I'm back....after I stepped on the scale today :(

phantomrain100

So I have known for a while that I'd gotten back into my old habits. Nothing too major, but the little things add up. I wasn't picking the healthiest snacks, and while I've been sticking with my healthy lunch, I've also been adding a dessert on, or mid afternoon snacks. I am a stay at home mom, so it's all readily available. We don't have cookies often, but there are things there for the kids' lunches. It's tough. And in the evenings I sit down to watch TV after the kids go to bed and I have to have a snack. For a while I was picking decent ones with fewer calories, but that was last fall before the holidays. It always happens this way - I do well towards the end of summer because I'm sick of how I look, but by the holidays it slips away, and then it takes months for me to start the cycle again.

I got on the scale this morning because I've been feeling especially icky the last few weeks, knowing in my head I need to do something but not getting over that hump to actually do it. But I am up 5 pounds from the last time I weighed myself, and up about 11 pounds from last fall. How depressing is that! It's difficult for me because I love good food, and cooking for 4 other family members doesn't leave me any motivation to do something different for myself.

Here's what I like to do - I have to have my peanut butter toast and milk for breakfast, so those calories are a given. Then for lunch I usually do a whole wheat wrap with turkey and veggies, with some Aldi chex mix on the side, and water or tea to drink. Not bad as long as I don't have some dessert or just something else for lunch. Then I can eat with the family, whatever I make for dinner, but I've not been controlling my portions and I know I need to do better at that. Last, as I said before, I like to have that evening snack.

So can you help me? Can you give me some good ideas for snacks? I don't eat much fruit at all, and snacking on raw veggies only lasts so long. I like peanut butter with apples (if I have them) or pretzels, but that's a lot of calories. I'm going to try to add in some exercise but I get lazy with that (I hate to exercise), so it's not a given every day. My main goal is to cut down calories and add in light exercise (that I will stick with).

HELP! And please friend me

Veronnie87

I feel you on the evening snacking. That's where the majority of my excess weight came from so I know how hard it is to try and find that balance. One thing that I've found helpful is simply not eating after supper. It's a hard habit to break, especially when you're someone who really enjoys a little nighttime snack. If I do snack it's on something low-calorie like watermelon or Crisy Minis. I'm careful to pre-measure my portion, though and when my little bowl is done then I'm also done. My best solution that works really well for me (which doesn't necessarily mean it'll be a good option for you) is to buy flavoured teas. I'm a big fan of David's Tea and I tend to buy a lot of their chocolate-flavoured teas (Read My Lips, Love Tea #7, etc) and I use that to ease my really bad chocolate cravings that always seem to hit around 9pm. My nose smells chocolate, I taste chocolate but the empty calories of a chocolate bar simply aren't there. The best part of that is that drinking tea like that in the evenings has mostly gotten me out of the habit of snacking at night and I barely ever have a evening craving hit.
It's also really worth it to invest in a food scale or use measuring cups to keep track of your portions. Since I've been more careful with my supper portions that's where I've really seen the weight start to come off. Keep it up and don't let yourself get too discouraged! This is a life-long journey and you're paying attention to what you're eating...that's already a big step. Keep your spirits up, you're going to be fine.