Silly (but effective!) Rules

I'd be interested to hear if anyone has "rules" for their health that are simple but maybe nonstandard. Two of mine:

1. No eating in the car. Candy at the grocery store, fries on the way home, etc etc etc. Just say no. This (for me!) is always mindless and unfulfilling.

2. No entrees at Mexican restaurants. I like chips & salsa too much. I never need the full entree, a la carte ordering is always enough.

Anyone??!!
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Replies

  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    No eating in front of the TV. Although the car rule is a good one too.
  • snickerscharlie
    snickerscharlie Posts: 8,578 Member
    No snacks in the bedroom. This is where I curl up and watch TV before going to sleep, and it's too darned easy to fall into what I call "mindless munching."
  • fitmom4lifemfp
    fitmom4lifemfp Posts: 1,575 Member
    1 Rule to rule them all. Don't eat more than I burn

    True, obviously. But it's certainly good to have guidelines in place that make THAT rule easier to abide by.
  • JaydedMiss
    JaydedMiss Posts: 4,286 Member
    1. Im hungry, Ill eat in 1-2 hours. Helps my mind realize i do get to eat so it relaxes, But also helps me spread my calories out and ensure im actually hungry

    2. Sit down and enjoy everything i eat, No eating the candy bar i bought as i walk home. Ritualize eating a bit so i enjoy the flavors and every little bite.

    3. Keep my diet very basic. Mainly eat potatoes/tuna/onions garlic and mushroom mix. Low calorie meals as i prefer to snack, If i want something else ill eat it but i have to want it enough to walk my butt out to buy it from a fast food place or small portion from the grocery store. Often to lazy/cheap :p

    4. Dont complicate things, An example could be water. If my pees getting to dark, Drink. Simple. No need for arbitrary over complicating rules.
  • caroldavison332
    caroldavison332 Posts: 864 Member
    1. Drink only water, unsweetened coffee and green tea. 2. Eat a vegetable at every meal. 3. Minimize sugarS and fake sugarS. 4. Minimize carbs.
  • cmtigger
    cmtigger Posts: 1,450 Member
    1 Rule to rule them all. Don't eat more than I burn

    True, obviously. But it's certainly good to have guidelines in place that make THAT rule easier to abide by.

    I think it depends on the person. Not all of us use rules to get by. Some do, some don't.

    If I didn't eat in my car I'd be hangry. My job is an hour from home and at multiple sites. That doesn't work. I live alone, so what does "eating in secret" do for me?

    If they work for you, fine, but don't expect that everyone has extra rules.
  • fitmom4lifemfp
    fitmom4lifemfp Posts: 1,575 Member
    I'd be interested to hear if anyone has "rules" for their health that are simple but maybe nonstandard. Two of mine:

    1. No eating in the car. Candy at the grocery store, fries on the way home, etc etc etc. Just say no. This (for me!) is always mindless and unfulfilling.

    2. No entrees at Mexican restaurants. I like chips & salsa too much. I never need the full entree, a la carte ordering is always enough.

    Anyone??!!

    I also avoid Mexican. There just is so little there that I want, that is healthy. You can certainly eat healthy at Chipotle, but my the burrito that my BF loves is 925 calories. We split it - 2/3 for him, 1/3 for me. But then there are the damn chips. I can't even say no to them - I freaking LOVE them with the hot red salsa. But 600 calories. And I can eat the whole bag with salsa, easily. So I stay out.

    I don't eat much in the car, but when I do it's usually a protein bar before the gym or something like that. Try to stay away from the fast food places - only when there is no other option and I am starving.

    Exercise every day. Ideally I'd love to be in the gym 5 nights a week.

    I bring my lunch to work - I never eat out for lunch. I try to get in a workout at lunch instead.
  • steph_runn44
    steph_runn44 Posts: 28 Member
    I'd be interested to hear if anyone has "rules" for their health that are simple but maybe nonstandard. Two of mine:

    1. No eating in the car. Candy at the grocery store, fries on the way home, etc etc etc. Just say no. This (for me!) is always mindless and unfulfilling.

