Confessions of a snackaholic

Snacking, like weight gain, brings people a lot of shame when it really shouldn't. It's something people either deny doing, or brag about. I think when people brag about the amount they eat they're almost trying to make their overindulgence comical so as to not feel guilty or embarrassed. I would know, because it's exactly what I do.

I've referenced the all or nothing mentality before, but when it comes to food it really is relevant. When it comes to dieting, people will tell you they are "not going to eat any bad food for a month". What happens when this ends or fails? Rather than learning about moderation, they overindulge, eat a whole packet of said food and are back at square one. So that's the all or nothing mentality: no chocolate or the whole share bag of Pods.

This goes for snacking too, not just strict dieting. Instead of opening a bag of Doritos and having the recommended serving size, most of us will accept that finishing the bag is on the horizon. It's so much easier to pretend we didn't eat the whole bag, than learn what a serving size is, right?

This topic hits close to home, because I'm constantly having snackcidents. There's no 1 chip consumption happening in my home, and before I actively took steps towards understanding serving sizes, I would pretend the snacking wasn't happening. So I want to give you an idea of how to account for your snacking, and rather than it being this guilt inducing occurrence, it can be apart of your daily life (a healthy part).

If you grab your favourite food, or any food, right now and flip over to the nutrition panel, could you read it? Maybe yes, maybe no. Without kitchen scales, it's almost impossible to know just how many calories you're consuming. If you're interested in buying them, I bought a $10 set from Coles that does the trick.

I'm going to walk you through exactly what I do when I buy my snacks with my groceries. I grab my chosen snack and look at the nutritional panel - you'll see it says something like "Serving Size: 25g". Beneath, it will say something like "Per serve: 135cals". Once I know the calories and serving size, I grab my foods bags and write 135 calories on the front - this isn't to form disordered eating habits, it's simply to help me remember and make the information easily accessible when it comes time to track it. Now for the boring part, I put a measuring cup on top of my scales, and fill it up until it reaches 25g - put it in the bag and into the cupboard it goes.

After I've divided all of my snacks into single servings, I've got variety in my pantry, and I've got options that are calorie friendly. You might be thinking to yourself "dividing my snacks won't help, I'll still eat a lot". That's where you might be wrong. You see, by having my food in individual bags behind a cupboard door, I'm playing with my psychology just a little bit. Let me explain.

If I grab a bag of pods from the cupboard after dinner and eat them in bed, I'm likely to eat majority of the bag. If I grab a single serving of pods, I'll most likely have satisfied my craving. Most importantly, it's unlikely that I'll let myself get out of bed, go into the kitchen and grab ANOTHER serving of pods. By dividing my snacks, I'm not just creating a calorie friendly snacking environment for myself, I'm also teaching myself about moderation, and learning that I don't need to have that all or nothing mentality when it comes to food. Instead of ruining hard work and having to hit reset, I'm allowing myself to consume foods I really enjoy. The best part is, I'm enjoying eating these foods while still reaching health & fitness goals. So when we are trying to lose fat or hit a new PB at the gym, it doesn't have to be at the expense of our favourite snacks. It has to be at the expense of this mindset that we can't have it, or we have to overindulge.

So if you're struggling with snackcidents everyday, try going right down to the basics of learning serving sizes. It might seem like a mundane task, and you might think it won't change any of your current habits, but you'd be surprised. Give yourself the chance to form new habits with your nutrition and training, rather than just saying no right from the start.

The best thing you can learn when it comes to dietary habits and fitness, is that a healthy lifestyle isn't achieved at the expense of the things you love. If you love eating Doritos, then continue to do it. If you love drinking with your friends, find calorie friendly drinks instead of cocktails so you can still do it. My only advice to you is to never sacrifice the things that make you happy - just learn how to include them in your new lifestyle.

A lifestyle that includes exercise, good nutrition AND all the things you love will be one you can maintain for the rest of your life.

Your coach & friend,

Maddy