Junk food EVERYWHERE.

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ambivalence11
ambivalence11 Posts: 93 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am super good at avoiding temptaions like fast food and those donuts at the office. However in my own home, I struggle. For the past 2 months I have been living with my parents (not what I wanted to do, believe me). My mother constantly has 4 different bags of chips, 3 packages of cookies, candy and all sorts of not good for you stuff all over the place, literally. Sitting in plain sight because the cupboards are overflowing with other junk. I have TRIED and FAILED to get her to make healthier eating choices and my dad and her aren't going to change. They are going to keep getting fatter each year and I give up on trying to change anyone.

My issue is that I am really stuggling to make healthy choices in this environment. I find myself eating a cookie here, a candy there, and before I knew it, I had gained 10lbs back in the last 2 months. Plus my mom insisits on preparing huge unhealthy meals and offering food to me, even after I have had my own separate dinner.

Aside from moving out (and believe me, I am trying, but it will be a few months at least) does anyone have any ideas on how to save me from all this temptation? No wonder I was 200+lbs when I lived with them and lost weight when I moved out!!!

Replies

  • JesterMFP
    JesterMFP Posts: 3,596 Member
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    I understand your predicament! Are you logging everything consistently? I see you have logged the last few days, even when you've gone over, which is good. Then, back a few days and you have a blank diary. It sounds simplistic, but the main thing that has helped me with this stuff is logging. Pre-logging and planning what I'm going to eat helps too. Seeing it in black and white (and red & green) before I've eaten it helps me make better choices. A cookie here and there works ok for me, logging them helps me keep it just "a" cookie.

    Have you sat down with your mother and talked about this? I don't mean about their health and eating habits, but you could explain to her how important this is to you and ask her not to offer you meals when you've already had your meal. You could also try to arrange for the tempting foods to be kept out of sight, preferably in a cupboard you don't have to go in all the time.

    Ultimately, you're just going to have to make the decision that you're not going to sabotage yourself just because that food is there. You know what you want to achieve with your weight and your health, so don't let yourself be swayed. As hard as it is, you are able to resist things at work, so somehow you'll have to summon up that willpower when you're at home too. If you can get your parents on board too, to not completely work against you, that will help (even if you can't persuade them to change themselves).

    Good luck with moving out. :flowerforyou:
  • pjpistek
    pjpistek Posts: 9 Member
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    You have to keep motivating yourself because they are clearly NOT supporting your positive choices. Put photos of healthy bodies on those chip bags or cookie containers. Temptation is the worst to face when you are stressed. Just keep repeating to yourself "this will set me back way more than the few moments of it tasting so good! I know it sounds crazy but when you really feel tempted go look at yourself in the mirror and say " a moment on the lips, forever on the hips!" LOL good luck, it takes time, motivation and dedication. You've done it before and you can continue to do it. You go girl.
  • EmilyEmpowered
    EmilyEmpowered Posts: 650 Member
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    I know for myself, preplanning what I am going to eat and putting it all in my food diary early in the day really helps stop me from eating all that junk thats sitting around (for me, it isnt at home but at my office because I work 10 hour shifts, and people are CONSTANTLY bringing in donuts, bagels, etc etc...) That way, I know by 2 or 3 how many calories I have left to work with after all of my planned food. Some days I dont use those extra calories, but if someone brings in something reallllyyyy tempting, I know if I can fit it in. If not, I just tell myself "another day it will fit in my plan."

    I have only been on MFP about two weeks, but I have kept a food journal on paper for over two years, and any day that I did not write out my food in advance, I always seemed to go waaayyy under or waaayyy over my goals for the day

    Otherwise, I would also suggest having a heart to heart with your mother... But I know that can be hard and in my own experience it never really changed anything. When Iwas growing up, we were raised on processed junk and every kind of soda, except diet lol. I was never told to drink water or eat vegetables. Now, my mother watches my children while I am at work, and I have to pack the healthier stuff for them because I know that she will load them up with crap the way she did my sister and I. Numerous talks with her have not changed this, but she agreed that if I sent them with veggies and fruits and good stuff, she would give them that instead of Little Debbies and potato chips.

    So, maybe there is some kind of compromise you can come to, like her keeping the foods that tempt you the most in a particular location, which you can avoid and just never open that cupboard.

    EDIT: I didnt realize JesterMFP pretty much said exactly what I was saying :smile:

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