Junkfood in the house

256Sept12

I eat a lot better than I did, but it's hard sometimes because the food that is in the house for my husband and daughter. They don't have mountains of junk food...but even one bag of chips (for them) is hard for me to say no to....and sometimes I don't.

How do you and your household handle this?

vtmoon

Part of the life change is knowing what food is good for you. Junk food/snacks tend to have the effect of making you want more of them, so avoiding them all together is best. Have stronger willpower (this one is the hard one :-p) . Last suggestion have healthy snacks around that you can eat instead of going for the junk food.

What is cooked at my house would probably have me on a 3000 calorie days easy, which is double what I'm aiming for.

LittleMissDover

I don't give the kids much 'junk' anyway but if I do happen to buy a treat for them I buy something I don't like but they do and make sure I have something I really like in at all times that I am 'allowed' to eat.

Zeromilediet

Can you bring your husband & daughter on board to eat healthier? not just be a weight loss thing, but to aim to make healthier food choices for everyone?

MinnieInMaine

I keep my own "junk" in the house to turn to when I want something snacky. Like 100 cal snack bags of popcorn for something cruncy/salty and Fiber Plus chocolate chip bars for sweet/gooey.

xSCiNTILLATEx79

I dont keep junkfood in the house..occasionally some skinny cow icecream, but not too often because I over endulge and maybe some kind of lower calorie cookie, but again the same. if its there i eat it and over eat it even if it is on the more low cal junk food side. My BF has his own ice cream and what I refer to as his "crap stash" next to his game chair so its out of sight and for the most part I wouldnt touch half of it all candy which I dont like. Hes really good about eating healthy with me, and not complaining but he has more of a sweet tooth then I do. My down falls are chips/breads/cake/cookies. So thats not allowed.

I have a hard time saying no and a hard time stopping once I start so if i want it SOOO bad I either have to go get it or prepare it from scratch, not keep it ready to go in the house.

bokodasu

It's not budget-friendly, but my husband buys the smaller bags of chips - no more than he and my kids will eat in a day or two, and he stores them in a place where we don't keep other food, so it's out of my sight. I'm lucky that they like gross chips that are easier for me to say no to. And when they do get the good chips, I put my serving in a bowl - if I don't, I will devour the whole bag in one snarf.

amann1976

you can buy healthier alternatives to the chips... like baked chips or those special k chips my favorite are the baked cheetoes like crunchies from trader joes

i personally still buy chips and have learned to eat them in moderation. i love the thai chili kettle cooked chips

just because it is there doesnt mean you have to eat it

kenazfehu

I let my husband worry about what he puts in his mouth, and I worry about what I put into mine. For the past month, I've been so single-minded about my fitness goals that I barely see the candy bars and chips he buys for his lunch box. He works hard as a plumber every day, he can metabolize that stuff. I can't.

I wish there were some easy technique to tell you, but really - it's a matter of deciding what you want for yourself and then following through. Oh - here's an idea: you or your family might put the most tempting treats behind a door that you don't even open. Plus you need to have something to do (take a walk maybe?) when your family is munching away. I had to go take a bath when my husband was gobbling down the trail mix while we were watching Netflix a week or so ago.

Im_NotPerfect

There will always be temptation. The goal is to realize what you REALLY want and resist it. Even if you bring your family on board with you, how does that teach you how to resist temptation at work, church, or other social functions?

magerum

Personal willpower. That's the only way, it's your burden to carry not theirs. Good luck!

JustJennie1

I just don't buy it.

I love chips and know I could eat a bag so I don't buy them.
Husband loves ice cream and could eat an entire half gallon (or whatever the small size is now) so I don't buy it.
Same goes for chocolate, M&M's and all that stuff.

Occasionally I'll buy the M&M's but I'm good at having a handful and that's it.

It's actually funny because last night my husband came into the living room with a sleeve of crackers and a jar of PB (natural PB mind you) and said "how sad is it when this is considered junk food in our house?" LOL!

msaestein1

I don't give the kids much 'junk' anyway but if I do happen to buy a treat for them I buy something I don't like but they do and make sure I have something I really like in at all times that I am 'allowed' to eat.

Agree. I love cereal, so I buy cereal for my son that I hate. If I buy candy, like for a party, halloween, I make sure it is fruit flavored candies: skiltttles, suckers, etc. I hate that stuff! I wouldn't last with chocolate. I have also snuck in heatlhy swaps for my family, whole grain pasta, whole wheat bread. Not as many complaints as I thought. Try some healthy snacks on them, you might not get the WWIII you would expect.

allthenamesaretaken1

I know I should learn some self control. Having said that, we buy boxed cake mixes or make cakes from scratch. Make frosting from scratch. Usually I am lazy and dont want to make it so I avoid the snack altogether. As for chips, oh I love chips. I portion them out in a bowl then add it to MFP. If I have extra calories, I will eat more.

I debated on having my husband lock up all his sweets in his man cave. Maybe I will but I should learn self control and teach it to my daughter. I am doing this weight loss for her (and myself) I dont want her to live like I did.

rachelmorgan77

Can you switch everyone over? After my husband and I went off sweets, we realized how good we felt (duh moment). After that, we just talked the kids into it and we're doing it as a family. We've even talked to daycare about how we don't want our kids fed sugary snacks. It's a great way to talk to your kids about nutrition, help them make healthier choices and maybe...just maybe...change the culture of how we eat as a society.

KipDrordy

I eat a lot better than I did, but it's hard sometimes because the food that is in the house for my husband and daughter. They don't have mountains of junk food...but even one bag of chips (for them) is hard for me to say no to....and sometimes I don't.

How do you and your household handle this?

Nothing wrong with having chips once in while. I suggest you use a kitchen scale and measure out an ounce of potato chips. Seeing what an actual serving looks like may be enough of a deterrent right there. It won't take very many to climb up to 150 calories. Even twice that amount isn't all that big looking, yet it will pack a whopping 300 calories. I still eat Doritos and the like, but a bag lasts me over a week now because I'm very conscious about the amount I'm eating.

If you're at a party or something, don't stand near the food and just eat. Put portions on a plate. From seeing what they look like on a food scale in your house, you should be able to estimate the proper amount. And keep logging. Log everything even if you're not going to like seeing your numbers go over your daily budget. When you see where junk food ranks in your calorie intake, you'll may just feel like giving it up simply because it isn't worth the calories.

KipDrordy

I just don't buy it.

I love chips and know I could eat a bag so I don't buy them.
Husband loves ice cream and could eat an entire half gallon (or whatever the small size is now) so I don't buy it.
Same goes for chocolate, M&M's and all that stuff.

Occasionally I'll buy the M&M's but I'm good at having a handful and that's it.

It's actually funny because last night my husband came into the living room with a sleeve of crackers and a jar of PB (natural PB mind you) and said "how sad is it when this is considered junk food in our house?" LOL!

Crackers are junk food. Compare the label on crackers to the label on potato chips.

LoosingMyLast15

i do love junk food (i'm more a sweet than salty though), however i do have some chips in the house (for hubby). i keep them above the refrigerator (sorta out of sight out of mind). he knows they are there and i just pretend they are not there. however, when i do get a craving i want the good stuff not cheap chips i buy for hubby. lindt dark chocolate, real ice cream, the best chocolate chip cookie i can either make or buy. when i do have my sweets i don't kick myself for eating them because i know it's a treat (and i try to only eat the recommended serving size) and i move on. we all deserve it once in a while just not every single day.