Becoming Junk Food Free

chelsey787

I, chelsey, the junk food addict am challenging myself to become junk food free. I'm going to start this today, 7/6/08. Nothing fried, no little 100 calorie packs, no cookies... NOTHING!

I've been pretty good about this in the past few months, but last night at work i found myself constantly munching on fried foods. yuck! now today all i want to eat is fresh fruit and some yogurt! lol.

I'm going to check in every day - if anyone else wants to join me feel free!

chelsey787

I, chelsey, the junk food addict am challenging myself to become junk food free. I'm going to start this today, 7/6/08. Nothing fried, no little 100 calorie packs, no cookies... NOTHING!

I've been pretty good about this in the past few months, but last night at work i found myself constantly munching on fried foods. yuck! now today all i want to eat is fresh fruit and some yogurt! lol.

I'm going to check in every day - if anyone else wants to join me feel free!

2day4ever

I am so with you!!!! This is my whole goal for MFP -- I want to eat healthier and commit to long-lasting changes in the way I see food!!!!!

Glad to have a buddy to do it with!

chelsey787

yay!

i'll definitely check in with you tomorrow!

kittybellenir

i will join starting tomorrow, my brother is in town and he is a chef and I don't want to offend him plus I really love his food, however I need to detox my body. To many birthdays and events I need to jump start my body again, I do great during the week but it's the weekends when everything is scheduled such as today. So I will be checking in tomorrow!

ChristyMourning

I will start today aswell! But I am mostly vegetarian now with only eating sugar free low cal jello pudding cups for snacks or breakfast because I have the lap-band and trust when I say its not an instant thing or a miracle! I'm still busting my *kitten*!

greeneyedgirl

I'm in as well...

kimber607

Hi

I'm not ready yet to join, but wanted to wish u luck and PLEASE keep us posted/updated
I've been on this site since Jan and have lost 27 pounds..for the first time EVER I didn't eliminate all sweets/'junk' but allowed myself 1-2 treats or sweets per day if I did well....
I still crave sweets/sugar.....and have found since losing the weight I've been allowing myself more 'junk' but staying within my cals and not gaining
I want to feel better and eat better though and something wonder if eliminating sugar all together is the way to go

Good luck, kim

chelsey787

so yesterday i did good!

i worked last night which meant i was around greasy, nasty (however delicious) food all night. I didn't eat any of it! yay! i was hungry, however, so i munched on some peanuts.

but, no junk went into my body yesterday. just fresh fruits, veggies, etc.

we'll see how today goes - i'm going to the grocery store (which i feel like i do so much now that i practically live off of fresh produce) so i'll need to stay away from that! lol

how did y'all do?

greeneyedgirl

no junk food in mine either. it's a small feat lol

2day4ever

Me too! Day 1 went well. Day 2 is going well, too! Whooo hooo to you!!!

momtothreebabies

ChristyMourning- your story inspires me! Good job on the weight loss so far!

As for the junk food free- Im sooo in. This is my first official day on this site, and I adore it so far!
My story is in the introduce yourself board- i can do this is the title, and im momtothreebabies.

Im in with you guys! Lets be healthy!
jaelle

chelsey787

you go mom! lol - i've pretty much been good today!

one of my snacks today was a Gnu Bar (chocolate brownie) HOWEVERRR.... i do not consider this "junk" at all because it is all natural, organic, no HFCS, with 14 grams of fiber! and it is yuuummmmy.

let's see how tonight goes! hopefully i can find something to do to keep me out of that darn kitchen!

good luck on the rest of the night everyone!

kittybellenir

First day, and I did great no junk, and when I wanted chocolate I ate grapes!

chelsey787

day 2 - how did it go everyone?

i stayed away from the kitchen for the rest of the night! i was pretty proud of myself (because that is when i tend to eat when im not actually hungry)

good luck on day 3!!! we can do it!

momtothreebabies

I did great yesterday, i was sooo surprised at myself. late last night, i was worried, i was hungry and my hubby had a big bag of peanut m&m's- why was he torturing me????? LOL. I had a bowl of cheerios with a banana instead. much more filling and healthy. im doing good so far this morning. i am really trying hard! this helps sooo much to have support!
have a great day everyone!

chelsey787

how are we doing on day 3?

