Dieting is much harder now that I’m older

[BaldZues]

When i was younger i had great will power to avoid snacks and sweets. Now that I’m older i seem to lack the will power to resist temptation. Shit sucks i get a big sweet tooth or get home from work and raid the pantry. Every week i tell myself I’ll do better the next. I do a bit better and than i get the strong urge. Just venting and wondering what are some ideas to resist the urge? The obvious answer is i have to want it but what tips do you have. I’ve never had this issue when younger.

 

[Orkoo]

This is totally my fathers situation. Wish he made more of an effort like you’re attempting to do. I feel like the best thing to do is incorporate sweet things that are less calorie dense. Using splenda/stevia, or some sort of other sugar substitution. Maybe incorporate more fruits. There’s lots of recipes out there that satisfy the sweet tooth but keep your macros in check. Hope this was somewhat helpful. Hope you find something that works for you!

 

[BaldZues]

This is totally my fathers situation. Wish he made more of an effort like you’re attempting to do. I feel like the best thing to do is incorporate sweet things that are less calorie dense. Using splenda/stevia, or some sort of other sugar substitution. Maybe incorporate more fruits. There’s lots of recipes out there that satisfy the sweet tooth but keep your macros in check. Hope this was somewhat helpful. Hope you find something that works for you!

I actually like the fruit idea. Its seems like a good idea. Simple but effective, what i don’t like about the idea is how simple it is and that I didn’t think of it right off the bat.

 

[HopHop79]

When i was younger i had great will power to avoid snacks and sweets. Now that I’m older i seem to lack the will power to resist temptation. Shit sucks i get a big sweet tooth or get home from work and raid the pantry. Every week i tell myself I’ll do better the next. I do a bit better and than i get the strong urge. Just venting and wondering what are some ideas to resist the urge? The obvious answer is i have to want it but what tips do you have. I’ve never had this issue when younger.

I’m right here with you. 44, and I swear each year is harder than the last. The only thing I can do is just not buy the junk. The young kids don’t help either since they can eat carbs 24/7 and be fine. Im going to cut a few lbs before summer this year, and I think at this age you have a have a realistic goal if you aren’t competing. You can’t beat yourself up over it.

With that said, if you are going to try anything to get past the cravings maybe look into a diet cook book and start there. You may find some things that help and satisfy the sweet tooth without crushing calories down with them.

 

[Whopperflopper]

A spoonful of peanut butter dipped in sugar will help with that sweet tooth. Around 100 cals. Better than a handful of cookies, or a pop.

 

[BaldZues]

A spoonful of peanut butter dipped in sugar will help with that sweet tooth. Around 100 cals. Better than a handful of cookies, or a pop.

Not much of a pop guy but cookies and all the kid’s snacks are what I gravitate towards

 

[DECLAN]

Not much of a pop guy but cookies and all the kid’s snacks are what I gravitate towards

It's tough to avoid snacks if it's available since you have kids around.

I experience the same but not for sweet snacks but for fatty fried or viands full of saturated fats.

I think you can find recipes for healthier snacks like almond protein cookies or low fat/calorie ice creams. You just have to find the shops or learn baking your own.

 

[easyroller91]

try to stay away from artificial sweeteners and diet sodas theres some studies out there that have linked consumption of diet sodas to overeating which is something i noticed in myself like if i would have a diet coke with dinner i would be hungry or crave sweets but if i drank water i didnt really have any cravings

 

[DECLAN]

try to stay away from artificial sweeteners and diet sodas theres some studies out there that have linked consumption of diet sodas to overeating which is something i noticed in myself like if i would have a diet coke with dinner i would be hungry or crave sweets but if i drank water i didnt really have any cravings

This actually depends on individuals, it's a case of lesser evil. For me, just like lots of competitors, by utilizing diet/zero calorie sodas and sweeteners, I totally avoid real sugars. I weighed in the benefits against the downfall.

 

[Orkoo]

I’d have to agree with @DECLAN . Diet soda and sugar substitutes are a game changer for myself when it comes to dieting. Especially since I make almost all of my meals myself. If I have some sort of craving I go after it but with a less calorie dense alternative. I feel like diet soda’s probably aren’t the healthiest but they sure help me stick to my goals. If that wasn’t available I’d be drinking something similar like crystal light/mio squirt/eaa. Anything that satisfies that sweet tooth without the calories.

 

[T&H]

I used to eat a lot of popcorn just popped in an air popper from Walmart. Worked great, low calorie, filling, and popcorn kernels are cheap. The only reason I quit is because I was over having to get all the shells out from my teeth every night.

