Anyone else struggling with food?

SRoberts006

I don't seem to have an issue going to the gym and working out.....my problem lies in the food. I do good all day counting my calories, but then at the end of the day, I can't seem to stop myself from eating some chips or ice cream. Any suggestions?

DrBroPHD

Isn't that why we're here?

mygrl4meee

Eat the chips or ice cream if it fits in your calorie goal. Learn how to have self control and eat in moderation. For me its the only way to go.I have been struggling this past week with being extra hungry and eating more than I like. I workout so I am not in the red but its a bummer to see I ate up a ton of calories that I worked hard to get off. Just take one day at a time and I am sure you will do fine.

Sharla_G

It really does help me to keep the super tempting foods out of my house. Are you able to do that?

Kellyeee2013

This is exactly me. As soon as 7pm hits I want FRIES or CHIPS or ICE CREAM and no, it does not fit with my calories. It becomes uncomfortable and I cannot tell if I am actually hungry or just craving or what. I hate it.

KenosFeoh

Aren't we all struggling with food?

If I can, I get far away from the kitchen and do something that keeps my hands and mind busy. Cravings usually fade away pretty quickly.

But if I'm sitting here doing my transcription job and can't escape - that's the worst. I try to have some fruit or carrot sticks or something that won't totally derail me. I'm pretty strict with myself about meal-times, so I do my best to wait until a scheduled meal to eat anything. I drink water. I make some green tea.

lacurandera1

What mygrl said. Eat it. But don't eat half a gallon or half a bag. Moderation is an important skill a lot of people don't have. I used to be a potato chip junkie, too....I started buying goldfish instead. Yep, not the same, but way less saturated fat and a little lower calorie wise. Plus they started making potato chip style flavors- sour cream and BBQ.

When I was having a hard time, wanting to eat foods I used to eat a lot of, i tried to substitute. Like, eat an apple or string cheese instead. I KNOW it's not the same. But making a lifestyle change is about creating new habits. That said, I eat ice cream at least 3 or 4 times a week. I just don't eat 600 calories of it at a time like I used to. LOL.

No food is inherently bad, if it fits your macros, calorie goals and you don't go overboard.

bookworm_847

Eat the chips or ice cream if it fits in your calorie goal. Learn how to have self control and eat in moderation. For me its the only way to go.I have been struggling this past week with being extra hungry and eating more than I like. I workout so I am not in the red but its a bummer to see I ate up a ton of calories that I worked hard to get off. Just take one day at a time and I am sure you will do fine.

While I'm trying to give up my favorite junk food, this is the method I'm currently using. I see if I have enough calories left to have some. If so, I'll have a handful of chips rather than bringing the whole bag in the other room with me, or I'll put some ice cream in a coffee mug rather than putting it in a big bowl.

I don't want to shock my body by not giving it Doritos or ice cream anymore, lol

BarackMeLikeAHurricane

Once I started limiting myself to 50g net carbs a day all of my cravings disappeared. It took about 4-5 days, but they're gone now.

jenifo11

I do this too, and I rarely have calories for cookies at night, so I keep a huge container of cut up veggies ready to eat in the fridge to eat, and if I'm hungry at night, i eat as much as I want of these veggies. But I generally find I'm not really hungry, just bored. So I stay out of the kitchen and find something to occupy my mind. If I'm really craving something, I brush my teeth and take a little walk or do some deadlifts. Generally I forget about wanting the cookie or chips.

Sabine_Stroehm

I don't keep it in the house.

Easier when you don't have kids, I know...

sunman00

eat whatever you like but in smaller portions.

I kept on drinking wine, but 2 glasses instead of 3; and still have an occasional bowl of peanuts before dinner but just measure out 50g and add it to my daily intake.

as someone above said, you soon cut some out anyway by doing this, I haven't eaten a potato chip this year :-)

rachietuk

Have you tried Skinnycow ice cream, or maybe frozen greek yogurt?