    2. No entrees at Mexican restaurants. I like chips & salsa too much. I never need the full entree, a la carte ordering is always enough.

    Anyone??!!

    I agree with the mexican one! I go out for Mexican wayyyy too often and between the chips and salsa and the margaritas it's always better for me to just order something a la carte.

    Staying with the out to eat ones, my rule is before I go out to eat I look up the menu and choose something. It is so much harder when you are there to get something different (higher calories) when you are hungry than to pre-plan it before you even go into the restaurant. This way I don't need to look at the menu when I get there and I'm not swayed by what looks good or what others at my table are getting.
  • usmcmp
    usmcmp Posts: 21,219 Member
    psuLemon wrote: »
    Not necessarily a rule, but this is what I tell myself. "You can lie to yourself about how many calories that you consume, but you can't lie to your body."

    I do this as well.

    Also, if you can't accurately count it you can't eat it. That only applies to competition prep though. The rest of the time guesstimating is fine.

  • Staying with the out to eat ones, my rule is before I go out to eat I look up the menu and choose something. It is so much harder when you are there to get something different (higher calories) when you are hungry than to pre-plan it before you even go into the restaurant.

    Yes!!! Such a great rule. Just look! You can't unsee that info. Haha, awesome one

  • lessismoreohio
    lessismoreohio Posts: 910 Member
    Avoid fast food.
  • lessismoreohio
    lessismoreohio Posts: 910 Member
    Avoid fast food.

    Especially french fries...................my weakness is french fries.
  • JaydedMiss wrote: »

    2. Sit down and enjoy everything i eat, No eating the candy bar i bought as i walk home. Ritualize eating a bit so i enjoy the flavors and every little bite.

    4. Dont complicate things, An example could be water. If my pees getting to dark, Drink. Simple. No need for arbitrary over complicating rules.

    Love both of these. Sit down to eat. I know that makes a difference. And I love just telling myself to look at my pee. Haha, so simple.
  • SweetP27 wrote: »
    No eating in secret.

    Agree. I didn't connect it before but car-eating is usually secret-eating, for me. Great rule.
  • garber6th
    garber6th Posts: 1,894 Member
    I'd be interested to hear if anyone has "rules" for their health that are simple but maybe nonstandard. Two of mine:

    1. No eating in the car. Candy at the grocery store, fries on the way home, etc etc etc. Just say no. This (for me!) is always mindless and unfulfilling.

    2. No entrees at Mexican restaurants. I like chips & salsa too much. I never need the full entree, a la carte ordering is always enough.

    Anyone??!!

    I don't have rules about where I eat. Calories are the same whether they are eaten in the car, sitting on the couch, standing in front of the fridge, or sitting at the table. Same with food - calories are calories whether they are in the form of chips and salsa or a taco or whatever. The only rule that I go by is log what I eat and aim for eating less than I burn so that I can lose weight.
  • snickerscharlie
    snickerscharlie Posts: 8,578 Member
    I avoid watching cooking shows on TV, because no matter what you've eaten or what you have on hand, it's never going to be as yummy as whatever's being cooked.

    And that just makes me sad *and* hungry. ;)
  • sarraheclark
    sarraheclark Posts: 125 Member
    edited March 2017
    Pizza is only an option on days I have a spin class.
  • sarraheclark
    sarraheclark Posts: 125 Member
    Whole fruit or veg with every meal (this isn't always as easy as it seems).
  • CattOfTheGarage
    CattOfTheGarage Posts: 2,745 Member
    My only rule is "log everything".

    Some good advice I aim to follow: I do try to avoid secret eating, and I try to always enjoy what I'm eating and pay proper attention to it. I love food, so it genuinely makes me sad if I stuff something down mindlessly and then have to log all those calories. Such a waste!
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    calorie deficit for weight loss
    micros/macros/structured lifting for body comp goals
    no foods are off limits or bad
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    Pizza is only an option on days I have a spin class.

    why?