Think Twice

. . . before you pop that candy into your mouth!  With Easter fast approaching, you're probably already tempted by all that Easter candy. It's everywhere!  But think twice before you pop even one little piece into your mouth!  The vast majority of people when asked to estimate their caloric intake (how many calories they ate) versus how many calories they burned off through physical exertion missed by nearly 50% on both, underestimating the calories they were taking in by about 50% and overestimating the calories they burned from exercise or physical activity by almost 50%.  

Here's an example to help give you some perspective: The average person has to walk the full length of a football field to burn off the calories in just ONE M&M. On average there are 50-55 M&M's in a small bag.  Unless you are planning to spend your day parading up a down a football field, those extra calories are going to end up stored as fat some place where you don't want them.  Treat yourself to a small bag of M&Ms or it's caloric equivalent in peanut butter eggs, chocolate bunny ears, jelly beans, peeps, etc everyday and you could gain an extra 24 pounds this year!!!

How Do You Resist?

Sadly, I must confess that for me Sour Cream and Onion Potato Chips are like crack . . . one is too many and the whole bag isn't enough.  If there was a twelve step program for potato chip addicts, I would be a prime candidate.  


Being a personal trainer and health enthusiast, I obviously know that chips are full of fat, salt and empty calories, and yet I crave them.  Every time I pass them in the grocery store, I must resist the urge to take them home with me.  I never buy them, because I know that I will devour the entire bag (no matter the size).  At parties and other social gatherings, I usually won't touch them, because I don't want to be the greedy guest who ate the whole bowl of chips.  However, my willpower is only so strong.  Once the chips are in my house all bets are off, so if my husband or another guest brings them to a cook-out or a party, I usually end up on a "potato chip bender."

So my question to you is do you have food(s) that really test your willpower?  If so, what food is it and how do you resist?