For more on Nutrition, check out our E-Book ==> Eat What You Want
or Join one of the growing Online Teams ==>Eat What You Want or Eat and Lift What You Want
Preventing Snaccidents and Protecting Those Macro-Malfunctions
by Jacky Bigger, MS
Snaccident (n) – Eating an entire pizza/ box of chocolates/ family sized bag of chips by mistake.
Go ahead and add that in Webster.
But for real, if you’re like me cutting weight on any type of diet plan or just trying to eat healthy in general, odds are that a snaccident or two have thrown you off. I know I have. Whether it is half a jar of peanut butter, 3 packs of pop tarts or even entire pint of Ben and Jerrys. Snaccidents happen and can potentially be a recipe for disaster and lead to a downward spiral of regret, guilt and continued over eating if not handled correctly.
Being a high-level athlete in a weight class sport, I constantly have to monitor my food intake and body weight. Because of this, I use to place way too many restrictions on myself and on my diet. It was unsustainable and eventually always ended in one snaccident, then another, then another. My weight would get out of control. My performance in the gym would suffer, and I would be completely stressed daily about my food and weight. From there I would return to all the restrictions that I had placed on myself previously. It turned into a continual cycle of too many restrictions followed by too many snaccidents. I’ve FINALLY, after lots of trial and error, gotten it under control. So I’d like to share with you some of the things I’ve learned to help prevent the evil snaccident in the 1st place.
Let’s start with how to prevent them in the 1st place. I’m sure many of you have heard the things I’m about to tell you before, but I’m going to tell you them again, because they work. Let’s start with grocery shopping.
1. Don’t buy trigger foods – For me, as mentioned above, these include Pop Tarts, peanut butter, ice cream or really just any yummy snack. I use to continue to buy them, each time telling myself “This time, I’ll have self-control!” “This time will be different.” This only led me to ending up hungry after a big day of squats eating all my Pop Tarts in one sitting. It’s best to just not buy them at all. To feed off of that we’ll go to #2.
2. Don’t go to the grocery store hungry. – I’ve heard this one over and over, and still always make that mistake. When you go to the store hungry, you are far more likely to buy those trigger foods that I talked about above. I suggest that you eat before going to the grocery store, write a list, and stick to it.
3. Separate your food into serving size portions/don’t buy in bulk – I’m only responsible for cooking and shopping for myself. I don’t have a family to feed, so there is really no reason for me to buy my foods in bulk. Having more food lying around the house makes me more likely to over eat. So, if your situation is similar to mine, it’s best to shop for a week at a time, rather than stocking up.
However, if you are cooking for a family, or really enjoy bargain shopping, you may have no choice but to buy your foods in bulk. If this is the case, when you get home from the store, take the time to separate your foods (especially any snack foods that you’ve bought) out into serving size portions. This helps prevent mindless eating, and makes you better aware of the amount of food you are consuming.
Now, what about those nightly cravings? You’ve survived the grocery store, and you managed to leave with only 1 to 2 healthy snacks. You’ve eaten dinner, but you’re still “hungry” and want to eat everything in the kitchen. Sound familiar? Here are some things that work for me.
1. The age-old trick, Drink a glass of water and brush your teeth. – This one’s simple. Chugging water fills the stomach, at least momentarily. Also, who wants to eat right after they’ve just brushed their teeth? Not me.
2. Drink a glass of wine, or have some tea – Odds are, you’re not just hungry, you’er just bored. Drinking wine (which I hate to recommend, but I’m going do because it works) keeps you busy, relaxes you a bit and takes your mind off of food. Tea has the same effect. I’m just not the biggest fan. Plus, one glass of wine a night, or every couple of nights is much better than eating the entire contents of your refrigerator.
3. Leave room in your macros- I myself, and most of us here at Mash are macros people. I’ve found from trial and error that I crave food and am the hungriest at night after training. This seems to be the case for most people in general. So, what works best for me is to eat smaller meals and less during the day, and same a good majority of my macros for a big dinner and a nighttime snack.
4. “Close” your Kitchen – This is one that I learned from my mother growing up. Seems as though I’ve always craved food at night even when I was younger. I would always tell my mom “I’m hungry, I need a snack.” She would reply with “Nope, the kitchen is closed.”
After dinner/dessert, do the dishes, wipe down the counters, tidy up the kitchen, and turn off the lights. “The Kitchen is Closed!” Plus, if you’re like me, you enjoy waking up in the morning to a clean kitchen and an empty sink. This is one way to make that happen.
And lastly Ladies, this one’s for you…
5. Know your cycle – After tracking and marking things down in a planner, I’ve found out that 2-3 days before I begin menstruation, I lose all self-control and eat everything in the ENTIRE house. I literally cannot control it, and I know I’m not alone. However, I at least know when to expect it and to plan for it. I allow myself to have the extra snack or two knowing the reasoning behind my cravings. Awareness helps.
These aren’t exactly fail proof plans and aren’t backed up by any research studies (that I’ve looked into), but they work for me. Using the suggestions listed above I’ve managed to keep them at a minimum, and can get right back on track if I do happen to over eat one night.
For more on Nutrition, check out our E-Book ==> Eat What You Want
or Join one of the growing Online Teams ==>Eat What You Want or Eat and Lift What You Want