Advice On Saying No?

I find it hard to say no. I usually find imagining how I would look if I had my diet consiting of just bad foods generally helps. For me with being tempted to buy food. I take out all my cards and most of my cash in my wallet and I sometimes leave my wallet at home. If I can't afford it I can't have it.
Or replace the food. If someone offers you a cookie, go find an apple!

For me I think about the consequences of over eating (the ones I haven't experienced YET):

1. Diabetes
2. Fatty Liver Disease
3. Leaving my daughter without a mother
4. Not being able to ride an airplane, or an amusement ride
5. Knee replacement surgery
6. Death

I think of these and remember this IS in my control and ONLY mine. I owe it to myself, my family and the world to do the next right thing.

Good Luck

sometimes its hard for me, but usually i think of WHY i was fat to begin with..things like that..tonight i was at the store and got some paper towels, and grabbed some candy bars for the rest of my family while i was waiting in line, and i was ok with it..it is hard, but can be done..just as we were used to eating at will, we can train ourselves to do the opposite as well..but dammit..i want a candy bar now :laugh:

For me, it all boils down to motivation. Stress and fatigue can make it harder, but in the end, it's always a choice between wanting to do better every day or not.

I also find it really helpful to carefully plan out meals every day so I know what I'm having and not to deprive myself of treats. I just keep them within my calorie budget.

I think of how much it is going to cost. By eating those cookies at work I am going to feel sluggish and miss my personal training session. Skipping my personal training session I get more fast food and junk food on my way home . I eat the food at home and get mad at myself. The next morning I still feel bloated so I have to shell out for some oolong tea. That has cost me almost $75.00 I could have used to get my hair done. In a nutshell keep a snack in your purse. I keep a yummy Luna Bar (the same company that makes Clif Bars) in there, or some nuts.

Sweets at work can be REALLY difficult! (Especially if someone offers you something they home baked! LOL!) What I usually do is just have ONE BITE. Not a huge one, of course, but one that's just enough to taste and just enough to savor! Takes a lot of will-power, but it's worked for me!

Hello,

I understand what you mean. It is REALLY hard to say "no" sometimes and it seems like every time I want to be careful there is some circumstance that makes it difficult. It always seems so ironic to me. Restaurants that always gave me small portions make them larger. People around me have birthdays and bring in cake and cookies. Etc.

Unfortunately, I have had to become the King of "no" because I work in film and in this business we have a little thing called "craft services". Producers, in order to keep the crew happy all day, provide a tempting table of FREE food all day long! And trust me, it's not healthy food! I must pass this table hundreds of time a day and it kills me sometimes. It's one thing when you have to pay for food...it's quite another when it is free.

I just want you to know that you can make it. It's difficult, but WELL worth it!

Christopher

My number one motivator is the results I see so far. I have found that it really does get easier saying no after saying no for long enough. I may be a minority on this site, but I don't believe in *ALWAYS* saying no to everything, provided you are absolutely and completely honest with yourself on the calories you eat. If you want to have a candy from the candy bowl, take one.

I remember spending two days thinking about a box of milk chocolate almonds that I bought from a fundraiser.. For me, cravings usually pass in minutes if not seconds. When they don't I make room to indulge slightly. I opened the box, ate two chocolate almonds (ate them very slowly and savored every bit) and then took the rest to my neighbor's house for her son. And I still lost weight that week.

I often will logic with myself when looking at something I'm considering eating, no matter whether it is meal time or not.

My thought process goes like this:
Do I actually like this food? If I don't like it, I refuse to waste my calories eating something I'm not actually going to enjoy.
Is it meal time? (if yes, first food into stomach must be a fruit or a green/orange/red/purple veggie as a part of a proper carb/protein/fat meal. If no, next question)
Am I thirsty? (go get a glass of water, drink water, next question)
Am I really truly hungry? (The answer is almost always no. I then smile and I simply say no and move on.)
If I am actually hungry, do I have calories available to enjoy this food?
If I have available calories, then I eat an appropriately portioned amount. If no, exercise *FIRST* to earn the calories then eat the food. If exercising first isn't possible, I don't need the snack.

For me, I try to change my perspective on what a "treat" is for my body. Am I really treating myself when I eat something that I know is not positive for my body because it will make it fat? Or am I abusing myself instead.
If I want to reward myself, why oh why would I eat that cupcake. That is not a reward. That is something that will put weight on and cause me anguish about that weight. Some reward!!
What would a better alternative be? ....

I read a very interesting quote once say 'you are not a dog, don't treat yourself with food' and it really got me thinking.
I'm not on a diet, I'm on a lifestyle change! I don't want to eat pizza 5 days a weeks, I love chicken and beef and vegetables.

Back on topic tho, I take it week by week. Everyone needs a goal to aim towards but some weeks I feel I need to push harder than others.
One day in work brownies were on the offer and I said 'Can't I got a goal this week', made no sense to the person but saying it made me resist.
On another day a rice krispy bun was on offer and because I had busted my *kitten* the week before I indulged and recorded it in my diary, when they were offered the next day I refused as I had one yesterday.
It's cause and effect, having it everyday is bad, indulging once a week won't hurt. You need a deficit of 3500 calories a week. If you have a bun at 200 calories, make it up and there isn't as much damage done.

Stay the course and if you say 'I will never...' you most certainly will. If the temptation is that big make up for it

Sometimes I say no and sometimes I say yes. It's a part of life, I know I will never be able to always say no. So today I had a donut. YAY more cardio for me!

It might be a good idea to brainstorm non-food treats. It sounds like a lot of the temptation to say yes is because you "deserve" it after a hard day. Maybe a bubble bath, new nail polish color, yoga class, or buying the latest iTunes song you can't get out of your head instead?

You all are awesome. It is so nice to have people understand, and offer advice without being judgemental. Just to brag on myself a little....

I teach. This week is educator appreciation week. Yesterday there was an apple in my mailbox. Today, I was greeted by........a full size hershey bar. UGH!!!! I thought of you all and kindly gave my chocolate bar to the secretary.

Success!
Thanks again!

I'm a retired teacher and know the system well. There are LOTS of food rewards on a regular basis. Congratulations on your fine strategy. I hope you're able to stay strong. That said, I kept a box of breakfast bars in my desk drawer for hungry students and did a pretty good job of staying out of them. I didn't do as well staying out of the treats in the break room. I'd say I gained an average of 10 pounds for every year I taught. Most summers I took a chunk back off, but the trend was always up. Now my knees hurt and I'm here getting healthier.

I play a mind game with myself. If I take the treat, I count the calories into my day. If I don't take the treat and say no thank you, I give myself a 20 calorie credit to be used on the weekend. I actually earned 800 calories one work week. I've never cashed in on the weekend for more than 240 calories. Now I don't even go for the extra treat on the weekend, I just compete with myself to see how many "no thanks" calories I earn in a week. December should be a very competitive month.

Here's something I did that might help you before you develop the will to say no. Plan out each day's food allotment in advance, log it, and then follow the plan. That way you're not just figuring out what to eat as you go and saying no is easy because you would ruin your entire plan with that cookie or cake. Some people say moderation for sweets but I know it's tough for me to only have 1 cookie or 1 ice cream scoop etc. So when I splurge, I like to plan it so that I am in control. Execute a logical plan like this long enough and it will lead to incredibly strong will power.