Nighttime Munchies & Self Sabotage

With my impending lifetime status at WW, I really should be careful to stay at goal. Christmas came and went, and I, along with most people in the world, gained a few pounds. "No big deal, I can lose them," I think to myself. I'm already down 2 of the four pounds I gained.

Except.... I CAN'T STOP EATING.

Here's why I should care: To work at WW, you need to be within 2 pounds if your goal/healthy weight range. I lift weights 2-3 times per week, therefore I weigh a lot for my size. To hit goal, I actually stopped lifting weights to lose some of my lean (muscle) mass because I had stalled in losing anything for 6 months. So, I am at the very top weight for my height, and I cannot afford to be gaining more than two pounds if I want to work for the big W... and I do want to work there.

My paperwork from HR arrived in the mail today, so I *should* be fired up. I had a fantastic workout today and have eaten a super healthy array of food all day, including some really delicious and spicy enchiladas or dinner. So why in the bejeebers did I finish my dinner tonight and wonder what I could munch on next?

This has been an ongoing problem since the holidays ended, because we constantly had cookies or other goodies in the house. So a cookie or 5 here, a piece of candy there.. And voila, there appeared my 4 pounds. But the holidays are done and I'm about to hit lifetime. Why am I sabotaging myself??

What I've loved from the get go with the Points Plus program (and now the 360) is that it is so easy to eat healthy foods. Nighttime snacking on healthy, whole foods carrots and apples for 0 points is so much easier on this program than before because apples are no longer 2 points like they were in the old program. So instead choosing between of 2 points of apples vs 2 points of Cheetos (where the Cheetos would win 99.9% of the time), I can now have a 0 PP snack in the apple and stay on points for the day. This program really encourages healthy eating, healthy living, and I love that.

For the last year+, I've had very little problem making the right choices. Since I hit goal, however, I've been making horrible food choices once dinner is done. Last night I recognized that I was snacking on anything and everything after dinner because I had been wanting Mexican food all day, and I didn't get it. My husband wasn't home, I had a very busy day, and I didn't feel like cooking. When my son said he wanted pizza, I jumped on the chance to order it, using the rationale that he hasn't had much appetite lately, and I wanted him to eat. But I ended up eating 3 pieces of the large pizza... followed by a few goldfish crackers.. and some Skinny Cow chocolates.. and then a few more. I blew through a large part of my weekly points allowance plus my 6 point treadmill run, even though I wasn't even hungry. So when my husband called and said he was picking up Chipotle for his dinner, I made him get some chips for me to stop the madness, because THAT was the void I had been trying to fill with all of the other garbage all night.

After all of that mindless ramble, the point I'm trying to make is that one should not deprive themselves if truly experiencing a craving. I could have saved myself a lot of calories last night if I had just made the Mexican food I had been thinking about all day, instead of taking the 'easy' way out by ordering pizza. The pizza did nothing for me in terms of nutrition, satisfaction, or filling me up. I have to stop self-sabotaging now that I've reached the goal I've worked so hard for. I have to remember that if I'm hungry enough for _______ (fill in the blank with garbage food), I'm hungry enough for an apple. Chances are, I'm not. And chances are, you aren't either, so put down the chocolate and step away slowly. I hope my gluttony will help at least one of you identify your reasons for mindless snacking and help you to stop.