Feeling Protective Of Food?
 

This may sound/be crazy, but I have noticed that since I started trying to lose weight this year, and really watch every bite I take and every calorie I take in, I am protective over my food.

For example, my husband and kids get to eat chips, cake, cookies and whatever snacks they want. I very rarely partake in "their" snacks. However, I have on hand a few snack options for myself, like my box of Triscuit crackers and cheese slices to top them with.

I noticed someone ate "my" cheese and some of my crackers. I actually got angry about it. (Starting to feel Lord of the Ring-is! "My precious, my precious!) Hahahaha!

They know I only have certain things, and it just bothers me that knowing I have a few staples set aside to help curb any "cravings of mine" they would eat it and not even say anything.

I can't tell you how many times I have went in for MY YOGURT as they get regular and I get the light varieties, only to find out mine has all been eaten.

Am I wrong to feel a little upset and cheated that they eat all their snacks, and then take mine??? :o

No, you're not wrong, in my opinion!

I feel that way and I don't really have to share food (my boyfriend doesn't like the same foods that I do, so he's never tempted)... If I have friends over or whatever and all I can offer them are my foods (not snacks that I got especially for them) I feel sad that I had to share...

But that feeling is the feeling that makes me overeat too. I want to change it.

I used to tell myself at the start of this journey that I didn't need to eat that slice of cake, because I could get that cake anytime I wanted. I need to do the same thing now, even if it's with healthy foods. The feeling is what drives me to overeat when I travel because I am NEVER going to get it again *roll eyes*.

You don't sound crazy to me! I feel similarly. I'm a calorie counter and am a little bit anal about knowing the precise calorie content of what I'm eating, so I weigh everything for accuracy (so far it's been working well for me).

When I do weigh out some chips for myself or even a salad, and DH comes along and swipes a chip or tomato or whatever off my plate he gets a slap and a growl. "Hey, I weighed those out, get your own!"

It may be silly to some, but I really hate when anyone takes something off my pate without asking first. Not exactly the same thing as someone eating my "special" crackers or cheese, I know, but similar.

I don't think you are wrong at all!

I take my food very seriously (lol!!) and I can only have certain brands/requirements, so if someone should "take mine" I could be tempted to eat off my plan.

I would never not let someone at my home (whether my husband or anyone else) not have something they wanted but in my case it could be that my husband grabbed the cheese I get special for me vs. him being able to eat any cheese. It's an honest mistake but if he eats "mine", I am SOL!

I totally get it. :) Now go hide yourself something yummy and healthy for your weekend snacks!

I agree, it's very normal to feel this way. You have a limited selection of food available, and if they eat that, then you have no food readily available and you have to cook something else or go shopping yet again. (my 8 year old is convinced that I love to grocery shop because I do it so often! :p)

I don't see anything wrong with designating an area in the fridge and a cabinet that is yours and it's hands off unless they get special permission from you. I try to do that in reverse too, and tell myself that the other stuff is not mine, so hands off for me then!

Yep, my husband doesn't even think about it. My MIL thinks my eating is whacko, so she doesn't bother. My 7 year old only eats a few things, but my teen?

I have to spell it out - THESE ARE MINE!!!!

But... since he likes "my" stuff, I now make him or buy him something similar. It's full of protein, so its' good for him.

But most things in the house are for everyone. We ONLY have plain yogurt and it's for everyone. The fruit is for everyone. The veggies is for everyone. The cheese sticks and eggs and such are for everyone. I just don't eat the the bread and carb heavy foods the rest of the family eats.

The ONLY foods that I have made off limit are my low carb protein bars as they are my "if I'm dying for a sweet." or "I have no time for anything else, I'll grab this protein bar". So, if my back up plan is GONE. That is B.A.D. Which is why my teen has been told HANDS OFF. But only on those.

Really, OP, if your kids prefer lighter yogurt. Get them unsweetened yogurt and add fresh fruit to it or thawed frozen fruit added in is yummy. They need a tiny bit of sweetness? Add a wee bit of honey. They get WAY less sugar that way and it weans them off the junk food.

Honestly, I think that there are separate foods (especially if there are lots of them) is a sign that maybe things are out of balance at home. if you can't eat what they are eating, then maybe they shouldn't be eating it either?

I say that with some huge caveats. i can't eat grains or sugars. The rest of my family has no problem with them, but most of our foods are the same.

We eat the same meals with the one difference being I usually pass on the breads or any sides that are calorie heavy.

They actually don't prefer the light yogurt, but they go through all of theirs and then eat up mine. Because it is there and their's is gone! LOL!

My grumble is that they do snack very frequently and I don't. I have a few things on hand that are available for me when I do need/want a snack, but if they eat it, that leaves me wanting, and could seriously cause me to reach for something else and very likely over eat. I have worked so hard to get to this point (down 15.4 pounds since 1 January) and I don't want to undo all my hard work by falling off the wagon.

