Binging on free food at work

BahamaMama85

I like to think about all the germy hands that touched the free food. That person who didn't wash their hands after using the restroom or the other person who is blowing their nose all the time.

Good luck!

LVCeltGirl

1.) It is not free. It is very expensive. Eating excess food costs you time, money, energy, and emotional stress to burn off. Don't look at it as free. Look at it in dollar signs and exercise time. How long will you have to work out to burn those calories? How much would you have to pay to go to WW to lose the weight gained by eating those? (Not saying you go to WW - just that is an example of something you could spend money on to help with weight loss.) And the expense of emotional stress - you clearly don't feel good about eating it.

2.) Is it homemade things? Imagine the person who made it had dirty hands. Or that their dog's hairs got in it. Imagine all the people that have walked by it and breathed their germs on it and touched it (after picking their noses!)

3.) Think about how GOOD you will feel going ONE day turning stuff down! NSV!! (Non-Scale Victory!) You will go home and pat yourself on the back and think: You did it!! Then the next day, do it again. Rinse. Repeat. Eventually you won't struggle walking past it. It will be second nature.

I second this. It is hard but I've found that losing weight is harder and I have to be the most important person for me (before my son even or I won't be there for him). We get "free food" from vendors almost daily. I've had to turn down bagels, or homemade treats because they didn't work into my day. It really is as simple as learning to change your thinking. But while I'm trying to change my thinking, I also drink more water before giving in and mentally weigh the "cost" of the seemingly "free food". Some days I still fail and have something. Epic Fail is eating it and not working it into my day. I don't beat myself over it but rather climb back up on the wagon, keep trying to use my distraction methods (own snacks, water, etc) and keep moving forward.

michelleamhill

I've had this happen to me as well. The only thing that worked was to picture the food with something disgusting on it. Imagine flies or bugs, (or worse!). You have to play a mental trick on yourself and literally imagine it being befouled by something unappetizing. I know this sounds gross and weird, but it worked for me.

Another thing I tried was to just tell myself that those items were NOT for me. This requires some willpower. I looked at the people that ate them and noticed they appeared unhealthy or not fit and I didn't want to put myself in their category. I do the same thing if I'm in line behind someone at the mall and I'm about to binge on funnel cake. I look at the people in line. It really helps remind me that donuts, cakes and such are NOT for ME. Say it out loud. Look at the cake and say, "That is not for me." Believe it is not for you. Tell yourself what IS for you. If all else fails, try eating a healthier alternative, like a big, gooey, sweet date dusted with cinnamon. Or a banana with all natural peanut butter and a drizzle of honey. But fat laden, processed, sickeningly-sweet, empty calorie junk is for THEM NOT YOU. You are special. You deserve healthier food. You are a goodess.

So now you know what battles go on in my crazy head!

I hope this helps. Good luck!

michelleamhill

I like the germy hand advice!

LifeItself

I am sitting at my desk as I type this, eating a turkey and spinach sandwich brought from home while my colleagues eat a fully catered hot meal in the break room. I can tell myself over and over and over that I can be like them and use "portion control" and "moderation" and "splurge a little"..... in reality I will eat plate after plate of that *kitten* until there's nothing left on the serving platters but that weird lettuce-like garnish and crumbs.

I cannot eat food when its quantity isn't limited to a correct portion (by someone else, not me). When this sandwich is gone, it's gone. But if I go in that breakroom there will be enough goodies to snack on for the rest of the afternoon... and that's just what I would do.

Yes, it makes me hate life in this moment. But so would the result of bingeing on free food that I only gorged on because it was available and unlimited.

ErinMcMom

I am a teacher too (kindergarten) and there is always yummy treats in our staff room, being brought by students, and in our staff meetings too. I know how hard it is to say no when the things you love are being offered to you all the time but you've got to find the strength and remind yourself that success is more satisfying than a handful of cookies, no matter how tasty they are!

Bring snacks with you, pre-log the food you'll eat at school each day, drink lots of water. Eat lunch in your classroom on days when the staff room is particularly snack-filled (Wednesday is our designated "treat day"). Leave yourself some extra calories every once and a while to take a treat, log it and keep rocking your plan. I find that it's very hard to turn things down in the beginning but once you make a habit of it it becomes much easier to do.

You could even try proposing some sort of fitness challenge at your school with the staff. My school is doing a biggest loser challenge where a bunch of staff members have put $10 into a pot and the biggest loser at the end of June wins the money. That way, you've got a supportive group of people working towards a goal to help keep you on track and focused!

I'll add you as a friend and we can support one another. You can do this!

chrissythepoet

Have a peice of fruit. Then a big glass of water. Then wait 30 minutes before you touch "the snack".

Plus I dont know about you but once I have the first nibble it is hard to stop.So dont tell yourself just one tiny nibble.

hope that helps
hugs
Chrissy

xmichaelyx

I don't consume anything at work that I don't bring myself (except on rare occasions when I have a lunch meeting). I bring my own lunches, snacks, and coffee, and just refuse to eat anything else.