 

[Orkoo]

Air popped popcorn is definitely a nice cheat code. Hits that savoury craving for chips. Especially when used in conjunction with popcorn seasoning. Spray some water or apple cider vinegar on them and pop them in an oven after to get the liquid to evaporate again and really crisp the popcorn back up after applying seasoning.

 

[BaldZues]

I used to eat a lot of popcorn just popped in an air popper from Walmart. Worked great, low calorie, filling, and popcorn kernels are cheap. The only reason I quit is because I was over having to get all the shells out from my teeth every night.

Popcorn gets me bloated as hell i feel like i have to shit but can’t.

 

[BaldZues]

Air popped popcorn is definitely a nice cheat code. Hits that savoury craving for chips. Especially when used in conjunction with popcorn seasoning. Spray some water or apple cider vinegar on them and pop them in an oven after to get the liquid to evaporate again and really crisp the popcorn back up after applying seasoning.

Ill have to try that. I’ve never used the oven to evaporate the liquid. I want to try just to experiment.

 

[BaldZues]

I think I’ll try the fruit and crystal light combo. I think that will help with my sweet tooth.

 

[Orkoo]

Aww dang. You said your problem was mainly with sweets though, right? Maybe some puffed rice/rice cakes instead? Can eat those sweet or savoury as well.

 

[Smashshit]

Well I’m 44 and I was in the same boat as you up until last spring. I was the heaviest and most out of shape I’d ever been in my life. I used to do the same thing as you come home and eat junk, pack junk
In my lunch everyday etc… I finally just made my mind up that I was not gonna spend the rest of my life that way and I wanted to be around to have grandkids and be able to do things with them when that time comes. Here’s what worked for me.

I started with a tdee calculator and figured out my tdee for maintenance. Then I figured out what a 1k calorie deficit would be. I decided to go drastic because I needed some fast results to give me more motivation to really commit. Once I did all that I started making healthier food choices but my main priority was the calorie deficit. I got an app called carb manager and started tracking everything I ate even if it was a piece of cheese or 5 almonds or whatever. I don’t drink pop so that wasn’t an issue but I loved energy drinks cause I needed them to get through the day. I gave those up and went to drinking nothing but water. When I got hungry I drank water. Guess what? Most of the time I wasn’t really hungry I was thirsty and the water quenched what I thought was hunger. Also as someone else mentioned I would eat a small spoonful of peanut butter if I really got a sweet craving ( good natural peanut butter not jif or skippy type shit that’s terrible for you ). Also as someone else mentioned fruit is great for a sweet tooth especially berries. I still ate whatever I wanted but by tracking it I got better at eating better choices that weren’t as high of calories so I didn’t waste my daily calories. I still allowed myself a treat a couple Times a week so I didn’t go off on a binge too. I did this for 3 months and lost close to 40lbs. At that point I became more focused on nutrition and macros etc and really started dialing in my food. Now it’s been 10 months since I started my comeback journey and I’m down almost 70lbs total, but I’ve also put on easily 10 lbs of muscle at the same
Time, and I’m in the best shape of my life both physically and mentally. It’s been the hardest but most rewarding thing I’ve ever done. Anyway hope that helps some.

 

[Demondosage]

I’m 42 and have been in this game since I was a teenager. There is a big psychological fuck that makes it harder now than it used to be. First of all, it’s not new anymore. When I was younger it wasn’t like I had eating a million eggs every single morning over the years (not that it didn’t get old back then either, just much older now!)

When I was competing I would see myself get into the kind of condition that seemed damn near impossible to accomplish with too many responsibilities and a family, but I didn’t have that back then. So now, I look back and think to myself ,”damn dude, how you gonna do that again with everything you got going on now compared to when it was just you to take care of?” The problem with this is that it creates self doubt. That self doubt is what tells us it’s ok to fuck up and eat shit.

And last, just like I used to go the distance for bodybuilding because it was something I loved, I now have a wife and kids and sometimes I’d prefer to go the distance for them over just the gym. Dieting makes you moody, plain and simple. Dieting hard enough to get into single digit bodyfat makes you a fucking zombie, you’re physically present with your family but you really AREN’T ALL THERE.

You aren’t alone, it’s much harder for me now also. But if there is one thing I can tell you to motivate you it’s that it feels damn good when your kids ask you to do something rather than go off with their friends and wouldn’t think twice about chilling with dad because he’s nothing but an incapable fat fuck! Use that as your motivation but at the same time, don’t beat yourself up too bad over it. Just never stop trying