The FastDay Forum

Hi!

My main challenges for maintenance are that I still use food as a reward at the end of a day, and that I eat out of habit when watching the television. And then the hunger monster takes over!!

I am very interested in hearing what you do as alternatives to eating in these situations - how do you reward yourself or distract yourself (on a daily basis)?

At the end of a hard day (even tho I'm nowhere near maintenance.) I will put in my headphones & bliss out to guided meditations - some by Darren Marks, William Rand, Jon Kabat Zinn & Ken Cohen. By working through progressive relaxations & visual journeys help me stop thinking about food & keep my perspective of the long view of why I'm doing this. I really look forward to that time in my "mind palace".

A long, hot, blissful bubble bath....mmmmmm.....

A good one this. I just don't eat! I am fortunate I have never been an evening snacker, more of a day time grazer. On fast days I just tell myself not today, you can have it tomorrow. My grazing on feed days has just about stopped, I just do not want it. I have a piece of cake with coffee, on Sundays I have a proper pudding with the roast. Do you know, I can honestly say I no longer reward with food, I just get on with life. In the evenings I mess about on my iPad or knit!

[carieoates]

This is interesting as I don't feel like I need a reward anymore. I have however been on loads of clothes shopping trips as I have shrunk. Now that's a treat.
Fizzy water with fruit in when it's hit is nice. Put cucumber, strawberries lime in a jug of ice water in the fridge, very refreshing.

I'm with carieoates - I am learning how to resist food as a reward but I LOVE clothes now and have to be strict with myself because clothes shopping is no longer a depressing experience.

Gosh......is there such a thing as an alternative to food as a reward? Who knew.....?

I've spent over 40 years using food....and only food. Will follow this thread with interest!

Thanks for starting it @Sassy1

To stop myself eating at night I cross stitch and knit. Eating at night isn't my problem it's the day i struggle with.

Clothes!!

Today I am wearing a short-ish skirt and a crop top - it's the first time I've ever worn a crop top outside of my house (have a sports one I wear in my living room when exercising). That's more than enough of a reward and motivation not to eat too much LOL.

Otherwise I often avoid TV etc and have a bath at the end of a fast day and listen to some kind of relaxation thing on you tube to help me to sleep.

4 days of the week I go to the local (tiny) gym at 6pm. The HIT part of the exercise seems to just stop my appitite dead. So even on fast days I go home and am indifferent to food for a good few hours, so I tend not to eat.
As for rewarding myself, its clothing for me as well, or the thought of clothing that I will be buying just before my hols. A promise of a spa day whilst on hols is also a good one.
A more mundane activity I sometimes use is to give my feet a good foot soak with epsom salts. It helps me to sleep sometimes.

[Tracieknits]

I like to plan my next vacation. We take one every year. I'll get books or magazines, and go on Trip Advisor

Yes good post/good question! I must admit to holding reserve for something before bedtime as fear will not sleep if hungry. At the moment it is Greek yogurt with fruit and granola... just a small portion and on colder nights it was the hot chocolate low cal drink.
I think I will 'reward' self with some item of clothing or even bag/shoes when past certain milestones so that will help me stick to diet.
I miss a biscuit with tea/coffee so have a Sula diabetic/no sugar sweet at 7 calories each. Lovely liquorice one if you can find it.

My mantra for the day is "fat burning mode" ....

As a long time maintainer of a significant weight loss, I have to say that long term food is STILL my favorite reward, and pretending I no longer wanted the foods I wanted worked for me in the short term but always came back to bite me later on.

But here's what has worked for me: PORTION CONTROL.

I am allowed to have the foods I crave, but in reasonable portions and not all that often. If there is a food that I get out of control with, I don't buy it and don't keep it in the house, but I do replace it with some other food I enjoy but which I don't end up over doing.

Not keeping stuff that I crave in the house, easily eliminates most of the problem. If I have to drive 20 minutes each way to get a particularly fabulous cream puff (which I do right now) I will eat one once a week, and after a few weeks that will go to once a month.

Interestingly, when I have done this before with several foods I have found myself, somewhat to my surprise, eating one and thinking, "This is no longer thrilling me like it used to!" Indeed, last week there was a "Free donut day" at Dunkin Donuts and I only ordered coffee, after realizing I don't really like their donuts all that much! But my goodness, back when I was eating strict low carb/no flour, I used to dream about the damn things!

So basically, for me, this has been about finding strategies that don't pit me against myself or ask me to change my basic personality. I love food. I find it very satisfying. Sharing food with my husband is one of my favorite things to do. I love it when he brings me little treats. But training him to bring me a few very expensive specialty chocolates rather than a half a pound of chocolate covered nuts has made a big difference in what I end up doing to my body.

Thanks for your helpful post @peebles - I related to an awful lot of what you wrote, especially the portion control bit!

Funnily enough, only today I bought a 6 pack of sweet popcorn @ 100 calories per bag. In the past, I have easily troughed my way through a giant family bag...after a big dinner, so I know I have got to change my approach!

Will attempt to eat them mindfully...when the occasion arises.....

Quick clarification:-

When I say "them" I do, of course, mean one single solitary packet of 100 cals popcorn...as opposed to all 6 bags in one go.......

Hopefully.......