Soliciting snacking advice during this lockdown

@funnyTangerine6195

Hey there....

Thank you for reaching out to the Healthy Living Community. We are here to help you in anyway that we can...

As I read over your post, I noticed that you stated that you were now currently in access to "weed", when you weren't before. So my question "first" is this: Is the Weed really something that you need for medical reasons, or are you just using it for recreation purposes or out of boredom?

If its only being used for recreation purposes, then I might suggest taking a look at that, and asking yourself is this something that you can give up, or lessen, or stop using in order to decrease the fact that you state its giving you the 'Munchies"?.... Because if this is the outcome of using something that is only for recreational purpose, then it sounds like you need to start "there" first and decide if its something that you really need to continue if you wish to move forward in a healthier journey for yourself?

.....Next, if its for medical purpose, then I might ask if its something that you need to use all the time, or as needed? If medical purpose is the answer, then I might suggest that you next talk to your healthcare provider thats prescribing it and see if you and they can come up with a better plan together to move forward to help decrease the feelings you have of wanting to eat more.......

Moving forward... If medical issues aren't of a concern in the use of something thats causing your munchies, then I would also look at the situation that you are in. I see you stated that you were working and most likely "out on your own" before all of this happened. So I would ask, as far as groceries and food, who is doing the shopping in the household? Are you buying your own groceries? If not, could you buy your own? And keep your own "Healthy Stash" of snacks and foods for yourself? Where you could in turn make better choices and have better options for yourself?

As far as activity goes, Its great that you enjoy doing some good Cardio and getting your "Heart Rate" up! I know in times like this when gyms are closed or having access to things make it a little more challenging, its Great that you are still able to get outdoors when you can. And theres nothing wrong with that if you are doing it safely and alone during this time! Afterall, we all still need to get out and get "Fresh" air as much as we can. (As long as we are being safe during these times). ..... I am kind of in the same situation for example, as I'm a Fitness Instructor. So I have not taught any classes in the past month. So what I have been doing (for me) is finding similar workouts that I enjoy doing from the comfort of my home. Whether its going to 'YOUTUBE" and coming up with an option, or Live-streaming a good workout, or simply do "Interval" walking/jogging outdoors. You can find TONS of qualified workouts that you enjoy that will get your heart-rate up with YOUTUBE or ANY Streaming service like Beachbody on Demand, or something of the same sort.

There's no reason in this day and age, that we should get behind on staying active for ourselves even in the times that we are facing right now. Theres just way too many options out there to choose from. One thing that might slow us down is the "motivation" at times if we dont' have that interaction with others (as in group fitness type workouts)... and that can be a little more of a challenge. But... perhaps you can even find options through different workout apps as well. Lots of people are using ZOOM right now to video their workouts. Which also helps you to be able to interact with instructors and others! So perhaps that can be an option as well?!...

Good luck to you moving forward and hopefully some of these options will help!

I pretty much second everything @PoliteOcean has said. I'd also add, try taking the weed after a full meal or snack and see if your munchies are still as intense. I don't use weed so I'm not an expert but... The weed (and this pandemic stress) is likely the number one thing causing the increase in snacking as you've already figured out, and you may not need it especially if you've been getting along before this without it.

To cut back on evening snacking, some tips: 1) eat enough during the day, especially if you've been doing 30 to 40 min of exercise and running everyday - your body needs fuel; 2) figure out emotions that you may be trying to deal with by snacking; 3) stop the weed at night and see if that helps; 4) don't be hard on yourself for snacking more - dietary habits change especially when routine changes, and this is normal. Also guilt can lead to more snacking and the "I blew it so I might as well eat more" mentality. To prep for snacking, I really like Ocean's idea of a stash somewhere, maybe several stashes around the house. If it's literally just the weed, snack stashes can help. Are you comparing your food intake to your sister and grandmother because of limited groceries? Or because of somethin else? Everyone has different intakes, with or without snacking. Literally just thinking that you shouldn't be snacking can cause more snacking - brains and bodies can want more food when they sense we're restricting or food is scarce... evolution.

I'm confused when you say you want to stop snacking but that you use weed to work up an appetite, too... do you want / need to eat more and are now not wanting to? Have you been eating more and feel like it's too much compared to activitiy... compared to your grandma/sister?

Also why sneak cardio in? Do the cardio with purpose! As Ocean said, there are so many fun exercises to do indoors. But if you really don't feel like full on exercising, fidgeting is something I personally do a lot of just because I'm a restless person but it contributes a lot more to daily expenditure than one may think. I play with a stress ball (toss it in my hands or throw it against a wall for a game of one-person catch), tap my foot, play with my pets, pace around, clean / reorganize, dance wildly around my bedroom or shake my whole body recklessly if I'm super restless, proceed to clean up what I knocked over while dancing and/or shaking . I personally don't keep snacks near me so that I have to get up and go get them. This gives me time to think on the way "am i hungry, or am I craving xyz? will I still want to get up and eat in 10 minutes?"

Hope this helps. Goodnight