How do I not eat the junk if it's in the house?

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lilscorpiosweetie79

What about trading the junk for something healthier.. I still have junk in my house but I also have a healthier alternative.. like we have those oatmeal cookies with the creme filling and I have trail mix, my favorite is the indulgent trail mix as it has white, milk and butterscotch chips with nuts and grapes. I also have fruit and popsicles like Dryers fruit bars in Coconut, strawberry, pineapple and mango. they are awesome and I get a few veggie trays.

bridgelene

Have one serving every now and again as a treat so that it's not forbidden and you don't break and binge on it, and then just stop. You're making the choice. Once you own it rather than making excuses for it, you'll have better control.

jackieg218

When I see something that tempts me I just remind myself ... That's just the spoiled fat kid inside of you... If that doesn't work, I open my phone to my pic of me at me heavest and look at it, to remind myself I don't want to look like that again.

It doors get easier, at least for me it has. Now when I see something that used to make my mouth water, I don't get that same feeling... It's just food... Nothing tastes as good as being thin feels!!!! (At least I hope so, I am not thin yet... But working on it)

squishyjenn

My brother moved in with me and he eats a ton of junk food and it drives me crazy because I can't seem to get away from it! What I tell myself is this "Is it really worth eating this? How will this make me feel in 10-20 minutes? Will I regret it? Why am I wanting this?" After I answer a few of these questions to myself, it's much easier to put down the crap and reach for something more healthy, or just nothing at all.

codapea

Truly, the less sugar and junk you eat the less you crave it. It's nice to think you can have everything in moderation if it fits onto your daily calorie goal, but some of us can't eat that kind of stuff in moderation, will power goes out the window. Just go cold turkey and it will be easier to say no after a week or so. Buckle down and get the hard work out of the way now, and then once you are at maintenance there will be a little more wiggle room in your daily calorie goal for treats (it helps me to tell myself that). You can do it!

AmandaMarie916

nothing taste as good as skinny and healthy feels

SusanMPreston43

Stop buying junk.

Not the only person in my home....and I cannot enforce my way onto my husband. He is the head of the house, he says buy it, I buy it.

But I have such a difficult time walking past it...I am weak.

What happens if you don't?

When I buy the 'junk' I can at least disguise it half not so junky. I have some control over what it is. If I don't buy something he will go buy it and it will be the worst of the worst junk possible. I buy my junk so it's not so bad. I know that probably doesn't make sense.

lilscorpiosweetie79

I also find that drinking water helps too.

CrystalDreams

staring contest. If you win you cant eat it. Just kidding
I demonize it in my mind somehow. or I just chug a bunch of water until i don't want it anymore

spidey11186

Whenever you get the urge to munch on them... go run... keep running until you don't have the urge anymore. Double whammy because you'll exercise and also train your mind to associate those feelings with having to exercise and you'll eventually not want to binge anymore

erreemme

Stop buying junk.

Not the only person in my home....and I cannot enforce my way onto my husband. He is the head of the house, he says buy it, I buy it.

But I have such a difficult time walking past it...I am weak.

How I resist the junk food call? I keep Myfitnesspal handy on my Ipad. When I have a craving for a couple of chips I first look at my daily quota and if one serving is 15 chips, but 8 keeps me in the Green zone, I eat max 8 (slooowlyyy!) just to loose the craving. It works for me ! Try it ! It make you realize how much we overeat! Do not worry if you fell like you are fasting (because you are eating less); your body will adjust in a week or two, after that, the wish to look for food will disappear.

macybean

Nothing, and I mean nothing, else works for me but to ask my husband to hide it or keep it in his car. No will power, no thoughts of my health, no substitutions, no length of time, etc works. He can have his chips, he's an adult too. And he can eat a few and walk away. I will never understand how.

here

No one is going to give you willpower. You're the only one. Don't do it. Think of how bad you want it. And if you decide that your goal worth it, don't eat it.

