I eat when I'm cold

Stebby

Stebby

Cathlete
This was a very strange revelation for me! These days, whenever I am at home, I seem to eat non-stop. I have been having a very hard time kick-starting my weight loss again. I did quite well over the summer and early fall (about 10 lbs off), but have since gone up a couple of pounds and am now stalled since about November.

Yesterday, when I was reaching for yet more cheese and crackers, I detected the fleeting thought "maybe this will warm me up". Whoa baby! Then I suddenly realized that I've been having that thought every time I eat or drink something I don't need. It doesn't even always make sense - sometimes it's when I'm having a beer! Anyway, I'm going to try a couple of things today: (1) drink herbal tea and hot water through the day; (2) stay away from "cold" foods (salads, cheese, cold fruit, cold sandwiches) and eat warm foods instead (soup, steamed veggies, roasted sweet potato, spicy chicken). A lot of the foods I like are cold, so I am going to have to keep watching myself. So far I'm enjoying my tea and hot water (I'm alternating between the two of them). Now, as long as I don't degrade into hot chocolate...

:)

Stebby
 
I used to do this too! Besides hot beverages, have you tried slicing an apple, sprinkling cinnamon, and zapping that for 30-45 seconds (depending on the slice thickness)? That's also a nice warm snack, low calorie, and gets an extra serving of fruit in :D
 
Thanks, that's a great idea! Boy, that does sound yummy and it might satisfy my sweet tooth which also seems to act up in this weather. Maybe I'll throw on some raisins too.
 
I like hot herbal or green or white tea.

If it's too hot to drink right away, the hot mug can warm your hands!
(And tea has 0 calories---unless you add sweetener or it has something else in it).

And there are so many different flavors of herbal teas, that you can have a variety throughout the day (when doing my 'clear liquids only' colonoscopy prep day, I ended up having mostly teas: mint or lemon in the morning, camomile or some other calming blend in the evening).
 
Thanks for the suggestion, Kathryn. I'm off to buy some more herbal teas! I already have green tea and chamomile citrus herbal tea at my desk. But I really like the idea of having mint tea and other flavours.

So far today I've done well. Now I'm leaving work to go home, I'm not feeling cold and at this point I don't have any cravings. My most challenging time is evenings, but as long as I keep drinking my teas I shouldn't fall into mindless eating.

I think that, in addition to eating to stay warm, I've also been eating when I should have been drinking! I definitely don't drink as much water in the winter as in the summer. I'm probably dehydrated.

Stebby
 
Stebby said:
I think that, in addition to eating to stay warm, I've also been eating when I should have been drinking! I definitely don't drink as much water in the winter as in the summer. I'm probably dehydrated.

Stebby
Click to expand...

ITA! It is often said that what we often interpret as hunger is actually thirst.

I love your idea of tea -- I have some green tea with fresh lemon juice in the afternoon when I am cold and not-quite-full after lunch!
 
You're not alone! :) I've realised this over the past couple of weeks. We've been having the coldest winter for a few years and I've noticed that I can't stop eating. Not necessarily always junk, but just needing to eat anything pretty much constantly through the day (and late into the evening).

I like the sound of the sliced apple as well.
 
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