redgirl1974's Journal, 28 October 2016

Knowing it's there has been and still is one of my biggest challenges, my wife always has chips, soda, and candy in the house, just arrrghh! lol I know you're a water drinker, myself, I turn to straight black coffee. Sipping on a cup of coffee and getting busy with other things has been my saving grace.  

I agree with Phil. Coffee is a saving grace, especially if one is not in ketosis. Nice self-reflection & self-awareness! You've got this! ☺ 

Hi Redgirl! I know it first hand. That sounds me. I have to be in constant watch for that! What has been helping me is making sure I am NOT hungry, to start with. I try to get my meal ON TIME or even just before being actually too hungry - or I get into the anxious side - hrrr! The 2nd thing that has been helping me is to have a large water container (32 oz) with water filled immediately after I have my breakfast, and I keep on refilling it; I keep it close to me. If I leave the house, I take water with me, too. Yes, I get bored with the water, so I try to make it to my taste of the day: most of the time with lemon juice (I always have a bottle of lemon juice in the fridge); I have a few different flavors of Crystal Light (if I find it without aspartame, which I am extremely allergic to), and Fit&Active Lemonade powder (found in Aldi in an incredible price, so I stocked up); I use just a little bit of the powder at the time bc I do not want to create a habit of having 'juice'. I want to stick as much as possible to the water. Hot tea (sometimes decaf coffee) also works - most of the time! LOL! Good luck! I will watch what others will have to share as well - a new trick would be nice, too. :) 

thanks NRR, I just got some WW water enhancers too and am trying to plan ahead to avoid blind eating LOL ... and yes, maybe a pm cup of coffee or hot tea will slow me down in the evenings bc thats when its the worst... urg..  

I plan out my day and was told to eat when I am not hungry so that I don't eat impulsively. I have no junk food in my house, but there are vending machines at work so the temptation is there. Luckily there is a refrigerator in my office so I bring food to work on Monday and have that as snack and lunches. The plan I am on means that I eat high carb, high protein, and I really have to work at getting in all the calories with fruit, veggies, and low-fat meats. Also, I drink water if I think I need something or have coffee with milk or a protein powder drink that is chocolaty. I think having the good stuff around and munching on that in a measured way will satisfy the forager in you - Good luck! It is hard to break habits. 

I realize that this is difficult to do, especially for those of us with kids at home, but simply not keeping junk in the house is best for my wife and me. We have slowly but surely replaced all of the garbage in our home with healthy, low or zero carb alternatives. This way, if you wanted to sit down and munch, you either think to yourself "Yuck... I don't want celery and carrot sticks again...", or you have a couple and don't gain the weight back in your down time (because there isn't much there to contribute nutritionally, but it puts something in your stomach and busies your mouth). Additionally, it has been shown that many times, your body is craving water and electrolytes when you get the munchies. Forgive me for not citing my references. So having a bottle of water or even a gatorade/powerade helps me a lot when I start having the boredom-munchies (I also keep on hand a large bag of babybel mini bell cheese wheels for just such times). Experiment. Document what works best for you and how long certain things help you alleviate that need for junk food and then continue to do that. Good luck to you either way - that's a tough situation, for sure. 

This is my struggle also and I recently discovered a Chicory Herbal Coffee called Teeccino which is caffeine free. Something about drinking something hot does the trick for me. Sometimes I will eat a small about of cheese... 

I call it mouth hunger. It has always been a problem for me. I'm still struggling with this after a year and a half on this WOE. I suppose I always will, but I must be an overcomer. 

Reading the different responses, I remember that in the past I have dealt with the 'mouth hunger' (I liked the terminology!) with popcorn, without the butter, of course. The crunchiness seem to help me. Celery and/or carrot sticks do the trick, too. 

Hi Red that has always been my bad habit also you are not alone. 

good that you evaluate yourself objectively 

If you have specific times that you're likely to want a snack, then have something ready for those times. Eating something, preferably with a drink, should stop the cravings. I think there is also 'brain hunger', when your brain wants a particular food and won't shut up until you give it some. The longer you can hold out on it the better. Go for a week, keep doing it, it will lose interest eventually.