Saying no to the office snackies?

mlcollins89
mlcollins89 Posts: 87 Member
edited November 14 in Health and Weight Loss
Hey all! It's day one back in the office after a week of vacation. Pre-holidays the office was riddled with Christmas baking, 12 days of dip, office parties, drinks ETC ETC ETC!

Now, we're back in the office and the snackies have continued-- ferrero rochers, toffiffee, pot of gold, peanut butter balls, butter tarts, pound cake and rice crispy squares all sit in the communal kitchen just waiting to be eaten.

What are your strategies to not giving in to those strong temptations too often ?
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Replies

  • Spliner1969
    Spliner1969 Posts: 3,233 Member
    One of two things works for me.. 1) walk past it and chew some gum instead.. or 2) eat it and log it. I find that if I do #2 too often I end up at dinner time that evening with a disappointing amount of calories left. So I do try to do #1 if possible. ;)
  • mlcollins89
    mlcollins89 Posts: 87 Member
    Spliner1969 wrote: »
    One of two things works for me.. 1) walk past it and chew some gum instead.. or 2) eat it and log it. I find that if I do #2 too often I end up at dinner time that evening with a disappointing amount of calories left. So I do try to do #1 if possible. ;)

    Smart strategy ! I find the same when doing #1. Those damn peanut butter balls are taunting me -- but I so badly can't wait to eat my tasty dinner tonight
  • Spliner1969
    Spliner1969 Posts: 3,233 Member
    mlcollins89 wrote: »
    Smart strategy ! I find the same when doing #1. Those damn peanut butter balls are taunting me -- but I so badly can't wait to eat my tasty dinner tonight

    I have a plethora of different flavors of sugar free gum in my desk drawer at all times for this reason. I work with a ton of really good cooks/bakers/candy makers. Every month they also do birthday feasts for everyone who has a birthday that month, it's a constant barrage of food that I can't accurately log. I love it but hate it.
  • mlcollins89
    mlcollins89 Posts: 87 Member
    Spliner1969 wrote: »
    mlcollins89 wrote: »
    Smart strategy ! I find the same when doing #1. Those damn peanut butter balls are taunting me -- but I so badly can't wait to eat my tasty dinner tonight

    I have a plethora of different flavors of sugar free gum in my desk drawer at all times for this reason. I work with a ton of really good cooks/bakers/candy makers. Every month they also do birthday feasts for everyone who has a birthday that month, it's a constant barrage of food that I can't accurately log. I love it but hate it.
    It sounds like we work in very similar environments. My first week in the job we had 3 cakes !
  • alg42
    alg42 Posts: 45 Member
    I'll usually say that I can have a treat on a Friday for example provided I've done my 5 workouts for the week but will limits myself to ONE thing. And then log it.

    However, if it's a sugary feast of naughtiness, I'll just avoid it and go out for a walk whilst everyone gets stuck in because I'll struggle otherwise.
  • riffraff2112
    riffraff2112 Posts: 1,756 Member
    office snacks are killer! People are always bringing in sweets, donuts, breads, etc...so tough to walk away from unless I literally walk away.
    I really just need to be in a different room or the temptation overtakes me. I have always had a weakness for free food! It is so easy to overindulge.

  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    edited January 2017
    I drink a lot of hot tea at work. Flavored teas help me feel like I'm having a sweet snack, without the calories. Or, if you really really want a snack, then budget your calories for it ahead of time. Plan your day's meals with the assumption that you'll use 200 calories or whatever on snacks, and adjust other meals accordingly. When my office has pastries that I really like, I'll often cut one in half, and someone else is always happy to take the rest. I think it's about portion control and moderation rather than always denying yourself things you like.
  • MrsRDBean
    MrsRDBean Posts: 10 Member
    chocolate_owl wrote: »
    1) I pre-log it. Usually seeing the calories in my diary makes me decide it's not worth it.
    2) I tell myself if I still want it, I can have it in an hour. By then I either don't want it or it's gone.

    Those are awesome ideas! I am going to try both.
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    90% of the time in my office, it's store-bought stuff so I tell myself that I can always have that thing on a different day if I want it. If I can't fit it in today, it's no big deal because the store is always there. I'll work harder to fit in something if it's homemade or a rare treat, but if it's regular stuff I can buy at the grocery store, it's easy to walk away from.
  • RandiNoelle
    RandiNoelle Posts: 374 Member
    Choosing one thing... then eat only one small serving of the thing!

