Snacking for success

katejkelley

I want to share a tip I'm relearning: snacking - the right way - is necessary and helpful.

Years ago I read the very first South Beach Diet book (still excellent, by the way) and learned our hunger triggers are regulated by our insulin levels. When our levels drop, we're hungry. When they drop too low is when we tend to binge on the wrong stuff. The best way to avoid binging is to eat small meals - or snacks - every three hours to keep our insulin levels - well - level.

OK, so I read that and it made sense. I followed the SBD and lost weight, felt good, all was well. But, as with so many diets I've been on, eventually I slacked off, cheated, dropped it altogher, and regained the weight. Years later, I tried The 17 Day Diet, which has many of the same principles. Once again, I lost weight. Once again, I slacked off ... you know.

So now I've been on MFP for almost a year. I've lost 22 pounds (about my goal) and, though I am faithful about logging in and have really changed my eating habits, I still battle the binge eating. I think it's FINALLY clicked in my thick skull that I need to eat those healthy snacks (the key word being HEALTHY) every few hours to keep from getting too hungry. I bring fruit in to work with me, so I have something at 10 a.m., lunch at noon, a snack at 3 p.m., dinner at 6 p.m. However, I also realized the apple at 3 p.m. was not doing the trick - I needed some protein. So I've started bringing in a little Smart Balance peanut butter to have with my apple. It's made all the difference. I can get through my afternoon, go home and do my workout, and fix dinner without scarfing down any junkfood I can find while doing it.

I see posts from people battling the binge eating and hunger all the time. Try the several small meals each day process and see if it works for you. Good luck!

chercee

I agree with what you've said. Letting yourself get too hungry isn't the way to do it, unless your goal is to eat yourself into a sugar/grease/carb coma. I'm learning the same thing, and learning to do it the healthy way. I'm a natural grazer, so what I'm learning to do is graze on the healthy things, instead of the unhealthy things. It's hard, but definitely worth it.

This week, I've discovered a love of pistachios. They fill me up, and don't cost me a ton of calories. They also have protein!

jennfranklin

I have at least 3 or more snacks a day! All of them include some protein.

CTCMom2009

On Sunday nights, I cut up veggies and fruit and boil enough eggs for snacks druing the week... if I'm having a chocolate craving, I will eat a small piece of dark chocolate and eat some nuts at the same time. I do try to eat 5-6 times a day in order to keep from eating a 400 calorie candy bar! I also have PopChips handy if I need a 'junk food' item, but they are low in sodium and calories, so I don't feel guilty about it.

Lupercalia

I'm not a "grazer". I'm a human being, not livestock. I eat three meals a day and am cool like that! I've had great success. Lots of energy, great workouts, great fat loss.

If you like eating 6 meals a day, that's great. I found it to be totally inconvenient and unsatisfying.

I have a light breakfast, work out, and then nice lunches and dinners. I don't eat sugar or grains, so perhaps that's part of why I don't need snacks. It seems to be, anyway.

I have PCOS and am insulin resistant as well, so go figure. Just putting this out there for others who may be "grazers" who aren't finding success with that method.

kujuh

I love almonds as a snack! However, I have to pre-measure to make sure I'm only eating a serving size. Otherwise I'll eat the entire container! Especially the Blue Diamond Habanero BBQ almonds... mmmmm so good!

katejkelley

I'm not a "grazer". I'm a human being, not livestock. I eat three meals a day and am cool like that! I've had great success. Lots of energy, great workouts, great fat loss.

If you like eating 6 meals a day, that's great. I found it to be totally inconvenient and unsatisfying.

I have a light breakfast, work out, and then nice lunches and dinners. I don't eat sugar or grains, so perhaps that's part of why I don't need snacks. It seems to be, anyway.

I have PCOS and am insulin resistant as well, so go figure. Just putting this out there for others who may be "grazers" who aren't finding success with that method.

I believe the rest of us are human beings, too. When I say "grazing", I don't mean constantly eating. I mean planned small snacks throughout the day to keep the insulin level. If you are doing well without the snacks, congratulations to you. But as I've read through many posts, I've seen a lot of people struggling with my issue. This post was for them.

ryry_

Everyone seems to have a set up that works best for them. Some prefer six evenly spread out meals. Some prefer 3 meals and 3 snacks. Some prefer 3 larger meals. Some prefer to fast during the day and eat all their calories at night.

Caloric balance is the important part. Congrats on finding what works best for you.

loriandlulu

Thank you for the healthy snack reminder for us grazers could you suggest some of your favorites?

lanaudy

one of my snacks is cruskits with peanut butter. after gym i love fresh berries in a protein shake, they help me .

Lupercalia

I'm not a "grazer". I'm a human being, not livestock. I eat three meals a day and am cool like that! I've had great success. Lots of energy, great workouts, great fat loss.

If you like eating 6 meals a day, that's great. I found it to be totally inconvenient and unsatisfying.

I have a light breakfast, work out, and then nice lunches and dinners. I don't eat sugar or grains, so perhaps that's part of why I don't need snacks. It seems to be, anyway.

I have PCOS and am insulin resistant as well, so go figure. Just putting this out there for others who may be "grazers" who aren't finding success with that method.

I believe the rest of us are human beings, too. When I say "grazing", I don't mean constantly eating. I mean planned small snacks throughout the day to keep the insulin level. If you are doing well without the snacks, congratulations to you. But as I've read through many posts, I've seen a lot of people struggling with my issue. This post was for them.

And my post was intended for people who may be reading and don't do well on 6 little meals or "grazing"--I wanted to add my experience because it's a common diet myth that one needs to eat all day long for some bizarre reason. I keep my blood sugar even by the way I eat and by not eating constantly.

No need to get weird about it. Just sharing my experience here!