[onherweighdown]

It is really hard for me to keep any food in the house at all lest I overeat on what I do have. For instance. I bought a bag of sweet chilli rice cakes, which, might as well be potato chips to me. Even though rice cakes are a moderately safe and low cal snack (although laden with sodium) I find that I just cannot keep them in the house because last time, I ended up finishing the whole bag! ONE serving is a good and healthy snack. The whole bag is not.

I have a few snacks that I buy here and there, things that I know I'm not likely to binge on, but for meals, I have to go to the grocery store EVERY DAY. I just can't keep the fixings to prepare meals in the house or else I will eat it all in one or two days.

Does anyone else have this problem? Will I ever be able to keep a week's worth of food around??

[yhahmd]

I have the same problem. I also walk around the kitchen listlessly every 10-20 min and constantly check the fridge, it seems. I'm learning self control... luckily someone is usually in the kitchen, and seeing them makes me think they're watching me, so I get embarrassed and mosey along and don't eat again.

[dudesmom]

I am generally safe with fruits and vegetables, but there is a lot of stuff that I can't keep around. If I don't have the stuff in the house, I find that I go into the kitchen, check the fridge and the cabinets, and then go back and do whatever I was doing until it's actually meal or snack time and I'm supposed to eat. I just don't have the urge to sit there and mindlessly nosh on stuff like that, though I am perfectly content to eat it at meals. I'd like to think that some day i will be able to do that with all foods, but I think there's some I will never be "safe" around. Probably not the answer you were looking for, but this is what I'm dealing with at the moment.

[Oboegal]

It could be that you're someone, like me, who can't handle a high-carb diet or snacks. I've had to discard a lot of the conventional wisdom, such as rice cakes being anything but evil. Thing is, I *like* rice cakes. But they may as well be negative food for me. They're not filling, and they make me hungrier.

When I used to try to go on low-fat diets, I was literally hungry 24/7. This time, I have a moderate low-carb orientation, and I don't get the munchies nearly as often or as badly. YMMV.

[xty]

It has taken me years of maint to start keeping food in the house. My best advice is to just do what works for you and be open to the fact it might get easier in time. And to not beat yourself up about it. It is what it is, and you can try to work with and thru your issues...but feeling bad about them only makes them worse.

I am still very careful. I find that I can keep protein and veggies in the house just fine (though I do tend to cook up 2-4 servings and tupperware portion sizes to help make sure Im measuring and what not!). Keeping fruit is ok too. But since I dont eat many processed foods or straight carbs like cereal or pasta (because Im just too sensitive to eat a ton of carbs and stay slim)...I def dont keep carby snacks in the house. And on the rare occasion I want a treat, like full fat ice cream I either buy the portion I will eat, or eat the portion I can have and throw the rest down the disposal.

If you havent read The End of Overeating, I highly recommend it. Really helped me understand some of my eating behaviors as triggered by foods and then biochemical reactions, and change a bit.

[grammajiggles]

I try to be VERY careful of what I have in the house for snacks and have got so I am usually pretty safe with them if there is any . I try keep vegetables and fruit in the fridge at all times .... My downfall is my husband has a bad habit of buy junk ... usually stuff I wouldn't eat but I find if he is grazing then suddenly I am in the kitchen grazing . Today I bought a few groceries and had a migraine at the same time so made so very bad choices on my food ...... which lead to a very bad food day ( though I did drink lots of water too ! ) . Guess this all ties into the the TRIGGERS thread too !

[rockinrobin]

Originally Posted by onherweighdown

It is really hard for me to keep any food in the house at all lest I overeat on what I do have. For instance. I bought a bag of sweet chilli rice cakes, which, might as well be potato chips to me. Even though rice cakes are a moderately safe and low cal snack (although laden with sodium) I find that I just cannot keep them in the house because last time, I ended up finishing the whole bag! ONE serving is a good and healthy snack. The whole bag is not.

I have a few snacks that I buy here and there, things that I know I'm not likely to binge on, but for meals, I have to go to the grocery store EVERY DAY. I just can't keep the fixings to prepare meals in the house or else I will eat it all in one or two days.

Does anyone else have this problem? Will I ever be able to keep a week's worth of food around??

You said it yourself, rice cakes - they may as well be chips. I agree with you 10,000 percent.

It may be lower calorie, but it's air food. It's not healthy. It's empty calories. Just like those 100 calorie packs. They bring upon this "can't shove it in my mouth fast enough" feeling. They have zero nutrients. So your body keeps looking for something in them, so you feel the need to keep eating them and eating them till your body finds some satisfaction - but there's none to be found. There is no satiation point. I don't keep them in the house - ever. I don't eat them - ever.

The good thing is, not all foods give me that sensation. THOSE are the ones I have in my house - veggies, veggies, veggies, proteins, low and no fat dairy. THAT'S what's in my house. *Safe* foods. Foods of value.

It's not just about the calorie count. What those calories are made up of are VERY important.

I think you've just made a very important discovery. Refined carbs, empty calorie foods don't work for you. That's a victory in your book. Toss em'.

I had a hard (impossible) time stopping to eat many foods once I started eating them - my solution - don't start. Problem solved. Certain (many) foods will never, ever, ever be in my house again. Never.

Those rice cakes aren't healthy, but there are some healthy foods that I still can't have in the house - nuts for instance. Sure they're healthy - in moderation, given they're incredibly calorie dense. I overeat them. So for me, they're not so healthy. Many people say that everything is fine in moderation. The problem with that scenario is, I don't do moderation well. Just like you can't tell an alcoholic to just practice moderation or portion control with that vodka. Unnn, noooo.

Think outside of the box. Re-define what a treat is, re-define what a snack is. A bowl of hearty, veggie soup. A bowl of veggie stew. A no fat yogurt. A veggie platter with salsa. Cucumber salad. All sorts of cabbage slaws. A 100 calorie bag of popcorn. A veggie egg white omlette. A sliced apple sprinkled with cinnamon. A poached pear. A grapefruit. These foods are tasty and satiating and won't have you clamoring for more of it and more of it.

As far as healthy foods go (and sorry those rice cakes ain't it) - until you develop that control (and you will), if you've got to shop every day - then so be it. Do whatever you've got to do to get this under control. Whatever it takes. It may take a few weeks for you to have multiple days worth of even healthy food in the house safely, and if that's the case, do it - it's a small price to pay. It gets better. The hardest part is the first few weeks. Push past it. Get through it any way that you can. And you can. You CAN.