Party Eating

lakingfish

Last night I was watching the debate with friends and there was snack food sitting out. I was mindlessly grazing just kept reaching down and bringing the food to my mouth. At the end of the night to be honest I'm not sure how much I ate. Felt horrible going to bed last night and wasn't even sure how to report it on my food log. Does anyone have any advice on how to handle these situations and what's the best way to report it. Thanks!

stardancer7

The way I've handled this is to pick one of the guests to 'mirror'--I try to pick the healthiest, fittest looking one--and eat exactly the same thing he/she does on a five minute time delay so no one notices.

Sailorwind

The two tricks that work the best for me are to take a certain amount and put it on a plate or napkin and then take it to sit as far away from the snack bowl as possible or to find a friend I can trust to not let me take any more and ask them to stop me if they see me reaching for more..

cdavis6394

Brother, I do the same thing. I purposely do it though, and it works for me. I will not speak for you, but I will say that I need a "SPLURGE DAY" to keep myself motivated. I find by doing right all week, I deserve a reward to keep myself motivated. Based on my experience (8 months) of keeping this routine of hitting it hard and staying consistant, I can afford to reward myself one day a week and still loose the 1lb a week. Again, this has worked for me, so if you try it and you remain stagnant at your current weight, readjust as necessary. The way I do it is simple. I will pick a splurge day either Fri. or Sat. and begin that specific day with about 30 minutes to an hour of cardio to offset as much as possible the punishment my stomach is about to endure. I do this in the morning before eating anything. After I log the workout...Game on! Here is where it gets even simpler. Rather than loging every food in MFP as I eat it, I either keep either a mental note or scratch paper log of foods I eat paying no regards to absolute accuracy as I do during the week. Either at the end of the day or the next morning as I recover from my nacho, cheeseburger, and pizza hangover I add the food I remembered or jotted down on the scratch paper to MFP. Again, these numbers here do not need to be super accurate, so use generic values if you choose...Its ok, because you splurged anyway. The only reason you are logging these in the first place is to remain consistant. It is a positive motivator to see you have logged in XX days in a row. I am going on like 180 days of consistancy of logging and I'm telling you, I am at 40lbs lost and dropping. Do not be alarmed to see your weight rise 3-4lbs after a good splurge as your body is still processing the sodium intake. Your body will normalize by next friday and for me, I see I lost yet another pound. I would recommend putting a remark for yourself in the "note" block stating that today was a splurge day. This helps me mentally accept that this was ok and aliviates a sense of guilt. Usually the next day after my body processes the extra intake, I go for another quick jog to prep myself for the coming week. The key is consistancy. Log every day. Just don't be afraid to cheat. You can friend me if you want. I'm not a fitness expert, just guy like you who struggled until I finaly saw the light through trial and error. Let me know if this helps.

ilovemaisy

Either bring something that you can eat (like plain veggies/hummus) or keep a glass of water in your hand at all times and keep moving around. Sitting right in front of food for hours makes it harder.

fat2fitKara

The two tricks that work the best for me are to take a certain amount and put it on a plate or napkin and then take it to sit as far away from the snack bowl as possible or to find a friend I can trust to not let me take any more and ask them to stop me if they see me reaching for more..

I def suggest asking for a plate/napkin to put your food on. I also try to bring a water bottle with me wherever I go so I am not tempted with soda/sugary drinks. Or if you know you are going to a social event you could try to get in a good work out that day so you do not feel as guilty ..When I am not sure how to track something I always write a food note with my food diary for the day, I'll try to add an emotion to the note so I remember how I felt after the event.

But, like somebody has mentioned, a little binge one day is sometimes exactly what we need to motivate us for the next.