Does anyone else do this?

[Christa]

I work out religiously and eat pretty well all day, but almost every evening I find myself snacking on random crap that I don''t even enjoy that much. Aargh! I''m 5''6"ish and a size usually-8-sometimes-6, so I don''t have a weight problem per se, but I always feel like I''m fighting it and having to "make up" for what I ate the night before.

I lost 30 pounds a little over 5 years ago and have mostly kept it off, so I know I can be disciplined. Lately this has been an ongoing issue, though--mostly in my head, but a little in my thighs, too.

Does anyone relate? Any magic tricks that have worked for you? Help me!

 

[Mara]

why do you snack? if you are not hungry, what is the motivation? craving for a specific TASTE or is it just because you are bored or have time on your hands or what?

if it''s a specific TASTE even though you are not hungry, could be your body telling you that it wants a specific something in the food, like calcium or sodium or carbs or protein.

if it''s just because you are bored or have nothing to do and you feel like munching...then when i feel like that, i typically try to go for a walk. i take the dog out and go for like 30 minutes, and i find when i come home that typically the urge to eat something has passed.

i figure listen to your body, if it is telling you to EAT something and something specific, then DO. but if it''s just a boredom thing, either don''t give in OR eat something healthy like fruit to give your mouth (really your mind) what it needs...the sensation of ''eating''.

 

[Christa]

I can totally recognize the feeling of actually needing a specific thing, like protein or chocolate

, but that''s not what''s going on here. It''s totally just a recreational thing, not really a craving. I mean, yeah, sometimes there''s something like the leftover brownies or the cookies my daughter just made calling me from the kitchen, but if they aren''t there I find something else that I enjoy less to eat. Ack.

 

[KimberlyH]

Christa,

I am an absent minded snacker, which was no big deal when I wasn''t married because I lived alone and just didn''t keep snacks in the house...I would never go buy it, but I''ll eat it if it''s available. I have a 10 minute rule...if I go to grab something and I''m not hungry I make myself wait ten minutes, if I still really want it I figure out why, usually by then I''m over it. Hubby has agreed if I start facing issues because he likes having snacks in the house (he only eats them late at night while watching TV, which I just don''t understand) he''ll start keeping them in his office (he works from home) or somewhere out my reach and knowledge so I just won''t even have to deal with it. I love to cook and bake and he loves that I love to bake, so I also choose to make baked goods that don''t really appeal to me (crisp cookies as opposed to soft) because the desire to snack is lessened.

Good luck to you!

 

[Christa]

Ooh, I like the 10-minute rule. That could be a place to start . . .

 

[Mara]

heeh the 10 minute rule won't work for me. i just want it more in 10 minutes. i think whether or not that is successful depends on your personality. i tend to 'obsess' over something if i know i can't have it.

i do not keep sweets in the house typically. if greg wants to get something sweet, he has to get it at work. we DO keep dark chocolate in the house because one square of that is enough to satiate me and he loves it as well, and i also do 'healthyish' desserts for us that are pre-approved like chocolate mousse using skim milk and redi-whip and low-fat coffee ice cream (starbucks latte ice cream, lowfat is REALLY good!!) parfaits with choco syrup and rediwhip ...but other than that we do not have stuff in the house. no cookies, no brownies, no pie or cake, nothing. if we take something to a party, we leave it there, OR we bring home one slice that we then share.

both of us have sweet tooths, so honestly it's just setting us up for failure by having that kind of stuff around. and if i really want dessert that badly, then i have to go out and get it...and that never is appealing so it just doesn't happen. i do have desserts when we go out to restaurants.

for me, dessert is my downfall, not snacking.

however in terms of snacks...i keep stuff like lots of fresh fruits, granolas, biscotti (lowfat and low calorie and very tasty), almonds, hummus in the house because it's all good for you and/or not processed...but we do not eat chips or anything like that. i can't even remember the last time i had a bag of chips?!?!

for me it's about setting yourself up for SUCCESS. that means not having that kind of stuff around...because what it sounds like you are doing is boredom eating. you're not hungry, your body is not craving anything, your mouth just wants to be doing something....or your mind wants something to occupy itself. what about chewing some gum? munching on some almonds? going for that walk i mentioned?

i have days like what you are talking about once in a blue moon, where i don't care WHAT i eat, i just feel like eating. but i try really hard to not do that because i know it's just plain sabotage against all the hard work i do. why am i working out daily and eating healthy? not to bombard my system with a bunch of junk on a binge. if i really want something, i will have it, but i don't just boredom eat.

