much as I did before but I am feeling the deprivation more now.

Plus that glaring RED "you have gone over your calories" thing MFP does is depressing. Maybe it's just me.

It's not just you C:

daw0518

If certain foods lead to overeating then avoid them.

No one knows you as well as yourself.

This is 100% true! There are some things I know I can't keep myself from eating a ton of in one sitting so I just stopped buying it, like potato chips, Nutella, & ice cream [to name a few]. I don't feel like I'm depriving myself horribly without them, because I can easily find things to replace them that are just as good, but easier to portion control.


I do still struggle with wine, but wine is only like 100 calories or so per 4 oz, so if I have a few hundred calories left over at the end of the day, then I have a few glasses of wine & don't let myself feel guilty about it! IIFYM, all the way!

leaner426

Not silly, I have the same problem. If its chocolate and in my house i eat it first. A bag of candy lasts about 24 hours (half in late afternoon/evening, the rest the next day.) Oddly enough if someone else buys it - like when I was married and my husband bought chocolate - I wouldn't touch it because in my mind it is "his." So I have self control for other people's stuff, just not for my own (insert psychological analysis here.)

I do a couple things. One, I just don't bring it in the house because then I don't eat it. Two, if I have to have it, I try to buy single serving because the reality is that if I buy the economy family size I will eat the economy family size. Three, buy things I can binge on and still come out ok - for example 35 calorie fudge bars. Eating a box of 10 is like having a candy bar from a calorie perspective, and I never eat a whole box. Four, buy things I can't binge on or it will hurt (example, fudge bars with 5 grams of fiber - eat a few of those and it will hurt, a lot.) Five, go for quality. Example 3 oz of Fetzer Gwertztraminer (that is spelled wrong) or other sweet wine with two squares of Dove milk chocolate. Take tiny nibbles of the chocolate as it melts, take a small sip of wine and really enjoy the flavor. If I tell myself all day that is the reward and that it is coming sometimes that works. Six, take a walk or require yourself to do another activity before you have anything - like walking to the store to get it. That gives you time to get over the craving.

If I do binge I notice how lousy it makes me feel - the mood swings, the bloating and constipation. Remembering that helps me to control myself the next time.

I hope that helps.

Hope this helps.

Jade0529

Well I do water down my wine so I guess it's not so bad.

It's nice to read that I am not alone. Sometimes I read all the success stories on here and while I am really happy for them, I struggled with HOW did they overcome all their demons to get there? And I find it hard to see myself at the end sometimes

ndj1979

first, you need to stop labeling foods "bad"….don't think of it as bad, just think of it as food…

Then I would suggest pre-logging…so log the food that you want to have first, IE Pizza…and then see what that leaves you for the day and then fill in your diary backwards from there so that you stay in a deficit and hit your targets for protein, carbs, and fat….

margaretturk

Things that help me are when I eat I try to eat the veggies and fruits first along with a glass of water especially when I go to a party where there are lots of treats. I make myself slow down when I eat putting my fork down between bites. For me my hardest time is when I am tired, so I try to get more sleep if I can and if I can't I try to watch my posture and breathing. Standing up strait and breathing deep helps me with fatigue rather than reaching for a food pick me up. I acknowledge there are something in my gut candidia (I am not sure I spelled it correctly) that demands that I eat those high sugar foods. I choose to eat yoghurt without sugar and take a probiotic instead to keep the candidia in check and in the process have fewer sugar cravings. I also tell myself the price of eating that high sugar high calorie treat is too high for my health. I tell myself I will take care of myself today so I will have a healthy tomorrow.

Graelwyn75

I have to avoid buying in certain foods in larger quantities, simply because I will continue eating them once I start. This includes nuts, dried fruit, chocolate(unless it is 80%+), cake, cookies, ice cream, cerial, any kind of granola bar. It is the combination of sugar and fat in many of those things that keeps me wanting more, and I am naturally prone to comfort eating anyway, being a highly anxious person who is prone to depression. I used to keep on challenging myself, by buying in larger packs, thinking 'Maybe this time, I will just be able to have just a single serving'. It never worked, and I would end up feeling greedy and disgusted with myself for not having the self control others have around food.

If I want something, I buy a single bar or a single portion or just have it while out in town and don't bring it home. Generally, these days, I am happy enough with my small dried fruit bar or a snack size bag of fruit and nuts anyway, and can manage without the cake etc.

