Preparing for the Zombie Apocalypse

flausa

So you're sitting at home enjoying a quiet evening after a good, productive day. You feel fit, you feel strong, you feel mentally sharp, you feel at the top of your game. But suddenly you sense that something's not right. You get this tingle and your heart starts to race. You leap from the sofa, because your realize - they're here!!! OMG, is it zombies? No, it's much, much worse! It's the MUNCHIES!!!!

You've prepared yourself for the zombies - you've got an axe and a shotgun behind the sofa. You've been working on your fitness and you know you can outrun your neighbours (or barring that, you've figured out the most effective method for tripping them up, so they fall first). But have you prepared yourself for the even more disconcerting and detrimental (and let's face it, realistic) and completely unexpected attack of the munchies.

I'm not gonna talk about the science and psychology behind why the munchies strike, because I frankly don't understand it. But I want to talk about how we can survive them, and I want to hear your ideas as well. Mostly, I think you need to have a plan. We don't know when they're going to strike, but I think we've all figured out no matter where we are on this journey, that they are going to strike. So how can we best ensure that we sabatoge the good work we've done when the sneak attack hits.

For me to survive, I've had to remove trigger foods from the house. So my favourite crisps/chips do not make it through the front door. So when the munchies hit, my high calorie go-tos aren't there. I've been working on alternatives. For a rare desire for sweet something I've got fruit and usually at least one type of berry on hand which can be chopped into a fruit salad and sprinkled with a bit of oats for some added crunch or a dollop of yoghurt (or light cream cheese) for creaminess. Or I measure out a couple of tablespoons of peanut butter, mix a teaspoon of cocoa powder and cut up an apple or banana for dipping. So a sweet munchie attack that costs me 200-350 calories and is good for me rather than who knows what in cakes, biscuits, and random sweeties. For savoury hits, it's crunchy veg (brocolli, carrots, celery, cucumber) cut up and sprinkled with sea salt or dunked in hummus or homemade salsa (again 200-350 calories). Much better than my previous alternative of a family size bag of Doritos or a big can of Pringles. And it keeps me from hating myself the next day.

I've survived a couple of attacks in my four months on MFP, and I suspect I'll face a few more. I'm ready for the Munchie Apocalypse .... are you?

tanyizzle

I had the munchies an hour ago!!! I almost asked my hubby to go to dairy queen to get us some icecream!!!! Instead I hopped on my elliptical for 15 minutes. I don't have the munchies anymore

kellicarter11

I keep 100 calorie snacks on hand for the munchies they are low in fat and calories, and some are pretty good. The mint fudge petite ones are my favorite

Elizabeth_C34

Plan for them. I budget enough calories during the day so I can have a small snack at night, and I also drink about a gallon of water a day that keeps me full.

Dormouse85

This isn't very helpful - but I go with them! I don't have a lot of Munchie Food in the house (my biggest weakness is wine!) but if I want it I will have it.
Tomorrow is another day...But I never have been a binge eater, so I can stop at 2 squares of chocklit.

But it's certainly worth thinking about!