Today there were donuts for a meeting. I sat with them in front of me and was barely even tempted.

Do you eat because you're actually hungry? Or just because it's there?

If the former, then you need to either take more to eat, or reevaluate what you're eating. I find that eating carbs makes me hungrier, so the food I take to work is mostly protein and fats. I rarely get any food cravings that way.

madhatter2013

I know you don't want to hear it but


A lot of weight loss is based on will power. You gotta decide what you want more; instant gratification or lifelong gratification.

Phaedra2014

You can't help it? Then you'll just have to deal with the negative consequences.

When you decide that you CAN help it then you will have positive consequences.

It's really all up to you.

sarainiowa

Drink plenty of water. Eat the snacks you've brought as planned. WHEN you eat the free food, make sure it's within portion and fit it into your daily calories. Good Luck!!

RockStarlaa

I know where you're coming from. I work at a Drs office and drug reps and home health agencies are always bringing us goodies. Everything from bagels to pastries to cookies/cakes to Starbucks. It is VERY hard to say no. I try to stay out of the staff room. When I do have to come face to face with it I try to remember all of the reasons why I should not indulge. If it's a particularly yummy treat that I just can't say no to I have a small piece knowing that I will have to sacrifice with a lighter lunch or dinner. If I want it bad enough I will make it work into my calorie goal for the day.

sseqwnp

Eat it, log it, skip meals if you have to.

SoreTodayStrongTomorrow222

Yea, Im just gonna have to go ahead and still say "just say no" - I do it. You can do it too. You have the self-control - you just dont exercise it. Clearly you want the food more than you want to lose weight.

petefromguelph

just say no


lol but seriously, there are a lot of good suggestions in the responses here. Cant say it much better. Good luck and keep the long term goal in mind

michelleamhill

My suggestion, if you haven't done so already, is to spend some time looking up how many calories are in biscuits, bagels, cake, cookies, etc .... I find it easier to resist food when I think about how many calories are in it and what eating it will "cost" me.
Edit: I have the same problem -- it's not easy to pass up free yummy food! You're not the only one with this problem.

I agree with this. The more I read about unhealthy food, the more I think about how hard it is to work it off. The more I read about healthy food and look at the chart to see if I'm meeting my daily requirements of calcium or iron, the more I choose food that will add to my iron or calcium intake. Have you monitored your nutrition stats? That will show you what your calories are helping you attain.

dacspace

My suggestion, if you haven't done so already, is to spend some time looking up how many calories are in biscuits, bagels, cake, cookies, etc .... I find it easier to resist food when I think about how many calories are in it and what eating it will "cost" me.
Edit: I have the same problem -- it's not easy to pass up free yummy food! You're not the only one with this problem.

Along the same lines as this...

Make yourself log it before you eat the free food or search it before making the decision to eat it. That way you know how much it will "cost" you before it goes into your mouth. It may help to curb the mindless eating. You may not find the exact item but something close should be in the database and will let you see an estimate of the calories you could potentially eat. Then you can base your decision to eat it or not on that knowledge.

You are not alone! It is difficult at times when free food is everywhere! I find that pre-logging it or at least researching the calories gives me a chance to think about it before diving head first into the chip bowl. Then I can use that knowledge/moment to decide to say no, opt for a smaller piece, only take a taste serving or something altogether different.

suremeansyes

Log it, give it 15 minutes, look at your log. If you still want to eat it, eat it.

If you don't, remove it and marvel at your newly gained willpower.

_cdaley

This was mentioned by another commenter, but a health/fitness challenge in your workplace could be a cool way to try and switch up the environment. I'm sure it's different because you don't work for a big company, but I work for a gym and there are several companies who do this sort of thing. For example, they will pay for part or most of the employees gym membership if the employee checks in and works out x amount of times per month. You could suggest a modified version specific to your situation- if the other teachers start bringing healthy options to share instead of cookies, cake, etc, the school could award the person who chooses the healthy option over the sweets the most often an awesome reserved parking spot or something. I think most people actually do want to make good choices, but there is so much social pressure to eat junk when it is there and others are eating it. You could be the one to start a positive change! Good luck

lottiesommer

Hi I can feel you tho I am a student and not a teacher. There is always free food around us but maybe you shouldn't see having a treat as something really bad. What I do is that I have a treat once or twice a week and then don't feel guilty about it but I think about it as a treat for my soul. I mean who doesn't love chocolate for example? But when I have that treat I take a good one. I take lovechoc bars for example which are organic and 82% cocao. Make yourself see that one thing as something special to you. Think of it as something really good for you and make yourself think of all the free food as something really for yourself. Maybe watch a movie about what they put into those treats ( as long as they're not homemade) and you won't feel like eating them ever again! But if really can't stand having an unhealthy chocolate bar for example then don't feel guity! Feeling guilty makes it WORSE!