I need help!!

You can't cut out buying bad things because it's ok for your family to eat bad things?

First, you will have to dig deep to find your motivation. It seems like with weight loss, if your head isn't in the game you will be doomed to backslide. Remember how much happier you are 20 pounds lighter. Remember how happy you were to go down a pants size. For me, just looking at my pants I wore 20 pounds ago is motivation enough to keep on the right track.

Second. I am a big daytime snacker. If I am sitting at my desk, all I want to do is snack. I try to eat satisfying snacks like almonds, yogurt, hard boiled eggs, or celery and peanut butter. If I am having a "bottomless pit" day where i just can't stop eating, I eat lots of low cal stuff, like cut up vegetables and hummus or dip. If I need something crunchy/salty, I turn to things like Pop Chips where I get a lot of bang for my snacking buck without blowing through calories.

Are you eating to enough? Are eating back your exercise calories, oh and water , water, water!

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/61706-guide-to-calorie-deficit

Go to the tools section and figure out your BMI:

Generally someone with a BMI over 32 can do a 1000 calorie a day (2 lbs a week) deficit
With a BMI of 30 to 32 a deficit of 750 calories is generally correct (about 1.5 lbs a week)
With a BMI of 28 to 30 a deficit of 500 calories is about right (about 1 lb a week)
With a BMI of 26 to 28 a deficit of about 300 calories is perfect (about 1/2 lb a week)
and below 26... well this is where we get fuzzy. See now you're no longer talking about being overweight, so while it's still ok to have a small deficit, you really should shift your focus more towards muscle building, and reducing fat. This means it is EXTRA important to eat your exercise calories as your body needs to KNOW it's ok to burn fat stores, and the only way it will know is if you keep giving it the calories it needs to not enter the famine response (starvation mode).

This is just a part of it! please read the link above

supply the house with lots fresh fruit and veggies, i like to snack myself helps having good things around to chose from... just got to step back from the chocolates, that advice is for me as well. i am a lil worried about halloween myself but we can do it. i feel awesome now i can go out and play with my kids.

goodluck
add me we can support eachother

Youve admitted that you are an emotional eater and turn to the wrong foods to console yourself with... For you to recognize the triggers is only half the battle.

You have to learn how to combat that.

My next comment - PLEASE dont take it the wrong way..... but... is there a reason why your family cant be supportive and reduce the amount of temptation foods in the house? You sound to me as you cant control your urges for the wrong foods so why torture yourself having it around? If you cant control yourself, then they really need to step up THEIR game and not have it there so easily accessible... 'out of sight out of mind'...

I find having plenty of jugs of water really helps me to keep in balance... I drink so much of it, now its like second-nature... Last night after eating my last meal, I put two glasses of ice cold water in front of me. My husband sat next to me and ate a whole bowl of popcorn with melted butter... I wanted none of it. He then got up and made himself an ice-cream sundae... and I wanted none of it... why? I know that eating it will get me nowhere but off my MFP charts... I had preplanned ahead the meals/foods I was going to eat for the day and kept in mind the last three weeks of using MFP/my doctor's guidelines, that I want to keep losing weight.. I LOVE the excitement of seeing a loss of weight...


Instead of dreading the upcoming holidays, learn to focus on the positive - you CAN pre-plan ahead of time what you will do, what you will make, how you will control it, what measures to take when the 'urge' happens.. You can control emotional eating - you have to WANT to control it... you might be having a stressful time in your life where it might not be feasible to be 100%, but with a little refocusing and structure, you can make it happen.

Honestly, I work as a chef for a living.. there is NO TIME to eat anything... I cant taste-test half the foods they make because of food allergies/sensitivities and thats fine by me! I dont need the extra calories! Hell, even the executive chef noticed I was 'melting like budduh' - and THAT is a compliment!! LOL! I can at least share with people the popularity of the dish Im making, even though I cant eat most of what I prepare... (I make a MEAN old school alfredo!!!)

Everything is possible. The problem is 10%, the other 90% is you dealing with that problem. Dont let the 10% be the demise of your efforts to lose weight.... get the family to support your efforts... even if it means them cutting back on THEIR bad eating habits...

Snacking is a habit. You have created an environment that feeds your habit. Change your environment. Get out of the kitchen and keep a diary to find out what you are feeling inside when you want to go for a snack. It's probably NOT that you are hungry. You are feeding something else inside of you. Figure out what that is (lonely, sad, insecure, bored, tired, etc.) and then you can decide how to deal with the emotions and leave the snacking behind.

I also agree, you need to teach your children about healthy eating so they don't grow up with the same problems you have. This is a country of snackers. We don't need to snack all the freaking time. It's ridiculous. According to my kids' teachers, I have to send 3 snacks to school with them every day and I wonder, what the hell are we teaching our kids??? I tell them "hey, how about you eat breakfast, lunch and dinner and if your belly is really telling you you're hungry in between, eat an apple." Crying out loud it makes me insane. We are teaching our kids to use food all day long. It's not necessary and I guarantee you, half of the time they eat simply out of boredom or because some teacher says "Hey everyone, it's snack time!" UGH!!!!! OR, they eat the snack and skip the good food at lunch time (I see kids do this all the time because they aren't that hungry because they ate some crappy snack right before lunch).

Sorry, I'll get off my soap box. But my gawd, we have to lead the way for these kids so they don't grow up with type 2 diabetes and problems with obesity. GET OFF THE CRACK........I mean SNACK

i know what you mean about not having the will power to say no to sweets. when my daughter was little and i was on another one of my "diets" i wouldnt deprive her of sweets but i would buy things that i really didnt like--you know like circus peanuts--then wouldnt eat them (at least not all at once) never developed a taste for them but after a while ate them anyway. i realized that wouldnt work so just quit trying AGAIN. also, on another "diet" once i thought i would just fix her plate and then eat only what she left on the plate--realized she didnt leave much so the next day i would add more to it so she couldnt finish everything. (yes, i know---strange) now i have finally realized that i am the only one that can do this. you have to decide that you want this. when you decide that you can do anything--even with temptation in the house or office--you will achieve your goal. i know because back in march i went 5 weeks without so much as a bite of anything sweet and that was with 5 birthdays (including my own) in the office and my family for april. however---i have not maintained that level of dedication---i am trying to do that now---i have a family reunion at the end of the month. good luck and if you need words of encouragement or a pat on the back or a good swift kick in the rear---friend me and i will be here for you.

You can't cut out buying bad things because it's ok for your family to eat bad things?

The only way not to be tempted is to NOT BUY YUMMY FOOD!! If it's not good for you its not good for your family. I know how you feel, I can't have chips or cookies around for my kids because I will definitely eat them without portion control. So I just don't buy them anymore. If I want to treat them to some sweets I take them out for ice cream or something. It's a one time thing so it won't be staring at me every time I open the freezer.
Kids get used to the healthy snacks. And also, it's important to teach them now how to lead a healthy lifestyle so they don't have to become MFP members in the future. Have the snack on cheese and wheat crackers. It's healthy, kids tend to like it and it's not very appealing to us moms as a binging snack. You're not making them suffer (maybe your husband), you're watching after their health (sounds prettier and more optimistic than making them suffer with you).
Good luck and find that motivation... 20 lbs since summer is amazing!! Keep up the good work so you can treat yourself to some goodies during the winter holidays!

Agreed! HIGH PROTIEN!!!! I never felt as full as I do when I eat snack higher in protien! I eat pepperoni and cheese.. I know high in fat but with Atkins its no matter anyways