 

[moremoremore]

I am hooked on sugar free jello. and if you can control the whipped cream intake, a little of that on top works!!! It had 10 calories (alone)! I'm also having a sugar free ice pop (15cal) right now. So if you find yourself "binging", at least it on this stuff...Make sure you have a good breakfast...I found that having less carbs makes be crave snacks less...(I said LESS LOL)...I'm a total foodie and have come to terms that it may very well be a life long struggle...

 

[Christa]

I have a junk-food-loving husband (just to give you an idea, any sugary cereal is known to my kids as "Daddy cereal") and three kids so not having the stuff in the house isn''t really an option. Though I really police what my kids eat--I just have trouble policing myself.

I should get some healthy/appealing snacks to have on hand, too, but really my main problem is just mindlessly eating ridiculous amounts.

One thing I discovered at one point was that if I stopped and didn''t eat anything until I could figure out what I really wanted I''d be satisfied with that one thing instead of grazing while I decide what I want. Sometimes that works, anyway.

 

[Mara]

how are you doing MMM with your diet thing??!? please check in with us over in the WWT...hehee. i love hearing positive stuff.

for me fiber makes me less hungry and less wanting to eat. because it fills me up. carbs don''t really do much for me and if i do have them, i try to eat them in fruit and natural things...less pasta and stuff like that. but fiber, works every time!! sometimes just a bowl of high fiberish cereal (there a ton of yummy ones i like) with some soy milk or something acts as a great 200 calorie snack and keeps me full for 3-4 hours til dinner.

but again to me it just sounds like christa is boredom snacking, so yes, it could be better if she was eating 10 calorie snacks rather than 100 calorie snacks!!

 

[Christa]

Date: 9/13/2006 7:44:31 PM
Author: Mara
how are you doing MMM with your diet thing??!? please check in with us over in the WWT...hehee. i love hearing positive stuff.

for me fiber makes me less hungry and less wanting to eat. because it fills me up. carbs don''t really do much for me and if i do have them, i try to eat them in fruit and natural things...less pasta and stuff like that. but fiber, works every time!! sometimes just a bowl of high fiberish cereal (there a ton of yummy ones i like) with some soy milk or something acts as a great 200 calorie snack and keeps me full for 3-4 hours til dinner.

but again to me it just sounds like christa is boredom snacking, so yes, it could be better if she was eating 10 calorie snacks rather than 100 calorie snacks!!

Of course what would really be best is if she would just quit eating everything in sight!

I just feel really fortunate that for the most part my metabolism has been kind to me, though I can count on that less and less as I get older.

 

[moremoremore]

I will definitely check in there...I''m doing well! Still hanging in there...Maybe not as strict as I could be...On Friday night, my god-son greated me with a block of milk chocolate. OH DEAR. But still hanging in....At night, it''s REALLY hard for me....so even if I have 2 jellos, it''s all good. The key is changing the behavior, but that''s so freakin hard...I think I''m at 11 lbs loss now. Bumer that I didn''t weigh myself on my scale in the am when I started, so I''m not sure of the starting point...

Christa- are you ok with moderation? If so, maybe you should go ahead and have a little of what you REALLY want...because if you end up eating a few pieces of fruit, a block of cheese, some of this, some of that as you pick....those calories add up and you''re still not satisfied...so maybe just go ahead and have a LITTLE of what you want?

 

[KimberlyH]

Christa,

ALso trying little pudding packs or fudgescicles as an alternative to keeping cookies and baked goods in the house. They are fairly low-cal and fulfill my chocolate cravings.

 

[Christa]

Date: 9/14/2006 1:07:12 PM
Author: KimberlyH
Christa,

ALso trying little pudding packs or fudgescicles as an alternative to keeping cookies and baked goods in the house. They are fairly low-cal and fulfill my chocolate cravings.

That''s a great idea . . . I''m afraid I''ll eat them in addition, though, since we always have to have cookies and stuff around. Sigh. I guess I might have to go the self-discipline route. But where''s the fun in that?

 

[Mara]

christa how come you always have cookies and sweets around?

 

[sumbride]

try taking up a hobby that keeps your hands busy. It''s hard to snack while knitting. But it''s easy to watch tv while knitting.

 

[Christa]

Date: 9/13/2006 7:43:56 PM
Author: Christa
I have a junk-food-loving husband (just to give you an idea, any sugary cereal is known to my kids as ''Daddy cereal'') and three kids so not having the stuff in the house isn''t really an option. Though I really police what my kids eat--I just have trouble policing myself.

I should get some healthy/appealing snacks to have on hand, too, but really my main problem is just mindlessly eating ridiculous amounts.

