Is there something that you just WON'T give up? Is there one little thing that you absolutely must have, who cares about the calories? Or am I the only one?

I count every single calorie I eat or drink, and I know I could lower that total at the end of each day, but I positively WILL NOT give up my hazelnut creamer in my coffee in the morning, calorie count be d*mned! I have tried the sugar free hazelnut, the fat free hazelnut, and they are not the same. If I don't wake up to coffee with my regular hazelnut creamer--why, I don't know if life would be worth living.

Is there something like this in your life too?

Real sugar in my coffee. I like artificial sweetners in my tea but loathe them in my coffee.

I love it, Mudbugs.

I'm a binger, and when I started my weight loss program in January, I tried to cut out all the "bad" stuff that I loved. It was a big mistake. I started binging again. I talked to the doctor about it, and he said, "Stop depriving yourself! If you love something, eat it, but decrease the quantity."

So every day now, I allow myself a little something sweet and a little something salty (usually one of those small containers of pringles). Knowing that I can still have treats makes a huge difference in my mindset.

I hope you're enjoying your coffee, Mudbugs. That's something I refuse to give up, too, although I have mine with steamed skim milk... like a latte.

I agree. I cannot go without sweets...and if I deprive myself for a week of them-I only ending up eating triple than I normally would on a huge binge. ellis-I am the same way!

I try to eat 90% well, and 10% not so well...so if I eat 1500 calories a day (when I am not pregnant) then I try to limit my treats to 150 calories a day. It is just enough...but not too much. I think it is all about balance.

Amen to Aphil's "it's all about balance'.
The beauty of calorie counting is that you can do that. You can eat in restaurants. Have the chocolates patients bring to the nurses and donuts doctors bring You just have to add them in and take your lumps!

I've learned soooo much about food since I started tracking calories. How to get maximum nutrition from the fewest calories. But it's been a process that's taken time. And I'm not good all of the time.

I'm not sure how many calories you're after and I'm not sure how many there are in your creamer but really .... if you have 13 or 1400 cals of good stuff, what difference could some nice creamer make in the long run? We probably miss that many by faulty measuring or forgetting everyday.

I agree that if this is for life, then there has to be a balance. I don't know that I have one specific thing I can't do without, but my husband (also calorie counting) is not interested in giving up cheese. He has added some lowfat cheese into his diet, and greatly decreased the amount of cheese that he eats, but will not give it up entirely. I know that it helps him stay on track.

Portions was one of my hardest obstacles. I'm making excellent progress. I've learned to say "no" to certain things so that later I can treat myself to something I absolutely adore! My two major treats are (1) serving of Ben & Jerry's Coffee Heath Bar Crunch [that can only happen on a very "good" day] and Lays' Baked chips, yum!!

~jess~

Peanuts. In-shell peanuts. I can't give up my peanuts. Although peanuts are not bad for you, per se, they're still pretty high in calories. But when I get started on them I can't stop. So I just put it behind me and move on.

Really, though, I haven't 'given up' much of anything. I just eat the higher-calorie and fatty foods in extreme moderation. I haven't completely given up on anything, to be honest, except fried foods. I rarely eat anything fried now. Whereas it used to be fried foods made up probably 80% of my diet. Anything fried, I'd eat it. Now instead of fried foods being a staple, they're a rare treat. The two fried foods I can't give up: fried chicken and egg rolls, lol.

But again, I just eat them in moderation. Like aphil said, I eat about 90% healthy and 10% not. And that's not bad considering it used to be the complete reverse. I rarely ate healthy foods, didn't eat enough vegetables and whole grains, etc. And I ate fast food at least 3-4 times a week. So yeah, I think now that a 90%/10% ratio is just fine. 90% healthy, that is.

As far as I'm concerned, no food is forbidden. Deprivation does not work. If you want that piece of candy, have it. If you want the occasional piece of pizza, then eat it.

Moderation is the key. And YOU are the moderator.

Like Aphil I can not give up the sweets. If they are accessible I will want them at all times of day, especially after dinner (as if dessert is a requirement). Chocolate is my downfall and it is one of the few occasions I will have real sugar so I can't say as I feel very good after. I'd easily binge I think if I didn't count calories, that helps keep it to only ONE candy bar instead of a whole bag of something. I think having to count it keeps me pretty realistic about it, I know I will have that higher than average calorie-count to contend with and that it will bring up my weekly and monthly averages so if I can use a sugar treat to inspire me to exercise that is all for the better.

For me, it's gum and coffee. Not together, of course!

I love my sugarless gum. Keep it in nearly all day. Swap it out when the flavor fades. At only ~5 calories a stick, it's a great little "snack". I can't be bothered counting every stick every day, though. So, every day, when I start out my new Fitday, I automatically add in 72 oz of water, 1 multivitamin, 2 coffees and 30 sticks of gum.

I figure 30 sticks is an "average", so I account for 30 a day.

As far as the coffee, without real cream (not creamer or half & half and certainly none of that flavored stuff ewwww), it's not even worthy of a thought, much less a sip. So, I account for at least 2 coffees with real cream a day.

Like Linda (LLV) said, that's the beauty of Calorie Counting. Absolutely nothing is forbidden. I avoid things because I choose to do so, not because I'm not "allowed" to have them.

Here's a question that I have about gum. Is it really five calories if you don't SWALLOW the gum? I mean, yes, I guess that by chewing you are getting that sweet coating (not sugar for sugar-less gum) but is it really five calories?

Kimberly

I assume it is 5ish calories (it's actually a shade more than 5) just for the coatings and whatever it is that makes it squishy. The thing I wonder is, do I expend more than 5 calories by chewing it?

Chewing gums burns 11 calories an hour. I'm a gum addict to, but as long as I chew it for at least 30 minutes I don't enter it.

I have to have my pancakes for breakfast with either honey or syrup on them. As long as I get them at least 5 times per week, I'm OK.

I use moderation too. I haven't been able to completely cut polish sausage, cheese and chocolate out of my diet so occasionally I have them but in small amounts. I try not to eat them every day too and when I do eat them, I put them in fitday and take it like a woman .