How to stop the bad habits?

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TheBeth1231
TheBeth1231 Posts: 3
in Health and Weight Loss
When i get home at 4 I usually eat a lot, because as a family we eat dinner very late. How can i kick this habit? however today i did well, however i skipped lunch and then had a bagel when i got home instead and a small simple cupcake. How can i stop craving food when i get home? Im usually not even hungry?

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  • Poetry_In_Pics
    Poetry_In_Pics Posts: 149
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    I get really hungry when I get home, too! I usually try to eat a small snack before dinner ~ something with protein (yogurt, peanut butter, etc.)... this seems to keep my hunger at bay until the meal is ready. :smile:
  • deltalbarbie
    deltalbarbie Posts: 50
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    keep snack size ziplock bags of fruit & vegetables in the fridge. You can have apple slices, grapes, carrots and other things. It is easier said than done. I have been snacking big time! Here is to hoping the will power will kick in :-)
  • Linli_Anne
    Linli_Anne Posts: 1,360 Member
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    I'm hungriest as soon as I walk in the door at the end of the day too.

    I've started packing a fruit, or vegetable, or nuts, or cheese and I eat it about 15 minutes before I leave the office. It's just enough to keep me from wanting to gnaw my arm off and holds me over until supper.
  • BogQueen1
    BogQueen1 Posts: 320 Member
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    I eat a thing of greek yogurt right before I leave work. By the time I get home, I'm good to clean up a bit and cook some dinner. Otherwise I have a mega snack fest while I'm cooking.

    All this goes out the window if I have class. Then it's a full blown meal before I leave work. (Snack = 150-200 calories, meal = 350-400 calories). And generally a second 300 calorie meal when I get home.
  • Donica_Marie
    Donica_Marie Posts: 64 Member
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    I would eat string cheese and about 15 almonds that keeps me full for a while and very healthy snack and keeps you full :)
  • jolinemariem
    jolinemariem Posts: 462 Member
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    my wife loves having baby carrots and stuff to munch on!!! Very good thing to snack on. Whatever fruit or veggie you like would be good.
  • pankdrogger
    pankdrogger Posts: 17 Member
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    I usually try and portion my food at work so before I leave, I'm munching a bit too. But even then, if I'm too busy to snack at the end of the work day and am preoccupied with getting home, I'll usually end up peckish at the very least. The first thing I do when I get home is drink a cup of water, since often times thirst is mistaken as hunger, but I see no harm in finding a snack to tide you over. I find it also prevents me from eating a large meal, rather than going into dinner starving. I've always done best with several small "meals".

    I heard 4pm is the prime "snacking hour", so if having that snack is a concern, especially if you're not hungry, find another activity you can structure yourself for when you get home from work. I have a ton of stuff to do when I get home like greeting and tending to pets, putting all my stuff away, getting all my stuff ready for the following day, checking social networks, chatting people up, etc. Even if I am hungry, it's usually at least half an hour to an hour after I get home I actually have the time to grab something to eat.
  • quirkytizzy
    quirkytizzy Posts: 4,052 Member
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    I second a piece of a fruit or something right before you leave work. There's something about driving home that makes me feel ravenous when I step through the door. No idea why, but if I eat 60 or 80 calories right before I get into my car, it is a lot easier to wait for dinner.
  • gmallan
    gmallan Posts: 2,099 Member
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    I used to have this issue too. Now I've gotten in the habbit of having a big healthy snack before leaving work. Seems to stop the over-eating when I get home. Make sure you aren't starving when you get home and hopefully it'll help control the eating.
  • Yaya1976
    Yaya1976 Posts: 357 Member
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    I go straight to the gym after work. I come home and cook dinner. I've been doing really well at work also. I make sure I bring in lots of things to eat, so I'm not starving at the end of the day.
  • jackiekrason
    jackiekrason Posts: 1
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    Have you explored why you want to eat at this time? I ask because the reason I want to eat at this time is because it postpones the nightly rush (doing laundry while making dinner while trying to keep the kids on the task of homework)...are you avoiding something else?
    Otherwise-I find it helpful to do a short burst of activity around this time (15 min walk, reps of jumping jacks/situps)...before I know it-food is the last thing on my mind and I have a burst of energy to be productive with!
  • Kelbelle30
    Kelbelle30 Posts: 32 Member
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    Skipping lunch is bad! You'd be better having a complex carb lunch which should fill you up so you don't snack.
    How much is habit? Eg do you eat at 4 even if you don't go home and are at work/doing things?
    Try dissuading techniques if you think it's a habit - eg 10 min exercise video, drink a big glass of water, chew some minty gum. Then if you're still hungry, eat!
    The bags of small snacks is good but make sure you're getting protein/complex carbs to fill you up rather than surfing on sugar in fruit.
    Good luck!
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,115 Member
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    Bagels and small cupcakes are Carbs. Eating too many Carbs like breads and cereals and crackers and snack foods leads to eating more.....try snacking on lowfat cheese and dairy and nuts. Make sure you eat a good portion of protein with every meal. Protein and fats are the most important. Fill those categories first and then use the remaining calories on Carbs - preferrably not lots of bagels and sweets..
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    I pre-log in MFP every morning and I account for snacks because I know I'm going to have them...plus I eat roughly 5 times per day. It also keeps me from reaching for some other snack in the cupboard from the one I have logged and already measured/weighed out.
  • da_bears10089
    da_bears10089 Posts: 1,791 Member
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    I pre-log in MFP every morning and I account for snacks because I know I'm going to have them...plus I eat roughly 5 times per day. It also keeps me from reaching for some other snack in the cupboard from the one I have logged and already measured/weighed out.

    I pre-log too! Not saying that from time to time i don't go in end up changing what i had, but usually at work i will log what i PLAN on eating for supper, just so i can see where i am sitting at for the rest of the evening and to see how much i have to burn off at the gym before i get to eat.
  • twinketta
    twinketta Posts: 2,130 Member
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    When i get home at 4 I usually eat a lot, because as a family we eat dinner very late. How can i kick this habit? however today i did well, however i skipped lunch and then had a bagel when i got home instead and a small simple cupcake. How can i stop craving food when i get home? Im usually not even hungry?

    what works for me is not skipping meals. You may feel that it is helping you, but in the long run you can not keep it up and won`t want to.

    Try to eat lots of protein though the day, if you want a cupcake eat it in the morning after brekkie...trust me it works x
  • doubleduofa
    doubleduofa Posts: 284 Member
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    I eat when I'm hungry. My husband likes to eat late (like 8-9 pm). I could not eat that late...I'd be up all night with a tummy ache. So, I eat at 4-7pm (depending on day and what I brought to work), and he eats when he eats. If you HAVE to sit at the table every night, I would still eat when you are hungry and cut up an apple for "dinner" at the table.

    I guess my answer is, don't try to adapt to something that your body doesn't want to do. I like to eat an earlier breakfast, bigger linch, and smaller, early dinner. So, that's what I do.

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