How can I stop eating so much??

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I am a stay at home mom of 3 kids. When they're up and running around, I seem to do great with my eating. I have a nice, healthy breakfast, good snack. Then after lunch, I'm STARVING, and they're sleeping. So I have some popcorn. Then I have some chips. Then I have a brownie. THEN I feel like crap. I am always SO hungry in the middle of the day, and I have no idea why. It is SO frustrating! I want to have more self control, but I don't think I know how. Growing up, we just never had bad food in our house, so when I moved out on my own, I bought whatever I wanted, and ate it. All. Within a few days! I just don't know how to curb my cravings. Please help me!

Replies

  • islandnutshel
    islandnutshel Posts: 1,143 Member
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    Sounds like cravings not hunger. Switch the salt / fat / sugar cravings for healthy ones. Have ready cucumber sliced, carrot sticks, celery, cherrie tomatoes, zuchinni slices, peppers cut up, radishes and snack on them when ever you open the fridge.
    Then when you feel full go brush teeth, floss, and rinse with mouth wash.
    You will be so healthy your doctor and dentist will notice.
    Hot herbal tea is also a great comfort if that is what you are looking for.
  • weelissa
    weelissa Posts: 89 Member
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    I have the exact same problem as you. Come about 2:30/3pm all I want to do is munch munch munch!

    I've started going to the gym when I get like that and I find it really helps. What about using the time you have free to do a workout DVD? The 30 day shred is excellent and the intensity of the workout will curb your cravings and increase your endorphins.

    I'm going to watch this post to see if anyone else has any good ideas!
  • Van3ssa_2468
    Van3ssa_2468 Posts: 76 Member
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    1. Throw out all your junk food
    2. Make a list for the grocery store with healthy foods on it.
    3. Have a meal (healthy, but filling) before you go to the store so you won't be tempted to buy the junk food.
    4. When your kids are napping find an activity other than eating to fill your time.
    5. Have a healthy snack while they are sleeping or plan a healthy one to eat with them when they wake up.

    It will take a little planning and will power, but you can do this.
  • tennies
    tennies Posts: 16
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    hello, what i do instead of eating all that fattening snacks is i just eat me a handful of lettuce. eat a apple or an orange, but no cookies or chips, and just see if that helps
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
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    Plan out your day's food ahead of time - I fill mine out every evening for the next day's breakfast and lunch (and sometimes dinner). Plan healthy afternoon snacks, since you know you'll be hungry. Good snacks might be things like baby carrots (or other cut-up veggies, which can be done ahead of time to make it convenient), applesauce, fresh fruit, whole grain crackers with a controlled portion of hummus, popcorn without added butter/salt, controlled portions of yogurt, cottage cheese and other such low-fat dairy products.

    Don't try to deny yourself a snack - it'll just make it worse, but if you PLAN and go in knowing what your snack with be, you're much more likely to be successful! Really, healthy morning and afternoon snacks are a good idea to stabilize blood sugar levels and keep your metabolism going all day.

    Oh! also, make sure you're drinking plenty of water throughout the day -this will cut back on hunger and make sure your brain isn't saying its hungry when it's really thirsty.
  • johnphays
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    5 small meals throughout the day, making sure your breakfast is the best of all 5, since that's what is going to ignite your metabolism, with the other meals eaten ever 2.5-3 hours to keep that metabolism burning throughout the day. I use Shakeology to kick off my day, and it takes care of all my veggies and multivitamin, curbs any hunger pangs, because I can even have it again later in the day since it's so healthy, and gets results. Hollar at me if you have any more specific questions! jimmyolsen@yahoo.com
  • kdshelton04
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    I also have the mid-afternoon cravings! What has really helped me though is to make sure I'm kicking off my day with a high protein bfast and mid-morning snack. Hard boiled eggs (if you only eat the egg white it's only 17 cals and still 4g of protein!), cottage cheese, and yogurt have been good for me so far.
  • MsElphaba
    MsElphaba Posts: 432 Member
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    1. Throw out all your junk food
    2. Make a list for the grocery store with healthy foods on it.
    3. Have a meal (healthy, but filling) before you go to the store so you won't be tempted to buy the junk food.
    4. When your kids are napping find an activity other than eating to fill your time.
    5. Have a healthy snack while they are sleeping or plan a healthy one to eat with them when they wake up.

    It will take a little planning and will power, but you can do this.

    You can't eat it if you don't buy it! Also, make sure that the "good breakfast" and snack you are eating are really good for you, portioned right. Drink lots of water.. and find a hobby, especially one that will keep your fingers busy like scrap booking or jewelry making... or type a book!
  • rubysparkle
    rubysparkle Posts: 362 Member
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    I had this same problem, although i am working each day in an office which i find easier than being at home with temptation. I now take a home made healthy sandwich and i also take some home made soup which is really low calories and fills me up. I have my sandwich early on and then about an hour later when i know im going to be craving something I have my soup and i also take some fruit to munch on.