One thing I discovered at one point was that if I stopped and didn''t eat anything until I could figure out what I really wanted I''d be satisfied with that one thing instead of grazing while I decide what I want. Sometimes that works, anyway.

Mara, my husand is SO not going for keeping junk food out of the house. Which doesn''t mean I have to eat it, of course, but makes this a little more difficult.

Knitting is a great suggestion. I go through crocheting spurts occasionally--maybe I should start a new project.

 

[Mara]

oh i missed that part...haha greg buys a sugary cereal when he goes shopping but other than that he doesn''t snack much nor does he care what''s in the house much. or he does snack on things i buy, like he loves smelly cheese and crackers or hummus and pita etc.

 

[Christa]

Hey, I lilke your new avatar!

Fortunately the grocery shopping is usually all me--it''s pretty rough both in terms of health and the grocery budget when he does come along.

 

[monarch64]

Date: 9/13/2006 5:36:18 PM
Author:Christa
I work out religiously and eat pretty well all day, but almost every evening I find myself snacking on random crap that I don''t even enjoy that much. Aargh! I''m 5''6''ish and a size usually-8-sometimes-6, so I don''t have a weight problem per se, but I always feel like I''m fighting it and having to ''make up'' for what I ate the night before.

I lost 30 pounds a little over 5 years ago and have mostly kept it off, so I know I can be disciplined. Lately this has been an ongoing issue, though--mostly in my head, but a little in my thighs, too.

Does anyone relate? Any magic tricks that have worked for you? Help me!

Have you ever tried keeping a food journal? You write down everything (and I mean EVERYTHING) you consume every day for a few weeks, then you will start to notice where your extra calories are coming from and how to cut back. It also kind of holds you accountable...i.e. where you would usually absent-mindedly snack around here and there in the evening, you will discover that it''s a PITA to write down all that random stuff that you''re not even enjoying anyway.

I liked someone''s suggestion of knitting, too...or you do scrapbooking or some other type of hands-on hobby during your "dangerous" times, hee hee. I''m an evening snacker as well...even if I''m reading a book I start craving something to munch on. I started going back to my gym recently because I found myself in your same boat. I don''t have children yet, though, so I don''t really have to stick to a set routine re. dinner and bed-times.

Do you like to do your own nails? That usually takes up a good half hour, and you can''t really eat snack foods with wet fingernails!

 

[Christa]

Date: 9/14/2006 5:24:59 PM
Author: monarch64
Have you ever tried keeping a food journal? You write down everything (and I mean EVERYTHING) you consume every day for a few weeks, then you will start to notice where your extra calories are coming from and how to cut back. It also kind of holds you accountable...i.e. where you would usually absent-mindedly snack around here and there in the evening, you will discover that it''s a PITA to write down all that random stuff that you''re not even enjoying anyway.

I liked someone''s suggestion of knitting, too...or you do scrapbooking or some other type of hands-on hobby during your ''dangerous'' times, hee hee. I''m an evening snacker as well...even if I''m reading a book I start craving something to munch on. I started going back to my gym recently because I found myself in your same boat. I don''t have children yet, though, so I don''t really have to stick to a set routine re. dinner and bed-times.

Do you like to do your own nails? That usually takes up a good half hour, and you can''t really eat snack foods with wet fingernails!

OK that doesn''t sound like fun at all! I''m looking for something painless and magical here, not good, sensible advice like this!

That would probably work, actually. I know that when I lost my baby weight 5 years ago I didn''t keep a food journal, but I wrote down calories all day and that was what kept me on track. Argh. Back to the grindstone, I guess . . .

 

[Christa]

Date: 9/14/2006 5:24:59 PM
Author: monarch64

Do you like to do your own nails? That usually takes up a good half hour, and you can''t really eat snack foods with wet fingernails!

That''s a great suggestion, too, but now that I''m hooked on Essie (thanks to PS!) I only do them once a week. I guess there''s a downside to everything.

 

[Christa]

In case anyone's interested . . . I've done much better the last couple of days. Kind of had an AA thing going on here, standing up and admitting that I have a snacking problem.

What's amazing is how much better and thinner I feel when I'm doing good in this area, even though a day or two of snacking or not snacking can't possibly have much of a noticeable effect.

Thanks everybody!

 

[kcoursolle]

What are you doing in the evening when you get snacky? Are you watching tv? I find that if I watch tv at night I always get hungry and snacky. If this is the case, try to do something else in the evening, a hobby or whatever. If you still want to watch tv, try to do something else at the same time like knitting or something that keeps your hands busy.