Jade0529

I know I have to stop labeling food. I agree! I am trying to work on it. I grew up being hated for who I was, my mother did terrible mind tricks of telling me not to eat certain things because I was fat (I never was) and then buying my favorite snacks and monitoring if I ate them or not and how much. She would reprimand me If I ate more than what she considered to be "acceptable" (more than 1 square of chocolate or 1 cookie for example was "bad" )

I know that I am an adult now, and that I have control of my life and my choices. Baby steps. I am working on that messed up thinking space

I will try prelogging when I can. Thank you

bajoyba

Thank you!

I had been cutting out the "bad" foods (for my thinking of course) since before I joined MFP in January simple because I wanted a total fresh start

Then i went to a wedding recently and I thought, "well okay maybe I can do this" and I didn't eat too bad that night but I did have some fried things and some sweet things. But after that it's like it sort of triggered my brain a little, and I don't want thing as much as I did before but I am feeling the deprivation more now.

Plus that glaring RED "you have gone over your calories" thing MFP does is depressing. Maybe it's just me.

The red gets to me as well!
But I'm really working on separating my food choices from negative emotions. It's one thing to enjoy food, look forward to a meal, or use food as a way to connect with other people. Good food is one of the things that makes life beautiful! But it's not such a great thing when food causes negative emotions like guilt and regret, or when we use food as a coping mechanism.

Sometimes I have to make an active effort not to feel bad about certain food choices, especially when I willingly go over my calorie goal. But if you're patient with yourself and keep working on it, it does get easier. I had a total light bulb moment when I realized I could lose weight without eliminating anything from my diet. It's probably the only reason I've stuck to it for 13 months now! If I know I can have a beer or a cookie whenever I want it, I have no reason to quit. Even when I go way over my goal, I've learned that one high calorie day won't affect my long-term progress at all. It's a process, but you just have to take it one day at a time.

David_AUS

Hi Jade,

In some cases I step it up a notch - go for finer quality or intensity of flavour. If you use to over consume milk chocolate for instance it was less difficult for me to substitute a few "mediocre pieces of milk chocolate" for one piece of dark intense flavoured chocolate.

My other fav trick was to brush my teeth after evening meal when you do not intend to eat any more - nothing tastes very good with freshly brushed minty teeth.

Some foods I find I have to avoid which is bread and milk which I tend to crave if I eat ( I have not craved bread for ages since I have not been eating it then I had a large serving of pizza over the weekend and find myself craving carbs / bread today) I know it will pass but it means engaging will power to not give in.

If you struggle with wine or other alcohol find a substitute such as water with a squeeze of lime juice or lemon - basically zero calories. I would prefer to enjoy one glass of good wine than water have to water it down.

Savour the flavours rather then just consume it. Some foods if you try to avoid them altogether you will not get them out of your head, this will eventually lead to some kind of "binge" - so give permission to really enjoy these in the moderation they deserve and go for a step up in quality is my suggestion so physiologically and psychologically it is a real treat.

You will get there with persistence you will have some wins and set-backs, this is part of life. There was something which pushed you over the tipping point to enter this weight loss journey - there will be more things you find along the way to reflect on and stay focused on why.

Achrya

I'm another pre-logger. I wake up and the first thing I do is fill in my dessert (usually 3-4 cookies and ice cream) then I fill in around that. The treat is there, it's mine for when it's time, and I know I made it fit my day. There are time when I think "I'd really like another cookie." But I just look at the log, acknowledge it would put me over, and then let it go.

turtleball

I know I have to stop labeling food. I agree! I am trying to work on it. I grew up being hated for who I was, my mother did terrible mind tricks of telling me not to eat certain things because I was fat (I never was) and then buying my favorite snacks and monitoring if I ate them or not and how much. She would reprimand me If I ate more than what she considered to be "acceptable" (more than 1 square of chocolate or 1 cookie for example was "bad" )

I know that I am an adult now, and that I have control of my life and my choices. Baby steps. I am working on that messed up thinking space

I will try prelogging when I can. Thank you

I found out I eat the way I do because of depression and loneliness, does that fit you?
I found this on the internet, haven't tried it yet but maybe it could help as long as you "remember" to close it back when you took out your portion.
http://www.thekitchensafe.com/pages/overview

Jade0529

Thank you David those are great suggestions.
While I don't actually normally drink, I do have a toddler so some days (!) wine is necessary after his bedtime. I am one of those weird people who actually likes her wine watered down. :huh:

ottermotorcycle

I find the trick is to make your indulgences as good as possible and enjoy them to the fullest. If I'm going to have a cookie, it's going to be a delicious fresh cookie just the way I like it and I'll eat it slowly. I feel more satisfied that way.