How to Avoid Unnecessary Snacking at Home

One of the biggest challenges people have been facing with being home all day for many weeks in a row is that they tend to go through their snacks quickly. Can you relate?

Not only is this going to be hard on your figure, but it might make you feel sluggish, and also cost you more money overall on your food budget.

Before I share some useful tips, I want you to know that just because I'm a Health Coach DOES NOT mean that I'm exempt from the stress eating, but what it does mean is that I've developed some quick and easy tools to help me not go down the deep dark rabbit hole of doing it day after day after day.

But, it wasn't always that way...you see throughout my many personal traumas (things like, divorce, car accident, losing both parents and my younger brother, my husband almost losing his arm in a motorcycle accident and then being diagnosed with breast cancer and the BRCA2 gene), there were many days when you'd find me up to my elbows in a big bag of sour cream and onion potato chips!!

They are my kryptonite LOL!!!

So here are a few of the tips that have helped me to control the snacking in the past and I think might be super helpful for some of the extra snacking you have been doing.

Keep Snacks Out of Sight

This old rule is great for so many reasons. When you see something right in front of you and are constantly reminded it is there, your brain tends to want it whether your stomach is hungry or not. Instead of having extra temptations you don’t need, keep your snacks in the cabinet, fridge, or a snack drawer.

When you are hungry, you will remember they are there, but won’t grab a cookie or handful of chips every time you go to the kitchen just because you see them sitting there on the counter.

Stay Busy and Distracted

A lot of times, snacking while at home isn’t from hunger or even cravings, but from boredom. The best way to combat this is by staying busy. Find a new hobby, learn a language or new skill, play with your dogs or kids or do a puzzle. Try to find more activities that keep you occupied during the day.

You may not know this about me, but I have a need to constantly be learning, but after my breast cancer diagnosis and 5 surgeries within 1 year and new hormone blocking medications...my brain wasn't exactly functioning well at all (it was super scary on some days, when I couldn't even form a sentence!). 

So, where I would normally look to study health, business or personal development, I knew that it would just frustrate me more than anything else. So, I looked to the creative side of me instead...and I signed up for an online, inexpensive artistic writing course. It was so much fun! No stress! No deadlines! No right or wrong!

It kept me productive and happy and moving forward instead of feeling stuck and helpless.

Know When You Tend to Snack

Lastly, be aware of your own triggers or when you tend to go for snacks. in my experience these are the biggest triggers that I see:

FRUSTRATED OR FEARFUL

LONELY

ANGRY

BORED

I've made it super easy to remember = F.L.A.B.

Think about when you get bored, or when you are procrastinating from doing chores. You might eat snacks just because you see them there, or because someone else in the house is eating. For other people, it is more likely after getting stressed from the news or to deal with difficult emotions.

None of these are a bad thing, but the more aware you are, the more you can prepare for it.

I've even put a FREE GUIDE together to help you out ('cause I know it isn't easy, especially right now!)

GRAB YOUR GUIDE HERE: 3 Ways to Quit Sugar, When You'd Kill For A Cookie!