I've done well! My snacks today consisted of: grapes, vanilla yogurt with frozen mixed berries (nom nom nom), and some raisins.

i've eaten really balanced foods and it feels like it's getting easier every day! YAY!

however, anyone else who is with me on this; do you find it is harder and harder to meet your calories every day? my goodness - i think i will burst if i eat anything else today!!!!

2day4ever

Yes. I do find it harder to meet my calories. I am really spending time planning meals (so I am especially grateful for your Southwestern Salad recipe).

I am finding that I have to include more protein than I'm accustomed to eating. So I'm stocked up on almonds and sesame seeds and pistachios. I have some deli turkey that I pre-measured into 3 oz ziplocks. I scooped some nutella onto apple wedges.

One thing that helps me avoid junk food is making sure that I have quick, easy alternatives ready to go. This is where I have faltered before. So, now, I have the nuts and the deli meat. I also keep those itty bitty raisin boxes in my purse. I have baby carrots and grapes washed and ready to go in the fridge. Wedges of cucumbers taste great with a little hummus.

I'm certainly open to any suggestions that you've used to help overcome any cravings for the old junk!

I'm trying (really hard) to minimize my excuses. Sigh.

chelsey787

I'm trying (really hard) to minimize my excuses. Sigh.

aren't we all? haha... i need to go buy some more almonds; i just finished a jar last week and have found myself today scooping a few tbsp. of peanut butter onto a spoon just to meet those calories! but mmmm i gotta love that pb! i must go through about a jar a week! nom nom nom.

and you're welcome for that salad... it was seriously so delicious! haha

i'm going to be trying a black bean wrap in a few days - so i'll let you know how it goes!

chelsey787

just wanted to bump this to see how everyone did yesterday!

chelsey787

day 4: i was sooo hungry today! it was absolutely ridiculous. tomorrow i need to frontload my calories a little more and add protein to each meal!

i did really well on all my meals...

breakfast: oatmeal with bananas and peanut butter (my absolute fav) and coffee with unsweetened vanilla almond breeze

lunch: turkey and veggies on a whole grain wrap with some baby carrots and green peppers dipped in hummus

dinner: portabella mushroom sandwich marinated in trader joe's sesame soy ginger dressing topped with grilled onions and peppers, and a side of steamed baby carrots

snacks: grapes, apple, raisins.. and although i wanted to, i couldn't resist the bowl of cereal tonight. they were those all bran yogurt bites from kellogs and packed with nutrients and fiber so i don't feel bad about it.

any suggestions on how to add more protein to my new plan?

how did everyone else do?

2day4ever

I tried your yummy southwestern salad! Thank you for sharing!

re: protein. I love nuts b/c they are so easy to pack and add flavor to meals. I just pre-measure 2 tablespoons of almonds or sesame seeds or pistachios (my absolute fave!) or walnuts into ziplocks and cart those around with me. I also get deli turkey and pre-measure it into 2-3 oz servings in ziplocks. And, for some bizarre reason, I love garbonzo beans and edamame (soybeans). I usually measure out 1/4 cup and add a splash of Newman's Own Balsalmic vinaigrette. And another quick/easy protein load is one of those yummy Yoplait light yogurts (100 cal).

I get ravenous, too. So, I'm trying really hard to eat every 2-3 hours. I aim to eat 3 meals that hover between 300-400 calories. Then I like a snack around 100-200 calories. I'm finding that formula helps me avoid the growling-tummy-gotta-eat-anything-that-isn't-nailed-down binge that used to be part of my day.

So . . . maybe try some protein snacks instead of (or along with) your carb-loaded fruits??? Just a thought.

chelsey787

thanks for the advice progress!

today was gooood! i ate about 5 times; but made these meals small so i didn't have that horrible "got to eat now" type feeling!!

i still need to pack in more calories though... i need to go to the store tomorrow and pick up some almonds or something!

im going to the movies tonight - but! i am staying away from all treats. this will be a struggle!