Just makes me a little sad that they can and do eat whatever and whenever they want, but I have made so many sacrifices (that I no longer miss) and the few things I afford myself get eaten by everyone else AFTER they have eaten all their stuff. :o

lol im glad to see im not the only one that gets over protective of their food

i feel entitled to my certain portion so when someone asks if they can have "some" of my meal ( i.e a half turkey sandwich a tangerine and a palmfull of cashews ) i get grouchy but i try not to show it because im embarassed of being a grinch about the sharing lol

Sounds like my teen.

Hide your stuff. Seriously, if you don't have it where they can see it, then they wont take it. Can't work for yogurt, but the plain yogurt trick would work for all of you anyway.

If you are crazy then so am I. I actually purchased a very small refrigerator for my things. No one is allowed to touch it. LOL. It sounds even more crazy when I type it out. Yet, I really love my little fridge.

Whew! Thanks, y'all! I feel better knowing I'm not alone! Hahahaha!!

I will be doing the plain yogurt, by the way! :)

Absolutely!!! Especially when I was losing, every bit was precious, and, for whatever reason, whenever I would slice up an apple, everyone wanted some! I'd be happy to slice up ANOTHER apple, but forfeiting even 1/4 of my own was painful!

Just wanted to say your avatar looks how I feel when my snacks get raided! :p:dizzy::p

I do the same thing. Last night we went out for sushi. We ordered 6 rolls to split amongst three of us (including my 8 year old). I had already determined I would have 2 full rolls and put it in my tracker app on my phone a good hour before we even left home. Well, my son started reaching for what I thought was one of my rolls and needless to say, I wasn't too happy. Right then I grabbed all my sushi pieces and put them on my personal plate. No more communal plates for me for awhile!

I'm very protective, but I have toddlers and sharing is just a part of life.
But my husband? No way Jose! Lol

I have been like that too, I buy regular milk for everyone else and almond for me. The almond is much more expensive and I get so upset to see a full gallon of milk and my half gallon empty. I also have resorted to hiding the granola bars. I will give some to the kids here and there, but there was one weekend when my oldest son and his friend at the box of 40, well there was about 5 missing. I don't get to eat their snacks so I need something incase I have a craving. I also keep my nuts in my room because my father in law will eat about 2-3 cups per day. I will buy a limited amount of junk for everyone else, but my father in law is the main culprit when it comes to purchasing junk, about 70 bucks worth of chips, cookies, breads and soda every couple of weeks.

I had to start hiding my Greek yogurt from my dad because he randomly decided he was going to start eating yogurt, and just ate whatever he saw in the fridge.

FORTUNATELY, other than my Greek yogurt, no one likes anything I eat so I don't really have to be protective of it. Yay for having all of my granola bars, Luna bars, string cheese, hummus, and almond milk to myself!

i keep alot of my own food at work, which is where i do the bulk of my eating anyhow LOL and that also keeps little fingers out of them...at home no one likes my protein powder, fiber husks, fruit, almond milk or dark chocolate...no one will touch the vegetables or frozen vegetables either...but they will inhale anything else in the kitchen and pantry...however if i buy something especially for me like a low-cal ice cream sandwich package of 6 i do have to hide them or they will get eaten

i do feel protective of my food though...perhaps because i buy certain things for myself...perhaps because if i dont eat it when it's made, it will get eaten by other people instead...i'm still getting over that mindset...i feel like if i dont eat RIGHT NOW that i'll never get any of it but ive always felt like that

This is an interesting thread because I thought I was the only crazy one being protective of "my" foods even though it is pretty much shared in this house. I do feel somewhat better now that I see this is common, lol. I basically hide my stuff in the back of the fridge on the bottom and non-refrigerated items in my "secret" snack drawer (which also happens to be the same desk for my nail stuff so no one would think to look there, lol.) Sounds horrible but I have a boyfriend with a uber sweet and/or salty tooth who can inhale a bag of mini snickers in no time whereas I can make it last for a month or more.

I guess I would just start replacing all the snacks in the house with the healthy ones. ;) Especially if they are eating them!

Currently it's just me and my husband- and I encourage him to eat the healthy items in the house. I want him to be healthy. When we have kids, I'm hoping to keep the options pretty nutritious. I don't want my future children developing some of the issues I have with food. I would like to see them biochemically balanced and not lusting over chips and cake like I have/do.

So I say- bring in more healthy items and be pleased/proud that your family likes the healthy items, as well!

I guess I am the outlier. If someone wants to eat "my" food, I'm thrilled because it means that they are opting for the healthiest options in the house, instead of the Doritos or Oreos that I buy for "them".

Oh I am so on board with this thread! My BF has on many occasion, eaten my lentil chips and hummus, or whatever else snack I was planning on for that day. He has annnnything else in the house to snack on, but nooo its got to be the one thing I was going to have! I admit, I yelled at him a bit. Now I buy extra hummus and he gets his own chips.

I am so this. Nobody better touch my quest bars or they will lose their hand!!

I get annoyed when people touch my roasted peppers. I bought, roasted, and peeled those myself! :< ALESKRJ;ALKJDGF LEAVE THEM ALONE.

Why do feed your family junk food and keep the good food for yourself? Seems more selfish than protective of your food. Do you want your children to have weight problems when they are older?

No, I absolutely don't want them to have weight issues when they are older.