Nacho12

It is definitely a problem. Maybe you could talk to your parents about your desire to eat healthier and make better choices. Maybe you could help with the shopping and plan some healthy meals to cook.? My daughter used to complain that all we had was junk in the house when she was in high school and college (when she came home on weekends, etc). Now they come home and they laugh because all we have is healthy food, they can't find anything good to eat. If your parents don't need to lose weight they could still benefit from eating healthy food, its better for their blood pressure, cholestrol, etc. I hope this helps.

rachiepoo91

When I was really disciplined (a while ago), I had a tactic where when I really wanted something "bad," I would make myself wait for 15 minutes. Almost 90% of the time, I would forget about it, but on those rare occasions when I was still thinking about it, I would indulge. That way, I would never obsess about food and binge. I would just enjoy it and move on.

SusanMPreston43

He is the head of the house, he says buy it, I buy it.

there's your problem

This. Are you married to a caveman?

And this is offensive. I am a good Christian woman, married to a good Christian man. We follow the guidelines set out in God's word. This has nothing to do with losing weight, or having willpower to not eat junk. You should more carefully choose your words before typing.

dgljones

First always read the nutrition label, know what a serving size is, now how many calories it is, and sugar and saturated fat and salt and anything else you tend to pay attention to. Don't do this when you are hungry, but at a time you know you're willpower is good.
Education is your friend. If you know that say a serving size of chips is 17 and that is 210 calories, or whatever, then if you are really desiring some go count 17 chips into a bowl, put the rest away, enter the amount into MFP and only then eat them.
Same with chocolate or cookies or whatever, know what a serving is, know the calories and then try and fit them into your goal.
I find that 8 out of 10 times I would rather take those calories and have something more filling or satisfying, but if I am really in the mood I know I can do it by sticking to a set portion and calories.
Never ever just grab a bag of cookies or whatever. Count out your serving, place them away from view, walk away, enter calories and then eat.

SusanMPreston43

Stop buying junk.

Not the only person in my home....and I cannot enforce my way onto my husband. He is the head of the house, he says buy it, I buy it.

But I have such a difficult time walking past it...I am weak.

How I resist the junk food call? I keep Myfitnesspal handy on my Ipad. When I have a craving for a couple of chips I first look at my daily quota and if one serving is 15 chips, but 8 keeps me in the Green zone, I eat max 8 (slooowlyyy!) just to loose the craving. It works for me ! Try it ! It make you realize how much we overeat! Do not worry if you fell like you are fasting (because you are eating less); your body will adjust in a week or two, after that, the wish to look for food will disappear.

Hey, this is a good point. I will try this one.

bregalad5

My roommate buys junk for himself and his girlfriend. I've started asking him to put it in a place where I can't see it as easily, or smell it. I walked into the apartment today to the smell of pizza, and asked him to take it away so I wouldn't devour it, so he put it in the fridge. After a few complaints, you can train them :P

SonicDeathMonkey80

He is the head of the house, he says buy it, I buy it.

there's your problem

This. Are you married to a caveman?

And this is offensive. I am a good Christian woman, married to a good Christian man. We follow the guidelines set out in God's word. This has nothing to do with losing weight, or having willpower to not eat junk. You should more carefully choose your words before typing.

Put one of these verses on the fridge, the other on the pantry:

Psalm 78:18 - They tested God in their heart by demanding the food they craved.

1 Corinthians 10:31 - So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

ThinUpGirl

Willpower.

I don't expect my family to not have treats within moderation, but when they do I just make sure I keep myself busy. Paint your nails, fold laundry, knit, whatever you like to do.

erreemme

Good! hope it works for you like it does for me ! :glasses:

bregalad5

He is the head of the house, he says buy it, I buy it.

there's your problem

This. Are you married to a caveman?

And this is offensive. I am a good Christian woman, married to a good Christian man. We follow the guidelines set out in God's word. This has nothing to do with losing weight, or having willpower to not eat junk. You should more carefully choose your words before typing.

