Last week, I wrote about mechanisms for sustained success – and I happened to use weight management as the example from which to illustrate the points.  Here share 3 Tips (or Practices) that have helped me stay on the Food Management success track.

3 Practices for the Food Management Success Track

stash a snack – Back in the day, I would get myself together to run a bunch of Saturday errands and never properly fortified myself!  This would lead being HANGRY (i.e. anger caused by extreme hunger) such that I was forced to make poor decisions – like to picking up a bag of licorice at Michaels, or stopping at Dunks for more than a coffee.  Now I prepare by either:

• eating *right* before I head out (sometimes I eat my breakfast on the way to ‘town’);
• stashing some combination of the following in the car: individual packs of almonds, cheese sticks, an apple or banana; or
• getting a coffee on my way out of town

Bottom line: don’t be a victim to Hanger

grocery shop – this is sorta basic, but having a meal plan also means making time to shop for food (so one is not forced to eat ‘prepared’ foods when the need to eat is extreme); I always feel better knowing what’s for dinner WAY in advance.  I’ve written more on what it takes to get this altogether here.

wait 15 minutes – if you are not really hungry (i.e. an apple will not satisfy what you want), then try setting a timer for 15 minutes and see of you still want to indulge when that timer goes off.  I find my need to ‘satisfy’ with food usually happens when I need a change of scenery (mid-afternoon), when I am forced to do something tedious, and when I just want to be distracted.  So, when you set the timer, try to also shift your attention from whatever you were doing when the ‘hunger’ presented itself.  You could:

• go for a walk/walk around the office
• if alone – do you enjoy anything musical?  Blast some music, play an instrument and/or sing!
• declutter a surface or two (it energizes most people to work in a tidied workspace)
• light a candle, some incense, or apply your favorite lotion – scent can be very powerful!

What techniques keep you ‘in control’ of Hanger?  Have you discovered the ultimate snack to stash (for convenience of travel PLUS delicious and nutritious)?  Please share in the comments below!

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Linda Stacy, Productivity Speaker, Writer, and Coach, inspires her clients to achieve increased fulfillment, engagement, and success by way of energy management and the *brass tacks* of healthy, efficient productivity and time management.