If I only bought the snacks I can/will eat and bought enough for them as well...guess what? They would still eat my little portion! The fact is, if it is a snack, it will be gone regardless. So whether I replace their snacks with more of what I get, I would still be in the same boat. :(

I thought of this thread last night! I had a dinner party for Mardi Gras. I invested in 10 pounds of crawfish (a rare treat for me), shipped up from New Orleans. I served them as an appetizer, then set a second bowl aside for myself, while I went to cook the meal--planning to have that for my dinner, since the rest was too high-calorie. When I came back out, someone had helpfully cleared the table--and thrown them out!!!!

THIS EXACTLY!! we have plenty of healthy foods in this house, some of which i choose to eat and some that i don't because i personally do better on low-sugar, low-wheat etc...however my family has the capability of eating all the food in general and then getting into the things that i am able to eat

I thought of this yesterday, too. What choice did I have but to say yes when my son wanted some of the sautéed portabella and quinoa that I had just made for my own lunch?? I happily said yes.

Not saying if you are wrong or not, but in most families it is highly unrealistic to think it is not going to get eaten. :) Why not just keep some of it hidden so they don't know you have it? :)

You're not crazy at all! I do this too, except in a slightly different way. I don't really mind sharing food with my bf, mainly b/c he's the only one I share with and I don't usually find myself in a situation where I want something and it's gone. However, I do find myself not wanting to share after I've created my portion, particularly in snacks. For instance, to make sure that I'm at the 100 calorie mark for pretzels, I painstakingly count out each of the 41 pretzels lol. My bf will sometimes casually come over and take a few and I'm like...seriously? Now I have to go get 3 more pretzels. lol

I am totally OCD on the measuring thing! If I measured it - it's mine.

As far as the food in the house goes, I am fortunate that most of us eat the same way. BF eats like I do and cooks with me - we buy enough quantity of the same things for both of us.

My girls have been brought up to eat anything I give them. (One of their favorite dinners is stuffed green peppers with couscous, tomatoes and black olives. For them, I'll put some mozzarella cheese on top when I bake.) Yes, they are kids and would happily eat chicken nuggets every day, but I don't let them. I'm sure when they go to their dad's house, they eat those things. But at my house and for my example, they eat healthy foods 90% of the time. But for snacks - yes, I allow goldfish or graham crackers or tortilla chips into the house and have no trouble resisting that myself. I know they aren't great for them, but it's not too bad. When I see the girls naturally gravitate towards the extra fruit I have on hand for them, I smile. I really don't have any snacks or food on hand that's just for me. The things I like to eat are bought in enough quantity that there's no need to hoard it. The only exception is probably the almond milk. I love it and my girls have decided that they do, too. But at $3/half gallon, it is scarce. I've had to just flat out tell them to stay out of it and ask permission.

^^^ This!!!! LMAO!!! But the only difference with me is that I make DH get me the 3 pretzels!!

I think some responses took the original post out of context but it could just be me. I would never ever tell my husband he couldn't have anything in the fridge or the cabinet, it's our home and our food. But I surely will not go off plan using him as an excuse because he ate something that was my "plan approved" food. He doesn't ever do it on purpose and we have a better plan in place now that I am a few months in. I am sure it's harder for bigger households and ones with children. But I totally get what the OP meant. :)

I'm lucky in that my family is incredibly supportive. I only have one kid at home now, and she always checks with me before eating something I might be saving for myself.

DH works at home one day a week and before he had lunch last week, he called me to check if there was anything he shouldn't eat because I was saving it for a meal.

If someone wants a particular food and adds it to the grocery list (which they can do on their phones), then I will buy it. But I do prefer they don't eat Thursday night's dinner for a snack!

I am possessive of anything I've measured out, though. If I have a quarter cup of raisins, I don't want to share them--they're mine. Prior to me starting to weigh and measure everything, we always dipped into each other's snacks--a family thing that all of us did to each other. It's taking a bit for DH and DD to realize they can't do that anymore because I've got a set portion size.

We don't seem to have a "eating my snacks" problem because I don't allow myself many snacks :-) and much of it is dried cereal with fresh fruit or raisins. If they wanted my melon and prosciutto, though, we'd have a talk--but they'd totally accept the idea "I need this much for snacks between now and <next grocery run>. You can have the rest and I'll buy extra next time."

(No, I'm not sharing DH and DD)

Lol, I am late to this party but heck no, you are NOT wrong!

I feel that way about my sweet little dog whenever I have made a nice meal for myself and SHE THINKS I SHOULD GIVE HER BITES OF IT!

Okay, I DO give her bites but I resent it.

No, nicely tell the family exactly what you told the thread when you started it. Honestly, your feelings are understandable.

If that doesn't work, yes, hide it. Seriously.

Thanks for all the responses!!! I may have to hide something, but that thought makes me feel like a "closet eater." LOL!!!

Feeling possessive may actually be biological too. Some anoretics will hoard food (without eating it) for this reason.

I totally relate. My favorite snack is dried wasabi flavored peas. I measure out a quarter cup (which is so little) then a hand goes in my bowl. I have to replace those peas from the bulk container, even if it was one pea! Lol. But most of the time I am in the clear cuz I live alone.