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Any Weight Loss Will Power Tricks?
Hey
Looking for some tips and tricks to keep the willpower going, particularly in the face of stressful times! I have quite a stressful job and quite quickly succumb to chocolate bars etc in work. I take my lunch every day so have healthy food….just super unhealthy snacks!
I know the usual willpower things – ie photo of yourself when you think you look good etc.
I'm wanting to know any more obscure ones that people use to help them fend off the stress eating & munchies and keep the willpower going!!
Please….help me out!!
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17 Replies
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My number one rule is drink only water. So when you say, "Should I get a coke with lunch?" the answer is always no! Takes the thinking out of it, for one, and for two, you save a lot of money. Don't drink your calories! When you make something NEVER acceptable it's easier to stick with it.
I dont think that works for cake and cookies though 😛
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It really is all about just making the personal choice to not eat that stuff even if your stressed, I know its not much help but noone can smack your hand everytime you reach for the unhealthy snacks(wouldn't that be nice? lol), you have to just say to yourself it is not worth it and sometimes you have to suffer through the misery of denying yourself those things and find other ways to help the stress. I know when I haven't eaten enough fat or protein in my meal I tend to snack more so maybe make sure your meals are filling enough. I don't crave sweets anymore thanks to Intuitive eating and gluten free eating which helps me keep stable blood sugar throughout the day. Maybe your blood sugar is unstable and that is why you want to eat the chocolate bar. Try adding a little more protein to your lunch and see if you notice a difference in your cravings one day and just experiment with adding or taking something out of your typical meals. hope that helps some 🙂
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Oh, another thing that helps me is calculating how long I'd have to work out to burn off what I ate. Like, once I was at the gym and I went (what I thought was) hardcore on the stationary bike for 45 minutes or so. I looked down at the end and it said… 180 calories. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? That's not even a good cookie's worth of calories! I worked my butt off!
Makes me think twice now!
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like sassypants says only drink water. never drink your calories unless you are willing to burn them off. dont et too much salty foods because it retains water and might make you swell up
when you are about to eat something make sure you are hungry and not bored. always think twice 😉
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I have a horrible sweet tooth. Before I started poleing and working out, it was really hard for me to find snacks that both satisfied me and were good for me. ESPECIALLY when all I wanted was chocolate. But! Here's a small recipe for something that helped me curb my sweet tooth:
Try juiceing for 4 days to 1 week before hand. It's very hard to do, but even three days of juice seems to help cut down the sugar intake. Depending on your lifestyle, you might not be able to do a full on juice fast. For instance, I was only able to juice as a snack because of my job. But it really did help only have chicken salad and my juice blend.
Second, switch up your snacks. When I really wanted sugar (read: chocolate/that time of the month) I would make a fruit salad. Apples, cranberries, dark chocolate morsals, strawberries, and two squeezed lemons as a dressing. The natural sugar from the fruit was enough for me to go on with my day, and the tiny chocolate chips in the fruit really helped me. Also, some bubbly or a nice glass of sweet red wine ;D Ports are quite nice.
If you have a salt or crunch craving, try snap peas or an almond blend. Like trail mix, but without the dried fruit and m&ms. There are many websites that offer very healthy trail mix type recipes that you could check out :3
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CapFeb has lots of great ideas! Make sure to drink water throughout the day or your body will be thirsty but interpret it as feeling hungry. Plus water is a natural appetite supressant. Try snacking on nuts and fruit instead of chocolate but do give yourself a little treat like the fruit salad with chocolate chips CapFeb mentioned because if you feel deprived you will compensate with too much chocolate. It might also help to get someone at work in on the idea so you can support each other's healthy snacking and maybe share snacks, kind of like everyone at my work does but with unhealthy snacks, LOL! 🙂
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I WAS terrible when it came to confronting my cravings but now it is real easy. I found out that I am both lactose and gluten intolerant. I have now quit eating everything made with dairy and gluten for roughly 2 months now. The first week was difficult because you have to read the labels to just about everything you put in your mouth; but it really curbed eating processed unhealthy foods. My diet now is mostly fruits, vegtables, chicken, turkey, and organic gluten free foods. I also eat lactose free foods like Earth Balance butter, mayo, etc.. and Lactaid milk in the PURPLE carton (tastes just like 1%) as well as vegan cheeses. I don't drink soda or caffeine instead I drink water and juices. At work I have trouble staying away from junk food on my breaks so instead of buying milk chocolate I'll get dark chocolate above 75%, so then I don't feel so guilty. I'll otherwise get jello cups and gummy candies like swedish fish. I hope this helps! 🙂
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A few things, like others already mentioned..don't drink calories. 2.) Don't take any money with you, leave it in your car! haha. I work 12 hr shifts and sometimes around 4pm I'm craving sugar. If I don't have any money, I can't stop off at the vending machine. 3.) Try some substitutions. I really like the Luna Protein bars. They are different than the regular Luna bars. They're nougat-like and covered in chocolate plus have tons of protein, so you fill up without a lot of calories. 4.) Distraction. If you're really busy or caught up in a project, you can tend to forget about those cravings for a bit.