My parents are as well (and will be married 35 years in September), however my mother still has a say in the relationship and has the gall to say no. None of my strict, conservative Christian friends (and I went to a Wesleyan college where you could be expelled for dancing...) or pastor relatives tell their spouses what to do. Are you possibly Mormon? Those are the only friends I can think of where the male has complete dominance over the female.

Ejourneys

Substitutions helped me, along with what I call "bridge foods." Here's what I mean:

I used to snack on chocolate chips -- 32 chips had 160 calories and a handful easily had 32 chips.
I switched to raisins, which were still plenty sweet, but raisins had less fat and fewer calories by volume than the chocolate. A half cup of raisins had 217 calories. The raisins were my bridge food: still fairly high-cal, but not as high by volume as the chocolate.
Then I switched from raisins to grapes, which by volume have only about one-fourth the calories of raisins.

In the process of making those substitutions, my craving for chocolate completely disappeared. We still keep those chips and other snacks in the house because there's more than just me. I can walk right past the stuff and not be tempted -- but that adjustment took time and the help of bridge foods like raisins.

My sweets these days are fresh fruit, especially grapes and bananas. Fresh produce is high in fiber and water (not to mention nutrients), so is very filling.

My other suggestion is: Turn your language around.
Instead of saying "I have no willpower" or "I can't control myself," say, "I'm going to beat this thing."
It doesn't matter if it doesn't sound like the truth. It IS the truth. You can and you WILL do this. You DO have that power.
Having faith in yourself when you've become accustomed to negative self-talk takes as much practice as saying no to junk food. Negative self-talk is junk talk. Trust me, you can overcome both.

SusanMPreston43

He is the head of the house, he says buy it, I buy it.

there's your problem

This. Are you married to a caveman?

And this is offensive. I am a good Christian woman, married to a good Christian man. We follow the guidelines set out in God's word. This has nothing to do with losing weight, or having willpower to not eat junk. You should more carefully choose your words before typing.

Put one of these verses on the fridge, the other on the pantry:

Psalm 78:18 - They tested God in their heart by demanding the food they craved.

1 Corinthians 10:31 - So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

Thank you.....

Olivia

Dear Posters,

I have moved this topic to Motivation and Support.

Thank you,
Olivia
MyFitnessPal Community Manager

nebslp

I just started doing the math on fat calories/total calories to come up with the percentage of calories that come from fat. Most labels will give the the number of cals but not the percentage. It's been an eye-opener! And an incentive to not eat the high fat foods that my husband brings home (nuts and seeds don't count). You even have to watch what kind of popcorn you buy!

MissyMouse2323

My husband and I try to eat the best we can and hold each other accountable as we both could "stand to lose a few pounds." However, we also live with other people who don't have that conviction. There is often "junk" in the house and although it is hard to resist I've learned to just ignore it with the philosophy, "It's not mine." We do ask that the people with junk keep as much of it in their bedroom as possible for the out of sight out of mind approach but obviously this can't be done with everything.

I have this quote taped to my wall that I look at pretty much every time I leave the den were I am 90% of the time. It says, "The difference between want and need is self control." Then I have in big bold letters. EAT HEALTHY! It helps me stay in my weight lose zone. Hope some of this helps.

laele75

I make and buy healthier snacks for myself, since I am trying to lose weight and my picky eater child needs to gain weight. Since the healthier stuff is MINE ALL MINE, it makes it kind of a rush to have it itself. And I occasionally indulge in cake and pizza, I have just learned to watch calories and fat and portion control. It really has helped.

And the people who said the less you eat, the less you'll crave it. It's completely true. Even three weeks in, I tried to eat a candy bar last week and got sick because it was just too much processed sugar. You're reteaching yourself to eat, so have some patience with yourself.

Also, when you get the junk food urge, leave the room. Go do something else instead. Watch a movie or TV show or do something else you enjoy. A nonfood reward for your willpower.