    It's the only resolution that has worked for me. If I don't eat it, I think about it all night then overindulge on it the next day when those darned sweets are still in the kitchen.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    1) A lot of that kind of stuff just doesn't do it for me...for the most part, it's commercial baked goods and that just doesn't do it for me; 2) I bring my own snacks; 3) I have goals; 4) If it's something I really feel like having, I'll have it...just not all of it.
  • maria0104
    maria0104 Posts: 64 Member
    Pre - Christmas I took a tin of popular assorted chocolates into work and when I opened them there were only three of us in the office, me my boss and her secretary. I offered her one and she promptly sneezed all over them and it didn't phase her at all.

    Safe to say I'll never touch office snacks again!

    (In the interests of my colleagues safety, I did just leave them with her and say you should probably personally keep these now - she couldn't understand why but I insisted. Some people just have different hygiene.)
  • chescaandsam
    chescaandsam Posts: 9 Member
    I have a really sweet tooth so it's always hard to say no to chocolates, sweets, and biscuits (it doest help that the kitchen is in my office) I have started bringing extra fruit to work with me. Then if I am really hungry I will eat my fruit. If I give in, I just make sure a log it and move in. I have found it helpful to log the snack before I eat. Once I look at the calories in a snack i will often change my mind.
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    Oh man, I wouldn't eat any of those. I saw Sandy sneezing on them earlier. :lol:

    Seriously though, I find these things less tempting if my own eating is in check. If I have a decent lunch that both tastes great and fills me, along with a midday snack, then the office treats don't bother me. Although I will occasionally grab something, a single chocolate, or a cookie (half if it's a large one), or a half donut.
  • desean24
    desean24 Posts: 6 Member
    mlcollins89 wrote: »
    Hey all! It's day one back in the office after a week of vacation. Pre-holidays the office was riddled with Christmas baking, 12 days of dip, office parties, drinks ETC ETC ETC!

    Now, we're back in the office and the snackies have continued-- ferrero rochers, toffiffee, pot of gold, peanut butter balls, butter tarts, pound cake and rice crispy squares all sit in the communal kitchen just waiting to be eaten.

    What are your strategies to not giving in to those strong temptations too often ?
    mlcollins89 wrote: »
    Hey all! It's day one back in the office after a week of vacation. Pre-holidays the office was riddled with Christmas baking, 12 days of dip, office parties, drinks ETC ETC ETC!

    Now, we're back in the office and the snackies have continued-- ferrero rochers, toffiffee, pot of gold, peanut butter balls, butter tarts, pound cake and rice crispy squares all sit in the communal kitchen just waiting to be eaten.

    What are your strategies to not giving in to those strong temptations too often ?

  • desean24
    desean24 Posts: 6 Member
    No your limits, do not make rash decisions when you are on the go. Imagine eating the baked good, say it was yummy and move on. The worst you could do is walk past and not accepting the want you have for it. In the end you may crave it even more!
  • OhMsDiva
    OhMsDiva Posts: 1,073 Member
    Chef_Barbell wrote: »
    I usually don't eat things random co-workers have cooked as I don't know the cleanliness of their kitchens, but based on how they kept their work area, I made the right decision.

    That part.
  • OhMsDiva
    OhMsDiva Posts: 1,073 Member
    chescaandsam wrote: »
    I have a really sweet tooth so it's always hard to say no to chocolates, sweets, and biscuits (it doest help that the kitchen is in my office) I have started bringing extra fruit to work with me. Then if I am really hungry I will eat my fruit. If I give in, I just make sure a log it and move in. I have found it helpful to log the snack before I eat. Once I look at the calories in a snack i will often change my mind.

    I agree with that. Snacks at work don't really tempt me because I have my food for the day with me. I know I do not want to blow a lot of calories on something that I had not planned on eating. So I just tell myself I do not want it and I keep it pushing.
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  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,689 Member
    mlcollins89 wrote: »
    Hey all! It's day one back in the office after a week of vacation. Pre-holidays the office was riddled with Christmas baking, 12 days of dip, office parties, drinks ETC ETC ETC!

    Now, we're back in the office and the snackies have continued-- ferrero rochers, toffiffee, pot of gold, peanut butter balls, butter tarts, pound cake and rice crispy squares all sit in the communal kitchen just waiting to be eaten.

    What are your strategies to not giving in to those strong temptations too often ?

    Do you really want to be eating old, stale rice crispy squares and things that people are trying to get rid of?

    In addition to questioning the freshness and goodness of what's on offer there, I also tell myself that what's in the kitchen isn't mine. In my office, they often use the kitchen closest to me when they're getting things ready for a lunch meeting. I wouldn't go in and start helping myself to that ... it isn't mine. Same with random snacks ... they're not mine.

    And I bring my own snacks. :)

  • indiacaitlin
    indiacaitlin Posts: 691 Member
    If they're in the kitchen area at my work I just don't go in there. Or I'll make sure I have some healthy snacks on hand as well if I'm really desperate to eat. Once you start saying no it does get easier and I hardly even notice them anymore.
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