2day4ever

Slipped a little last night. Ate some snack mix stuff that was just loaded with salt. No real reason for the slip except that hubby had a bowl of it and the crunching made me want to graze, too. Bummer.

But I'm back on track today. Mango for breakfast with a couple slices of Wasa light rye with Weight Watcher's cream cheese.

Salad for lunch. Grilled turkey burgers (no bun) for dinner. Snacks of grapes, raisins, almonds (always!), and deli turkey roll-ups with grape tomatoes. Maybe a mango smoothie if I get my workout calories up there today.

How was the movie for you? (That's where my packed nuts really help me. I pack sesame seeds so that I can be munching on something while everyone else is eating all the yucky movie food).

mlillie

Just touching base- I have been on the quest for no junk food, fried food lifestyle for a while and would be happy to share what products, etc I have found to be helpful./

I think kefir (liquid yogurt) is a great option for high protein, high probiotic snack- with or without fruit.For a chocolate healthy fix I add Vega nutritional powder to it (found at Whole foods,etc)

adding spinach to smoothies is a great way to get some greens in without tasting like you are- the smoothie is green but you cant taste it at all!

I try to stay away from dried fruits because they get me into trouble- I cant digest nuts very well so I have to get my protien from kefir and yogurt.

I chop up a lot of veggies, kale, and mixed greens, add some hemp seeds (very good source of protein) and bring wraps (I use Nori as a wrap because I am allergic to wheat) but you can use any kind of wrap. I have these as much lunches and they are filling and it is different than a salad.

I hope this helps! Staying away from corn syrup, hydrogenated oils and ingredients you cant pronounce makes a big difference. Also popcorn with added seasoning is fun to have- you can make all kinds of different versions for a snack or add some nuts to a popcorn mix for a little more umph!

Congrats you guys! I always bring my own snacks to the movies!

chelsey787

How was the movie for you? (That's where my packed nuts really help me. I pack sesame seeds so that I can be munching on something while everyone else is eating all the yucky movie food).

the movie was good - i dodged the snack line by using the washroom the second my boyfriend and i walked into the theater haha. so it worked out well. no snacking!

we didn't get out of the movie until like 1 a.m. though and i was so exhausted and tired by the time we got out that i was getting huungry! so, the peanut butter came out and i had a spoonful of it to coat my stomach before bed. haha.. but overall; great day!

we're almost there!!! today is day 6! we can do it!

chelsey787

AHHHHHHHHH CANNOT STOP EATING TODAAAAY!!!!

it is definitely my T.O.M and i cannot stop myself. it's horrible... making good choices but i can't stop!

greeneyedgirl

I had a little slip up today and had a few fries at lunch, but everything else was fine, no junk.....maybe tomorrow will be a bit better

chelsey787

good job greeneyedgirl!

yesterday was yuck yuck yuck! i could not stop eating! no sweets were involved in this process though... haha some pretzels definitely were though. oh well...

today me and my bestie are going for lunch at olive garden! soup & salad for me please!!!

greeneyedgirl

How did the olive garden work out for you?

chelsey787

oops! sorry about not posting.. i've been out of town for the past 2 days or so...

we ended up going to applebee's actually.. i got a half portion of the spinach and shrimp salad with a cup of french onion soup. yum yum. no fries, nothing fried. i was proud of myself.

but yesterday... yuck. we had my brother's graduation party and i snacked on veggies and salsa in the beginning, and i continued to stay pretty good during dinner.

i had some italian sausage, some pasta and some salad. nothing too bad... all within my caloric limits; not the ideal choices but what is a girl to do right? lol.. but then, the cake came out. and even though i only had a tiny sliver, i need to let everyone know that i definitely paid the price this morning for eating all that processed food yesterday.

the cravings are starting to go away too!!

anyone else having a hard time?