argh! I do well and then blow it.

wantthistowork

Advice???? Its hard when you live with someone who doesn't need to diet in the least. I try to cook but when we are exhausted after long days of work and early morning the next day (yes, I am in an industry where holidays don't exist for the employees , it is difficult to get to the store, do the dishes that were ignored from last night and cook all over again. And we still had birthday cake....so I had some. So mad at myself now! Anyone else experiencing a similar situation? I want to do this! But then I get tempted-good . Plus, I work in a restaurant where we have to "taste" specials (so I ballpark on my entries by selecting an option that is similar to what we are served-this is very difficult when you take literally one "bite" of food). Thanks for any input!

CommandaPanda

It's okay to cheat sometimes... just don't do what I did where I go out at midnight on a McDonald's run because I have no integrity.

At least you still have your integrity

Mybetterme

O yes. I am a nurse work 12 hrs and to have good control all shift when ur tired and stressed and people bring in bad food everyday. For me its all or nothing I lost and kept the most weight off when I told myself u can never just have a little just avoid the cake and have a granola bar. plus when the bar is done im done. with cake or donuts I tend to have seconds and if I can I will and once i stat I can't stop its like crack.

yenohamk

It's okay to cheat sometimes... just don't do what I did where I go out at midnight on a McDonald's run because I have no integrity.

At least you still have your integrity

Or Taco Bell...and Jack in the Box...in the same night. :embarassed:

OP, how about cooking meals on your days off and having them on hand for those rough nights when you just can't cook? Are you the only sampler? Will you get docked if you skip a bite here and there? If you're going to give in and feel bad about it, then you've got to put in the work to combat it, which may mean going on a walk to cut some of the calories. "Punish" yourself that way. I "punish" myself by heavily restricting calories over the next couple of days to try and counteract the damage that I did (and trust me, I can do some damage!) They talk about starvation mode, but honestly, the calories I eat on my bad day could very well feed me for 2-3 days; I'm not starving anything!

From the sound of the title, it seems like this may be a cycle for you, which is MUCH much better than completely giving up. I don't know how long you've been at this, but give yourself some time to adjust to this long-term commitment. Not everyday will be a success, but we've got to take the good with the bad, do the best we can, and make a promise to ourselves to not give up.

wantthistowork

I won't get "docked" if I don't sample the food, but in order to properly
sell it I should be educated about the flavor profile (I work in
fine dining). Additionally sometimes I don't get a break
all day, so if the chefs put out a sample I am starving and
it is usually delicious.

As far as cooking dinners in advance, that seems
like a ton of cooking on one day! Especially when I
am the only one who will eat half of it. I love salads, do
example but had the process of making them.

Does anyone have a good basic grocery list? I find it hard
To think about every single meal in advance, but if I
Had all the ingredients on hand then cooking wouldn't be
Ad much of a challenge. Thanks again!!!

beaglegal

I would be intrested in a good basic grocery list too. I buy the same stuff every week and then come home and have no idea what to cook. I have the same problem with me being the only on wanting to "diet" in the family. They all want the cheesy, greasy, fatty gooey meals.

Incisive

If you strive to be perfect all the time, you're in for a letdown. Don't beat yourself up over it, just get back to good eating and forget it. It's about the journey, not perfection.

wonnder1

I don't see why you can't eat the same thing as the other member of the house, but in a smaller portion and with a huge salad first.
Invest in tupperware. I hate making salads as well, but I dedicated 1 hr every Sunday to preparing the bits, so I just have to add what I want. My favorite is the big green thing for celery that Tupperware doesn't make anymore but you can still find on ebay. In that I put celery, radishes and baby carrots. They last a week in the water. Lettuce is washed and kept in the spinner. Chickpeas are drained and rinsed. And for dinner I literally just take what I want and throw it in a bowl.
Another investment I love are the MealSaver vacuum packagers...I'll cook a roast and slice it up-voila, TV dinners.

I think we sabotage ourselves, by saying it's too much time to eat healthy. Sorry, it's an excuse. A frozen chicken breast takes 30 minutes. So does a pizza. I have a goal, so I choose a chicken breast. Keep your goal in mind.

dustyhockeymom

As far as cooking dinners in advance, that seems
like a ton of cooking on one day! Especially when I
am the only one who will eat half of it. I love salads, do
example but had the process of making them.

It is a lot of cooking in one day but it pays off in all the time saved for the week. I do this when I know I am going to have a really busy week because I try to take my lunch to work every day. I may roast two whole chickens and then take the meat off and piece it for different meals and lunches. Or I cook a large pot of soup and put it into serving size containers and put it in the freezer. I also wash and prep veggies and fruits for the week so they are grab and go. Its worth the effort. If you have food network, there is a show that Rachel Ray does called week in a day, which teaches this concept. I don't use all her recipes because many of them are not low calorie, but I pick and choose. Mostly the show taught me how to cook things and use the leftovers double duty and how to cook base dishes that you only add fresh things to on the night you eat it, etc.

wonnder1

I would be intrested in a good basic grocery list too. I buy the same stuff every week and then come home and have no idea what to cook. I have the same problem with me being the only on wanting to "diet" in the family. They all want the cheesy, greasy, fatty gooey meals.

Veg/Fruit
Watermelon-I peel it, cut it all up and store in Tupperware so I can grab a couple bites with no work and no mess
Pineapple-I buy a whole one cause it's cheaper and cut it up as well.
Strawberries-cut the tops off, wash, store in a bowl on a paper towel
Blueberries-I'm lucky-my grandma sends me wild from home, so I keep frozen. Don't wash these beforehand.
Basically-anything in the produce aisle that strikes my fancy.
Fat free cool whip for the fruit when I want a treat.
Frozen veg-yay! They're always there!


Meats-any fish, I always have a big bag of shrimp cause I can thaw as many as I want for dinner.
Grilling planks for the fish
The big boxes of frozen chicken breasts
When on sale I'll buy a turkey, cook it, portion it and seal it all up with my vacuum sealer
Big fan of the Yves meat free anything. If I'm craving bacon, I can eat the whole package for under 150 cals

Pantry-Panko bread crumbs-for breading shrimp-or making crunchy oven baked chicken nuggets.
Soups and canned fruits
Special K bars-yum
Low fat popcorn (I use chili powder on mine)

Dairy-any ff yogurt I feel in the mood for
Skinny Cow ice cream if I have some extra cash
Soy milk
Eggs
Earthworks buttery spread-is actually better than butter. And I used to eat a lot of butter.

It's no more work than carting around 20 extra pounds.

melminski

I started makeing 2 dishes on Sunday that would last me almost all week. One is using ground turkey and making up a low sodium taco seasoning mix. I use it in a salad or wrap. For the second one I find a healthy slow cooker recipe, something usually with chicken breast. I've started doing this because of getting home after work and going to the gym doesn't leave me a lot of time to cook. Before I would either choose something that wasn't good or not eat at all. I get most of my recipes off of sparksrecipes.com.