    This change in my food choices really has made a difference. I used to munch on a chocolate bar everyday at 11am just to see me through until lunch but not any more, changing the food choices to healthy ones has made all the difference in keeping me full up.

    I know this is hard to start but stick with it and the change will soon become a habit.
  • lafriend
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    Sounds to me you have created a 3 pm snack time. I have this same problem. It is usually my quietest time of the day. Easy to not snack when you are running around being busy but as soon as you stop all you think you want to do is eat. And now you have trained your body that it wants to eat at 3 (or whatever your time is) I do what one person suggested by brushing my teeth. I find when my mouth is clean I don't want to eat..specially junk food. I also make sure that I drink lots of water around this time. If I feel I am still hungry I will eat some protien. Some grilled chicken helps a lot. I actually make up a bunch of skewers (small ones) on Sunday night and freeze them. I have one around 3 and it helps me get through until dinner. Good luck!
  • jamie1888
    jamie1888 Posts: 1,704 Member
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    Eating whole grains, fiber and lean protein help you stay full longer. Healthy fats too! Almonds! If you get to a point where you are just ravenous for food, you've probably gone too long between meals/snacks or didn't eat a good, filling meal earlier.

    When I started counting calories, I became aware of how much snacking I did when feeding my son. I picked at food while I prepared it, while I fed it to him and finished off what he left!

    What works for me is planning my day ahead of time. One of my favorite snacks is Light Activia Vanilla Yogurt with 1tbl of almond butter stirred in. It's so sweet and yummy and I look forward to it every day! So, maybe if you find one or some of your special, yummy snacks that you love and look forward to, you can slot that one for when you put them to sleep. You look forward to it, you love it, you feel satisfied!
  • dbmom
    dbmom Posts: 16
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    Hi, try eating even just a bite of protein with whatever you eat......
  • DiscoBeth
    DiscoBeth Posts: 4 Member
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    I had this problem for a LONG time. I would recommend eating every 3 hours. i'm not a mom and it can get tough even for me so it may not be easy but really try to make the time to eat every 3 hours. I eat high fiber foods and really try to eat two carbs and a protein for each mini-meal. For example breakfast could be an egg whites, a light english muffin, and a cup of grapes. Snack cereal bar and string cheese.

    Good luck!
  • countrymama08
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    I find that I am not hungry. I am eating because the activity has stopped. The kids go to sleep and...all is quiet. Nice, yes but...

    I get on the computer. Read the boards. Get a hobby. Play a video game. Plan meals for the next week. DO something to help take the restless away.

    I have really found that when I think I want something, I am restless or upset.

    The book The Beck Diet has been a help for me when I am looking at behavior and the why behind my eating behavior.
  • Falcon
    Falcon Posts: 853 Member
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    I find drinking six to eight glasses of water a day helps curbs appetite big time. As soon as I stop drinking water then I run into trouble and just want to eat everything in sight. Dehydration can be mistaken for hunger.

    My dad keeps a stash of 100 calorie bags of cookies and other junk food bags that are 100 cal packets. If you slowly eat one bag then I find that really curbs the sweet tooth. He calls it his desparate stash. My dad constantly lost weight this way. He's doing really good at keeping it from coming back. Well most of it anyways, he's down sixty pounds and looks skinny. He still has another forty pounds to lose. Staying with me for two weeks had its advantages. He got on my trusty scale and didn't realize what his real weight was. The other scale he had was lying to him. my scale told him he was almost twenty-five pounds heavier.

    Both of my parents jumped on the healthy wagon and my step mom had veggies in the fridge for the first time and I was floored lol.

    Brushing your teeth helps too, it gets the taste out of the mouth. I find eating two small salads at dinner helps as well with the right amount size of meat. Keep the veggies around, they help big time.
  • jbootman
    jbootman Posts: 145 Member
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    as an older(62) year old mother of 7 grown children, my advice is take a nap WITH your children whenever you can, I have networked with mothers for decades, La Leche, home birthing, home schooling etc, and have found that with few exceptions mothers are ALL sleep deprived, with housework never ending, we frequently turn to food especially in the afternoons to get the energy to finish the day, yes it is important to get high protein and high nutritious foods, often they are also the kind of foods needing more prep, convenient foods too often are empty calories, I love the purge the kitchen of junk foods idea, but habits are hard to change, give yourself a kiss for being such a wonderful woman and give yourself permission to 'treat' yourself with whole real fruits and veg, with simple meals until the rhythm of a healthier lifestyle DOES NOT ADD to an exhaustion filled day,

    mothers unite: rest, drink more water and feed yourself properly, you know what to do