Ugh. So I woke up this morning and went downstairs to find FIVE boxes of Hostess Donuts sitting on the counter. Which is bad, because I always used to eat like 6 of them at a time. And 6 of the chocolate donuts are about 1,140 calories. I am so upset that my dad bought these, mainly because I am trying to lose weight, and I really cannot stay away from them, they are like my biggest weakness. I can't really hide them anywhere, and I can't just tell my dad to never buy them again because he is the one who buys the food therefore he can buy whatever he likes. I managed to stay away from them for breakfast, I had an egg instead. But I really really want one right now. I can eat a whole box. So...any advice on how to stay away from them? Haha

Learn moderation.

Don't restrict yourself because then you're likely to binge on them. Learn to be happy with one serving of donuts.

Also, Does your dad know you are trying to eat healthy? You should talk to him and let him know those donuts are a weakness for you. Hopefully he is understanding and you can come to an agreement.

Ack. Bad situation.

I find I have to be the disciplinarian in situations like this: say NO. And every time the addiction part of your brain pipes up and starts sabotaging you (it wouldn't be so bad. I've been good for days. 6 little donuts won't hurt in the long run. I deserve it), repeat NO. No.

It's the conflict in your brain that creates the pain: decide firmly and it will become easier.

Say... hey dad, any chance you can put these out of my line of vision? I'm trying to eat healthier and if you want to eat any, they'll be gone within an hour if you leave them out there!

I'm sure he won't mind!

I have to plan my foods so I know exactly what I'm going to eat and not wing it. Then, I know that I have something great planned. For example, I already knew this morning when I woke up that I'd have an egg white/spinach wrap with sofrito and cilantro and some cojita cheese for breakfast for 150 calories. It was planned. Therefore, I didn't even look for anything else that was in my fridge. I just went with it.

Since my snack #1, lunch, and snack #2 are packed the day before, I grab my lunch bag out of the fridge and it's a no-brainer.

Dinner and my last snack of the night are treated the same way. I already know what and how much of everything I'm going to eat. If I decide to switch up my evening meals during my day because I have a taste for something else, I usually write it down on a post-it (including amounts) with calorie counts to make sure I'm eating appropriately, then I go home and prepare it the way I've written it.

This tip might not help in the short term, but overall one of the biggest helps for me was finding healthy food that I enjoy as much, if not more as the things I used to eat. For me, that meant finding a lot of new recipes with foods I 'didn't like' or had never really eaten and teaching myself to cook in a way I never had before. If what I'm eating is super delicious and satisfying, I don't really have a reason to think about what I'm not eating. I mean, now I eat something like Greek yogurt with strawberry and all I think about is how much I love eating it and not that I'm eating it rather than something else because it just has 140 calories.

Also, this is probably different for everyone, but one thing I've noticed is that eating a much higher quality treat puts the cheaper stuff into perspective. Ice cream and cookies were some of my biggest weaknesses, but when I tried a lot of sweets after not eating them for a while (couple months), I realized that a lot of the cheap stuff that I would blow through didn't really taste that good and that I wasn't really tasting them before. But when I would splurge and get something really, really high quality, I would enjoy every bite and be satisfied with a much smaller portion. On top of that, I normally don't even really think about eating ice cream/cookies for weeks after getting a really good one, but when I got a cheap box kind I wouldn't really be satisfied and want more later that day.

Print out this post you made or a picture of a lb of fat, or your least flattering pic and tape it somewhere where you will see it before you see the donut.
Its kind of like how Starbucks will post cals, and I don't buy the cookie, I can eyeball the cals, but its the reminder that helps me, so I am not in a "ignore cals/deny and EATTTT frenzy"

This might be difficult if you have a serious addiction with food, but if you're just craving the food and resist until you binge, then this might work for you:

Eat it.

I'm not kidding. Give into your craving. Have one if they're little, half if they're bigger. Plan it into your day and just eat that one piece. Enjoy every little moment you're eating it and savor the taste and remind yourself that that is it. No more because you didn't plan for it.

When nothing is off-limits, it sometimes becomes much easier to resist overall.

If you know you're not going to be able to eat just (or half of one), then you can, in your mind, label them "NOT MINE".

I do this with things like nutella, that the kids like to have on toast in the mornings, or chocolate, which dh keeps in his office in large quantities. Sometimes it's difficult, but I know that I can't limit myself on those things and once I start eating them, it's game over. I've given up nutella, but if I want chocolate, I go out, buy what I want in the quantity I want it, eat it, and count the calories. Dh's chocolate is NOT MINE.

There are a few advocates of portion control here, but if that does not work for you I recommend not eating one bite. It's okay to think about donuts or other sweets and crave them because you cannot control that. What you can control is giving into that craving. Just concentrate on how amazing you will feel (and how much healthier you will be) when you are at your ideal weight. Also remember that there will never be enough sweets to satisfy you. Even if you eat six donuts, or all the boxes in the kitchen it will never be enough.

I have to agree with Demosthenes. If you know that you will not be happy with one, don't eat any. There are many things that I do not eat anymore becuase one or a few will never be enough. Chips, m&m's, crackers. If I eat one, I need them all.

Drink your water!!! I notice that when I drink my water like I'm supposed to enough water at least 3L a day my cravings stay away but when I dehydrate myself I get ravenous and my cravings go wild and uncontrollable.

Also workout even if it is a light walk it makes you not want to cheat if you just got back from a walk or worked out in the day.

Also if you are craving the donut so bad maybe you really are hungry try to eat something healthy like a big salad or some fruit and protein should help your craving and fill you up. An egg doesn't really sound too filling.

Yes. Eat it when you crave it, but in moderation. I'm not on any special diet. I eat when I'm hungry and I still eat my favorites, cheese, pasta, etc. I just try not to over-do it. I'm still losing weight, so I figure I'm doing something right.

Contrary to what others said, for me, i have to just not think about it. Not look at it. I just have to stay away. I cannot even think about the craving...i have to put it out of my mind. If i let my mind even stray there, i might be ok for a day, a week...but eventually that pent up desire will overcome my willpower

Well, right now where I live it is currently 6:17pm, and I have managed to stay away from the donuts all day, even when my dad came home and ate some then handed me the box and asked me if I wanted some. I'm actually kind of proud of myself If I can make it one day without stuffing my face with the donuts, then I guess I can make it until they are gone!
When I was in the kitchen, I was reading the label on the donut box and saw the calories and got upset because I knew I couldn't have one, so I put the box down, cut up an apple and got a bit of peanut butter (apples and peanut butter are amazing) and that took care of my "donut crave"
Thank you everyone for your advice! Very helpful!