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I was in sort of the same situation; I was basically eating healthy, but the stress of my job would make me start craving sweets. I started chewing gum, and that seemed to help. You get flavor and something to put in your mouth, and it can help tide you over to your next meal. I especially like the Extra dessert flavors like mint chocolate chip.
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My biggest thing is making sure I get enough protein and healthy fat in my diet to keep my appetite from getting out of control. Greek yogurt works really well for me as a protein. I will put it over a serving of fruit sometimes. If my sweet tooth is raging I put a light drizzle of honey on the fruit/greek yogurt combo and that takes care of it.
Budgeting calories has been working for me. I use a free app from http://www.myfitnesspal.com to log my calories. Since I have my phone with me all the time it is easy to add what I eat throughout the day. So if I want something extra I'll look to see how many calories I have available and if there is enough for that 'sinful' snack. If I really want it.
I also budget one free meal a week to eat whatever I want at that meal. Conditions are 1) only one meal at that sitting… so no leftovers etc to where that meal becomes two or three 2) Don't eat till stuffed. Full is okay but not over full.
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Well about….. two years ago now my husband proposed to me- I was 310lbs. I decided I wanted to lose weight for the wedding and got down to 250lbs for my wedding. Since then I've slacked I’ve been at a plateau (which is good because I’m not gaining) but I'm going back into hardcore mode to try and loose another 25lbs.
My secret to sticking to it is to remind myself of how far I've come. That and almonds/walnuts. I HATE nuts. Won’t eat them if I don't have to. But I pack them for my "snack" every day. If I get hungry and feel the need to munch I'll have almonds and two sips of water per almond. Usually by the third almond I'm totally DONE. No more. Nope. Not doin. But occasionally I will finish them all (I only pack about 1/4cup) and if I finish them all I've got a piece of 80% dark coco that I allow myself. My "true snack" I call it. Sometimes I'm not hungry though and don't really have the desire to eat it.
I also do other things to stick to it but for me…. it's very very very difficult because I work in a candy shop and we are generally required to taste EVERYTHING to be able to give an opinion and description on it. I keep a journal with me of what I've eaten, how much I've worked out, and reminders to myself of what my goal is and why I need to stick to it.
My hardest time is after 7pm as I'm not supposed to eat after 7. This is killer for me because as a kid my family always ate dinner at about… 9pm…. sometimes 10 and then it was strait to bed. I always got used to going to bed full and happy. I struggle with this most- more so when I have to lay in bed, unable to fall asleep because I haven't eaten recently. That is my weakest moment. So I write. I remind myself why. I write a letter to myself encouraging myself and telling me how proud I am at how much I've lost. I've gone from a size 22 to a size 18/16. I can do 30 push-ups in a row without stopping. I can plank repeatedly for 15seconds each. I can do 100 squats in a row. I can jog laps around my local park. I can keep up with the children when they visit. I wear smaller clothes. I can lift myself (barely) when I pole now. To me- this is amazing and things I COULDN'T do before- not even a little.
So my advice is- pack snacks that are healthy, not just a lunch. Drink water. Remember to journal everything- it's ok if you go over on calories as long as you can see yourself do it and you remember that tomorrow is a brand new day and a new start. If you are having a dark moment- seek support. Whether it is from yourself or a friend that supports you- get support in the times that you struggle. Last of all- remember to breath. Through all this, through losing weight, "sticking to it", busting your ass, whatever- breath and remember that you are doing this for you and YOU are amazing.
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Thanks for all your kind words and advice! I really appreciate it!!
Hopefully by Christmas you'll see a slimmer me posting a beautiful, strong, pole performance video on SV!! https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_santa.gif
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WOW, STORMCAT!!!
What an amazing story you have there!!!I am genuinely SO HAPPY to hear your progress with your weight and getting healthier. You are an inspiration for everyone and it just shows that discipline, will power and just sheer guts can get you the results you want!
Keep going strong!
You will eventually reach your health goal/s as well as achieve some amazing pole milestones along the way!
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Oooopss….my bad…I meant Mitzy Blue!
I dunno why I thought I saw "Stormcat"…
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lol it was recently changed. It WAS stormcat. XD you did see it I promise.
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