Remove treats from home or just try to improve my willpower?

I'm a bit of a weirdo in that I feel I need a small amount of this stuff around the house so that I know it's there if I want it, but most of the time I can ignore it or work a small amount into my day. If the treat tin is empty I find myself thinking more about it and am more likely to pop out to the shops to buy chocolate! One of the factors for me gaining weight was more of a "little picker" habit than a binge habit though so I don't know if that mindset would work for everyone.

My partner is more like you however, so I have occasionally been known to hide treats from him as if I don't, they have more than likely disappeared by the time I want one!

Sorry I know that probably doesn't help you much with strategies etc, apart from admitting that full and honest logging is very much helping me cure the picking habit.

I did try avoiding them all together but it never helped when I went grocery shopping so I've resorted to moderation. I used to have a secret stash of sweets in my room but I've now moved them downstairs to the kitchen. I keep healthier snacks in my room now like nuts, dried fruit and beef jerky. Usually when I'd get peckish I'd immediately go to my sugary treats but now, I pick the nuts over a trip downstairs to the kitchen. Maybe it's because I just can't be bothered going downstairs or that I'm too embarrassed to pig out in front of my family? But it's really working! Lol I have never had a box of chocolates last this long it's crazy and it's doing wonders to my wallet and waistline!

Will is like muscle that you can develop, but it can also get overworked. So, you could work on developing it at the grocery store by not buying the sweets mostly. When you get to where you just don't buy that stuff, then you can try to develop it in another way. Having stuff like that around the house is mostly too tempting for me, but I can have a nice bar of chocolate that I nibble at for a week. That way I have "a little something" that is genuinely little.

Rosie_TG wrote: »

I hold my hands up and admit that I have terrible willpower when it comes to sugary treats. To battle this weakness lately I have been consuming my rather large stock of frozen cheesecake, ice cream, cakes, and the cupboard full of candies, cookies, chocolate bars, pastries, and the rest. The shelves are almost empty now so I'm hoping that the "out of sight, out of mind" approach is going to work.
Do others try the same tactic and has it helped?

I only buy the 100 calorie packs of snacks and I buy things like Skinny Cow if I want ice cream or I'll get popsicles or something that have barely any calories. That way I don't miss out on treats, but I don't sit down and eat an entire sleeve of Oreos like I used to love to do.

Rosie_TG wrote: »

Thanks for the honest replies. I do find that logging is the key for me and it is the homemade treats that cause me to lose discipline the most. Perhaps if I just have a few individually wrapped items with clear calorie data in the cupboard this might be more likely to succeed? I know I could spend the time to calculate the calories in my cakes and pastries but the reality is that I'm just not likely to do it.

Re the part I've bolded - I find this works quite well well for me. I find it's easier to stop at one wrapped biscuit like a Kitkat etc than to stop at one biscuit from an open packet, something about the physical act of unwrapping it must be a psychological brake.

Or, if you like to bake, why not use the recipe builder to calculate the entire cake, allow yourself a manageable portion and freeze the rest or take it into work to share?

Ultimately my goal is moderation and self control... BUT I found I had no self control with sweets in the home. I'd say "no" a thousand times in a day, but in a brief moment of weakness, I'd say "yes" It was EXHAUSTING. I decided to exercise my self control in a different way by not bringing it into the home in the first place. It's a lot easier to make those food decisions when you're feeling strong.

Slowly over time, as I have gained better control over my eating, I have been able reintroduce foods into my home and onto my plate. It's a PROCESS. Two steps forward, one step back. If I find that I'm spiraling out of control with a certain food, I'll eliminate it for a period of time and then try slowly introducing it again.

Don't let people try to convince you that you HAVE to keep these foods in your home because "you're going to come across them in your life and you have to deal with them" Why set yourself up for failure time and time again. If you know you have a problem with certain foods then keep them out of the house until you are in a mental place where you can learn to exercise moderation.

Best of luck to you!

When I first started, I emptied my house of all 'temptations' and stuck to what I think of as 'healthy foods'. I had terrible willpower, and this really helped me.

Once I got through the first month or so, and starting seeing the weight drop off, this was enough motivation for me, and I re-introduced junk food into the house again. I've finally learnt to eat in moderations, now there's all sorts of crap here and it's just how I want it to be

You need to learn to indulge in moderation. If you always try to avoid things you like, one day you'll come across them and eat all you can, and then feel really bad about it. If you give in to your temptations on a daily basis, but only in small amounts, you'll live happy alongside your treats!
No need to eat the whole cake in one sitting, if you can have one piece of it each day. You won't eat a whole box of cookies if you allow yourself one cookie after lunch or dinner. Have a chocolate bar once a week, and you won't have to battle against it.
Live with it, instead of fighting against it.