If you enjoy these foods, don't give them up, just eat a small amount and count them in your daily calories.

RobfromLakewood

You have hit on my biggest struggle, here are some things that worked for me:

-drink an extra glass of water before I eat and wait 10 more minutes before I do, but I do eat.
-Costco, I have three things from there, single bags of popped chips, skinny cow ice cream sandwiches and kirkland sleeping aid-pills to get to sleep easier on an emptier stomach...I suspect I spent years training my body to only fall asleep when it was crazy full
-a cup of hot chocolate every night
-I walk my dogs every night, but sometimes I throw a LATE night walk on top and that seems to distract my hunger. If no dog, consider adopting/saving one from a shelter.

RobfromLakewood

Have you tried Skinnycow ice cream, or maybe frozen greek yogurt?

If you enjoy these foods, don't give them up, just eat a small amount and count them in your daily calories.

JINX!

Gramps251

I think this is common and it takes time to change but you now realize what the problem is so you can address it.

Some thing's I've done to change this behavior in myself:

1. Save calories for later in the day

2. Do 20 minutes of exercise in the evening after dinner. (kills my appatite, maybe won't do the same for you?)

3. Study my food diary before eating in the evening so I can decide if the calories are worth it to me or not. (That beer looks refreshing but do I want to drink 200 calories or eat 200 calories)

4. Weigh everything I eat. (I bought a different brand of almonds last week and noticed that, by weight, I get fewer nuts with the new ones. If I'd have eyeballed them I would have never noticed and not known I was taking in more calories than I thought)

5. I'm weak and can't have some foods (ice cream, baked goods, etc) in the house or I'll eat it.

Good luck.

MizTerry

Evenings can be a challenge for me as well. I try to drink more water and get to bed earlier. Stay strong. Once you get in the habit of cutting out the junk, if you eat anything bad, you'll feel it for sure. I had some chips last night and it tore my stomach up this morning.

bf43285

I try to not keep it in the house. But much like weaning your self off any other kind of bad-for-you-thing don't stop cold turkey. I've never smoked a day in my life but have been around people who have stopped. Sometimes you need to wean off. Try to replace at first, instead of full fat ice cream, switch to frozen yogurt; instead of full fat chips try baked chips. As you clean your system your taste buds will change. I used to eat a bag of chips in 2 days, now I do not care for them at all. I still eat frozen yogurt but maybe once a month. If you have that one item in your life that you cannot live without: DON'T. Mine is dark chocolate and wine. Learn to budget. It's like you budget your money, budget your calories. Once you are out of calories (money) you are out of eating (spending).

brevislux

Buy healthy snacks and toss away the junk.

elleloch

Don't buy chips and ice cream. I like that stuff too but I know if it's there I'm going to want it. I refuse to be powerless over my need to eat that garbage. Therefore it does not make it into my kitchen.

LiftAllThePizzas

As almost everyone already suggested, figure out how much you can eat instead of just giving it up.

I workout so I am not in the red but its a bummer to see I ate up a ton of calories that I worked hard to get off.

I have a different outlook on exercise. It makes my body fit and strong. Eating doesn't make my body weak and unfit, so it doesn't undo my workouts. Eating gives it the fuel it needs to get and stay that way.

Maridar

it is a bit of a struggle but you don't have to torture yourself. Like today I am doing really well since morning but craving sweets like crazy so I went for a walk and bought two tootsie rolls... I honestly logged them in right away but I do remember earlier in the week I promised myself No sweets this week... I'll just watch total calories..

ohkola

I think a good rule of thumb is to save calories for that time in the day. I make sure to save 200 calories for my snacks, at least. Or if you really don't think you can do that, then perhaps not having it in the house at all is a good idea. Myself, I prefer a little rather than none. You can do it!

ladymiseryali

I started intermittent fasting, I can eat in an 8 hour period, but after that I can only have water. I only started doing this yesterday, but I think in the long-run it will help with nighttime grazing.