Quote:
Originally Posted by screamingfatgirl
I'd recommend making sure you allot your calories in such a way that you can sample the goodies (two or three bites) and make sure you eat a good meal high in protein and with some fat in it on the evening when the food is around. Also, try to remember that most of the enjoyment of any food comes on the first bite with diminishing returns after that. Your taste buds get acclimated to the flavor and you enjoy each subsequent bite less. That being the case, having one bite that you savor slowly is more meaningful than wolfing down a lot of something. If you find yourself eating a lot, it's likely real hunger or a compulsion.
In my case, my husband has had Reese's peanut butter cups and a 1 lb. box of See's candy around since I started looking after my diet and telling myself I can have anything I want if I want it tends to be enough to not make me decide to have it (this goes more smoothly after the first month when biologically induced sugar cravings are no longer an issue). If I'm full and want something sweet, I usually just have something small and eat it slow - like half a peanut butter cup (though I actually never ate them). This works quite well. If you ate a meal and said you could have one small portion, you might be less likely to dive in late at night. Of course, each person is different and my approach may not work for you.
This issue comes up a lot - I just want to say for me, I can't take 2-3 bites and then stop. 2-3 bites makes me desperately want to eat more and more and more, it's like a spark in a dry forest. Certain foods have this effect on me more than others, my "trigger" foods are - cold cereal, chips, crackers, baked goods, donuts, cookies.
One single bite of a cupcake with frosting - my mouth fills with saliva and I want to eat the cupcake as fast as possible. And then, I want another cupcake, I usually get a very hollow, empty, needy feeling after eating empty carbs. A strange hunger that feels impossible to sate. So, I tend to avoid those kinds of foods - I don't like how it makes me feel.
Some foods don't have this effect on me. For example, last night I had 1/5 of a dark chocolate/sea salt candy bar. It was great and I had no problem stopping with a small piece of the bar (there are still 3/5 pieces left).
I'm all for people discovering what makes them tick. If you're a 2-3 bite person, that's great. If you find out that a little bit of an offplan food triggers you to eat more than you want, that's very powerful knowledge and a tool in your toolbelt.