Too many treats
 

I've lost 7 lbs so far on my new "diet", well prefer life style change and I can't seem to stay away from the treats. I've tried so many different methods, but I still can't stop. I drink so much water during the day, but I still snack, and not always on the healthy stuff.

I want to succeed at this. I really want it. I have a bikini hanging on my wall that I desperately want to wear for summer.

I'll take any advice. I'm on a limited budget, so going out and getting all this healthy treats is difficult. Well, aside from my normal better groceries.

Please help.

I find that it is better for me not to even bring the unhealthier foods into the house. I used to try to bring things like cookies or chips in the house and I had a big problem with portion control. Now, I just don't bring in the house food that I have trouble controlling what I eat. It has been amazing how much easier it has made things to do this.

I would second the idea of just not buying them to begin with. It's easier to say no if you just don't buy it. I've also found that taking the time to map out a shopping list helps. I look at the ad a few days before I'm going shopping and scope out sales on what I know I want and take the time to try and develop a menu, match coupons, etc. If it's not on my list, it doesn't go in the shopping cart. Not only do I not want to spend all that time planning for nothing, but it gives you in the frame of mind for getting the good-for-you stuff before you even enter the store. Then there's the added benefit of figuring out sale patterns and such for saving more money on things that is more beneficial to you.

Plus, remembering that the bag of cookies that has natural/organic or some other catch phrase on the front doesn't automatically mean it actually is better for me helps. Especially if I buy it, and go home and eat half a bag.. which goes back to step one of just not buying it to begin with. I can save the money for something I know I'll want once the weight is gone :)

One thing I ask myself on everything I put in the cart is: Does this food do anything that makes me healthier? If, yes, then I ask: Does it have anything in it that makes me unhealthier?

I find that asking this makes it more likely that I come home with food that is healthier for me overall. All of that said, even if a food is healthy for me, if I find it hard to control how much I eat of it then I don't bring it home. (I may still occasionally have that food, but only in a single serving size away from home).

A big part of the weight-loss process for me was learning how to engineer my environment so that the foods I have trouble controlling myself with are not so easily in reach, and foods that are on plan are more easily in reach.

To give specific suggestions, I need to know more about the treats you say are causing you trouble. What are they? Where do you get them from? What time of day and under what circumstances do you succumb to them? Are you feeling genuinely hungry when you turn to them or is it more of an appetite or recreational eating thing?

I am sure the collective wisdom of this board has stared down whatever it is you are struggling with - just tell us a little more about it.

Before you eat it, take a moment an imagine snacking the unhealthy snack. Imagine how fatty it feels in your mounth and how unsatisfied you feel afterwards. Manipulate the image in your head! Does it really make you feel better?

Some time ago it worked for me that I put a sign on the kitchen door (or wherever you keep the snacks): “If hunger is not the problem, eating is not the solution.” And if you're hungry – wouldn’t you rather have a nice healthy meal, when you sit down and enjoy it?

Try replacing your favorite treats with something healthier.

For instance, instead of a candy bar or piece of cake... have some peanut/sunflower/almond butter and a tablespoon of dark chocolate chips

Also, I still eat every food I ate previously, I just eat less of it and count the calories into my daily total.

My house is FULL of junk food thanks to my dad and husband and stepdaughter. It hasn't been a problem for me. If I want a treat, I have a treat- either like I said, something healthier OR the regular stuff, but in a quantity that doesn't take me over my calorie limit.

When I get a snack, I always take out one serving and put it in a bowl/plate, then put the package away.

Some foods I package into serving size containers as soon as I open it- then if I want some, I just grab a serving.

Another tip: "treat" yourself to healthy things- like a piece of a favorite fruit or some special tea.

Personally i think the snacks that nikolette has listed constitutes about a days calorie intake. They maybe healthy but they are too high in calories to add in between meals. well the almonds, hummus and peanut butter are anyway. These are pretty good foods in themselves but i think you can do much better. Although the hummus and carrots would make a good lunch. Personally i'd eat with bread and be done with it.

Ok, my advice: It would be better if we knew exactly what you were eating but here are some general ideas.

Ditch the treats altogether. Just get away from the idea of treats and rewards. Losing weight should be its own reward. That's what i find. Make your normal food good and yummy.

Don't try to starve yourself. Make each meal of enough calories to get you to the next meal.

Keep your meals close together. e.g. i have breakfast whenever i get up in the morning. if at about 8am, i would have lunch between 12 and 1pm and then dinner around 6pm and be done with it by 7pm. Nothing else to eat after that is ideal.

Then if you do find yourself a bit peckish between meals, you can eat something like fruit. Have as much as you want. Fruit i mean. Its comparatively low in calories. But really try to only eat what you need.

You need to practice your resolve and commitment when on a diet. You need to learn restraint. So set yourself up to have a bit of practice.

Don't be laying traps for yourself everywhere by having things lying around that can ruin your efforts. And if you do, e.g. nuts, have a rule where you can't snack on them but they have to be part of a meal. e.g. i put 5 walnut halves into my salads. they really improve the already very nice salad.

I also like a glass of wine (a cupful) in the evenings. i often have it at around 5pm. This gives me the calories i need to get me to dinner and i'm not really tempted to have more most of the time.

At one point i noticed i should either have a glass of wine or a bowl of fruit salad. Anyway i shake it up . I don't always do the same thing but these are some of the things i do. And i find they work.

Also don't restrict your calories too much if you are counting calories. If you find yourself always hungry then you are probably restricting too much.

One more tip, think about your diet as learning a new relationship with food. You are learning to eat for the rest of your life, not just a few months. Because if you don't make this a long term thing, you will get fat again and in no time. This is for every and that means you can never really slack off.

Every time i've done that, i end up back at square one. I still relish the times that i did get skinny but this time, i really hope its forever. And that is why what i eat each day is enjoyable and good quality and i know i can eat this way for the rest of my life.

This is a YMMV kind of thing. While that may be ideal for me, I could never lose weight with that kind of schedule. I do much, much better eating about 5 or 6 times a day, at least a couple of them in the evening. I stay up routinely until after midnight and I couldn't tolerate not eating after 7 pm.

I eat an ounce of nuts almost everyday. Yes, they are high in calories but they are good for you and I like them. So I measure them carefully. I manage my day to have them. I eat pistachios which I have to shell so it takes a long time to eat them and they are very filling.

I also often eat hummus as a snack. I often use baby carrots to eat them with. Again, I measure them out carefully (70 calories for 2 Tb.) and have no problem eating them and staying within my calories.

I don't love peanut butter so rarely eat it. My husband eats it almost every day. He has lost 65 pounds and is within 10 pounds of his goal weight. Again he does keep track of how much he is eating.

I do think fruit is a good snack. I often have half a cup of berries as a snack. But, higher calorie snacks can be eaten sometimes as well. My meals are usually not that high in calorie so I have the calories available to have nuts as a snack, for example. I do think it helps a lot to not have foods in the house that you have trouble with portion control on. For example, I have no problem with measuring out my portion of nuts or hummus and sticking with it. I would have problem with measuring out a serving of cookies, so I just don't have those in the house.

That is what works for me. But, it may not work for you. I think everyone has to figure out what will work best for that person.