Dieting Strategery

First things first, we can all thank my husband for the title of this post.
On to the next order of business.... I did not do so well this week on my diet. I had McDonald's for breakfast one morning and snacked on some chocolate throughout the week. Ugh. Why do we women love chocolate so? It's so hard to resist! But, I did managed to keep up with my workout routine.

I've been pondering the question this week: Is it such a bad thing to sneak a snack, cookie, or have a meal out once in a while? My thought, no it's not. I think the problem comes when we eat nothing but junk all day (or all week even) and slack off on exercise.

So, how do we avoid overeating on the foods that offer us no nutritional value and still keep some treats in our home? Here's what I've come up with:

First of all, figure out what foods you can live without and what foods have to stay.
Make a list of all of your favorite foods that you tend to overeat on. Cross off any foods that you know you can live without and find substitutions for as many of the remaining items that you can.
For example: I like ice cream and that's something I'm not sure I could ever give up. So, instead of crossing it off the list I found a sensible solution, Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches.

Secondly, understand portion size in relation to your family.
For example: If you have a family of 5 and you want to have chips with your sandwiches. Don't buy one bag of chips for each family member. Instead buy one bag for the whole family. Then each person gets a handful of chips which will satisfy the craving and also leave none left over for binge eating.
Another example: If you have a three person family, it's probably not a good idea to make dozens of cookies or a pan of brownies for dessert. Instead, make it an out-to-dinner treat because restaurants will give you a single serving size. That way you're not tempted to eat the entire pan or tin yourselves.

Thirdly, plan ahead.
If you know Sunday's are always busy and you always go out to eat after church, plan ahead and make Saturdays' meals or Sunday morning's breakfast really healthy. Make sure you keep up on exercise if you know your going away and will be eating travel food all week. If you know you're having guests over on Thursday and there will be lots of left over foods and desserts, don't make desserts and high calorie meals earlier in the week. Having a weekly meal plan really helps cut back on take out and helps you visualize what you are actually eating week to week.

Lastly, just don't buy it. If you know you'll struggle with a certain food, just don't have it in the house. DO keep lots of fruits and veggies, peanuts or granola out to munch on. Keeping healthy foods readily accessible definitely helps in making better snack choices.

OK, now how about you? What foods do you struggle with? Have you found any healthy substitutions for that food? Any ideas on how to keep binge eating at bay? Link up or leave a comment!

To view my first weight loss post, click here. Next week I'll be talking about processed foods and how it can effect behavior.

Last week's weight: 141.0
This week's: 140.6