Here’s where the truth comes out! While overall my diet would be considered very healthy, I do myself follow the 80:20 rule. There are a lot of ways to define this (for example, the Japanese say “eat until you’re 80% full”, which is great advice!), how I define it is that at least 80% of the time I’m eating right and making healthy choices and the rest of the time I’m eating socially, for fun, or giving into cravings. Within that 20% I try to maintain an overall focus on what I heard another dietitian call the “Ps &Qs” meaning portion and quality.
Here are some confessions from the past couple of days.
Last night I ate potato chips laying in bed. It was great! How to manage that without undoing all my healthy eating from the day? First, I started my day off right with an hour of yoga and ate well overall. Then, I focus on the quality of my treat; I buy high quality chips, no Doritos or Pringles here, only potatoes (organic ideally) with sea salt and pepper cooked in sunflower oil. Then, I make sure I know what I’m getting into- reading the label mostly looking at portion size, carbs and calories. I allow myself some uninhibited eating (because thats reality) but also know when to put the brakes on. I find that once I set something down that it’s easier out of sight out of mind. I remind myself that if I only had 1 oz of chips to eat- when it’s gone, it’s gone and the craving or desire to eat more would have to stop, naturally. So I practice experiencing that even when there is more within my reach. In light of my afternoon snacking- dinner was grilled chicken with asparagus and a tomato salad, that made up for the carbs and calories of the snack and it was also delicious and satisfying!
An important part of managing snacking is what I call “pre-emptive eating”; it is making sure you are well-nourished and have had plenty of protein, fiber, and balanced meals throughout the day so the cravings for high calorie foods are mitigated. Another thing to consider is what you are going to eat the rest of the day related to the treat you are eating. One sweet or tasty snack does not undo the day, it’s important to think about balancing your meals for the rest of the day. Since my treat was fatty and ”carby”, I ate a low fat, no carb dinner.
Quality is also essential. I don’t sweat it too much when I have chocolate cravings, either I distract myself and let them gracefully pass or I make sure that I have on hand the highest quality dark chocolate with the lowest sugar and carb content, and of course do my best to stick to the defined serving size. It also helps to understand why you’re craving something- is it after a long, stressful day? Are you burnt out and trying to manage your energy with stimulants? Did you skip meals or not eat well earlier? One theory out there is that since chocolate is high in magnesium and most people have suboptimal magnesium intake, that the body is really seeking magnesium!
I say go for it, enjoy yourself, eat mindfully and fully experience the delicousness, mind your Ps & Qs, know what you’re getting into, know when to stop, and keep yourself in balance.
What about dinner the other night? This is going to sound bad…:) You know when you’ve had a long day, you’re only cooking for one, and all you really want to do is eat peanut butter from the jar and drink hot cocoa? Well, thats where I found myself. So essentially, what I had for dinner was my favorite, low-carb sweet treat.
I take 2 Tbsp of organic, unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 Tbsp of xylitol sweetener and add just a touch of hot water- enough to dissolve and have the two ingredients mix well. To this delightful mixture I add 2 Tbsp of nut butter and mix well. The other night I had cashew butter and I made myself two servings of this gooey, chocolatey treat! Now, the xylitol is a low calorie, naturally-derived sweetener (my favorite), the cocoa is high in antioxidants and magnesium, and the nut butter is all natural and a good source of protein (keep in mind that cashew butter is higher carb than other nut butters…). So overall, for a treat, it’s not bad! But two servings? For dinner? Yep, and you know what- I didn’t feel guilty at all! Also, importantly, the next day I had a balanced, nutritious breakfast and continued to eat right throughout the day.
Now that I’m thinking about it, I think I’ll have one serving of that when I get home! Yummy. I’ll make it with almond butter and follow it up with a high-intensity interval workout with weights.
I’d love to hear about your challenges, strategies, and try to answer any questions; so feel free to leave comments!
Happy snacking. In Health,
Kathleen
So please, enjoy your treats, make sure they are high quality, and maintain your life balance for health!
great post – many, many thanks!
So I did as I said last night! I mixed my 2Tbs of cocoa powder, 1 Tbsp of xylitol, a little bit of hot water, and 2 Tbsp of almond butter. I must say it was SO good! It was like eating chocolate icing or cookie dough (both of which I do not generally eat under any circumstances and both of which are often better eaten by spoon straight out of the container….). I sat down after a day of work, fully enjoyed my healthy and decadent treat, completed 30 minutes of high intensity interval strength training, and then cooked a nutritious dinner. I had about 1 cup of an organic pork sausage/lima bean/potato/swiss chard one pot meal. What a great way to end a day.