Snacking is a huge issue for me (and always has been), especially because most of the time I want a snack, I'm not even hungry. Mindless eating is no good. So is picking up total and complete JUNK to snack on All. The. Time. No, just no. It's certainly not hard to change your eating habits. The only "tough" part is getting past yourself: be it a lack of willpower, stress, boredom, motivation, or all of the above. I personally just had to find other things to do (like writing blog posts!) because I'm off from school and home alone.
YOUR GUIDE TO THE MUNCHIES
- You've gotten the munchies. Perhaps you were doing something and got really bored with it, or maybe you were just bored overall. Something or someone has caused a craving for an oh-so-delightful goodie that you just can't get out of your head. Like when you have a crush on someone and you can't stop thinking of them, except this time what you want comes in a rainbow of colors and has chocolate under the candy coating... And now you just wanna snarf down a zillion portions of whatever it is you want.
- STOP. Drink a few swigs of water (yes, water--no substitutes allowed), and go sit your behind back down and go back to doing whatever you were doing. Are you out and about? Replace the water with a few mints and follow the rest of the directions.
- If after ten minutes you are still hungry for what it was you wanted, go get it. I'm serious. BUT, with some modifications:
- Eat from a bowl/serving dish. Don't cradle that container like it's your firstborn and snack away as your focus is on some other task. You might end up with a bloat that I call the food baby. That little pooch you get when you still eat even though you were full a loooong time ago.
- Stick to the correct serving size and eat sloooowly. Your body needs time to register that you are giving it food and it will get full. You may end up full before you even finish everything. You may not even be in the mood to eat the rest. Give yourself time to understand your body: it's not as fast as your brain. Don't eat too slowly now...you want there to be a gap between meals!
- Now go, be off on your merry way and don't feel bad that you ate. Seriously, you eat to live!
Isn't she lovely? Behold more than 2 pounds of bite-sized, chocolatey, delicious, amazing goodness. Anyone that knows me knows that a Whitman's Sampler chocolate box is my ultimate weakness (read: get me one of these and I will love you forever...I'm looking at you DB!). My love for chocolate just skyrockets upon receiving one of these boxes that are full of truffle-sized beauties. In my last post, I told you guys that the chocolate box was for all of my family to enjoy (about 13 of us) during the Christmas festivities. But we all know who was responsible for this:
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| Kellogg's Special K Bars: Something sweet and crispy. Strawberry and Chocolately Pretzel flavors. This way I can sneakily get my chocolate fix without too much damage. Mom buys these for me at Costco. Yay for these little 90 calorie bars! |
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| What the Special K Strawberry bar looks like. Mmm...sugary glaze-y thing on cereal and dried strawberry bits. |
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| Sensible Portions Garden Veggie Straws: Also from beloved Costco and the variety pack comes in these plain flavored straws, plain flavored chips (so redundant, it's the same salt flavored thing as the straw, just in chip form), and ranch flavored straws. They're crispy and airy and hit the spot and make a decent substitute for potato chips. |
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| Add some fruit to your diet! Mom found these humongous, gorgeous, sweet, delicious mangoes that I've been devouring when I really want something cold and juicy and sweet. I think they are Ecuadorian mangoes. I've read that mangoes are good for your skin, loaded with vitamins, and are high in fiber. Go do some research and enjoy one of these things! |
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| These leftover mini candy canes from the holidays are great for when I'm trying to avoid snacking out of boredom. The peppermint is refreshing and I get my sugar fix without the accompanying fat like some other things... *ahem, chocolate* |
When I'm at home, I typically snack between all three meals: one between breakfast (if I wake up early enough for it, hehehe) and lunch, and one or two between lunch and dinner. It sounds like a lot but I've been eating in smaller portions now so I am actually eating when my stomach growls.
Now, I have not been perfect. Nor did I expect to be within one week of trying to discipline myself. As winter break is dwindling to a close, I have been baking ALL THE TIME. I love, love, loooove to bake and I have basically run my household dry of basic dessert ingredients like butter and sugar. Wooops. I have made almond-orange biscotti, chocolate chip biscotti, cranberry-orange bread, and pineapple upside down cake this past week. I know, and it has been really hard to control my sweet tooth. I keep hoping Mom and DB will eat things for me but truth is, I am guilty. I think once school starts I will be too impatient to bake and then all will be well in this soon to be dessert-barren household again.
Start small. I haven't even started to exercise this week. But as you have seen, cutting down on excess eating (eating when you aren't hungry and eating more than you really need) has made a huge difference for me. My stomach has de-puffed a bit as well as my face and neck area. I look more fresh and alert because I'm eating healthier (amounts and types) of food. I feel happier now that I've made a little progress, which for me is motivation and incentive alone to keep at it. I try not to feel too bad about splurging here and there, but I will also try to be more strict with my plans.
Nothing special has really been going on lately. Blog is not on the forefront of my mind as I have to clean my awfully messy room before school starts. And I've really just been enjoying my time off. I know this isn't a food blog even though it's starting to look like one, but I have recipes I would like to share in future posts: granola, baked ziti, and pineapple upside down cake. I'm sure once I stop cooking and go back to school I will have other things to talk about for those of you who are not looking to lose weight or experiment in the kitchen. I'll be sure to take a break from foodie posts and talk about other stuff.
Happy trails,
Sweeney
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor or any type of medically-trained individual. The diet/exercise I mention and may mention in future posts work for me as an individual and are to be taken as is. Please consider your own health conditions and/or please consult your doctor before you embark on a new regimen. Note for things such as food allergies and medications that may keep you from trying out foods I may mention. Don't go getting sick, now! Be responsible with your health and do what's best for you. These are things that work for me and it is not my position to determine whether they are suited for you.
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