Exam/Paper writing time! NEED MUNCHIES!!!!!!
 

Hello All,
As some might have noticed but my lack of posts, it is exam time!! More scary, its law! Have to meet a lot of tight deadlines and on top of that write exams. Needless to say, the best sleep I can get on most nights is 6 hours, although I try to sleep in during weekends. So here's the thing I need advice. I am one of those emotional eaters and when I am busy/stressed I snack a Lot. I have lost 5 pounds in a little over three weeks since joining fitday and I am terrified:eek: absolutely, that I would gain it all back before exam is done on the 21st because I just have to have my munchies while I am reading/writing. I want to know what are the healtheir, preferably low carb, low cal snacks I can indulge in???
I would really like to at least maintain my weight, if I cannot lose during this time, but I worked so hard to eat healthy and exercise this past few weeks and I am loving my new lifestyle. But I just cannot resist the urge to graze while I am reading, so I need ideas!
Sorry for rambling but ya...

Cucumber slices, carrot sticks, celery sticks fit the description...but how bleh! Dip in fat-free yogurt, maybe.

Air popped popcorn is carby but good for you and low cal.

Anything that takes a long time to eat, like nuts in the shell (I love pistachios), dry cereal (choose carefully), pomegranates.

Good luck on the exams and deadlines ;). It's all worth it.

Gum, I swear by it for studying. It takes the edge off the munchies, makes you feel like you shouldn't eat because you have toothpaste breath and it's cheap. 94% fat free micro pop corn, also good.
Strawberries, watermelon, oranges, all good.
sugar free pudding cups - frozen, they take forever to eat and only have 60 cal.
flavored water

adderall... multipurpose, helps you focus and kills cravings. But seriously, just try to find healthy snacks, if it's a matter of putting something in your mouth, as stated, popcorn and gum sound good to me.

Celery sticks, sliced really thin lengthwise, works for me. I like crunchy for stress. Pomegranates are great for tv watching but kinda messy for studying, same goes for pink grapefruit peeled not sliced, you have to peel the segments one at a time too. Definitely don't take a container of anything to your desk, measure it out in a bowl so you have to get up to get more. Cup of ice maybe?

Cassie, good luck on the exams. I graduated from law school 10 years ago and had the munchies at exam time too. I constantly ate Peanut M&M's, spearmint leaves, bridge mix and nibs. At Easter time, I'd go to Walmart or some such place and buy chocolate bunnies for .99 And I wondered why I couldn't sleep. I thought it was "exam anxiety". Stupid me! But I got through. If I had to do it again, I'd eat bananas, rice crisps/thins, healthy high protein energy bars (not the ones pumped full of sugar and additives you can't pronounce), nuts, turkey pepperoni and maybe sneak in some candy sweetened with Splenda or another low sugar impact sweetener. I would use the hard candies so they last a long time.

The most important thing is to do well on your exams. Don't worry about regaining the 5 pounds you just lost. When your exams are done, you can return to eating well and exercise your brains out and lose any weight you put on. Make sure you fuel your body and your brain properly. That in itself will help curb the cravings and probably maintain your weight. If you eat junk, you'll just be hungry again in an hour and your brain will be starved. It will make studying harder. I loved law school but I don't miss exams!

Good luck on your exams!

I seed my pomegranates and put the seeds in small containers to avoid the mess when I need to. I like to freeze the seeds, grapes, pineapple, etc. I also like to get the single serving size bags of sunflower seeds in the shell, they take forever to eat! A HUGE salad works great too!

Fresh vegetables are carbs. So if you are avoiding carbs, you're going to be snacking on beef jerky, deviled eggs, and string cheese!

But if you're working carbs into your diet (vegetables are not evil, in my opinion, and they ARE carbs), I suggest measuring out a small storage bag of Cheerios, keeping it with you and if you have to snack, eat a Cheerio at a time. They will give you some good fiber, which is filling, they are low in fat, and, without milk, they're a portable snack that doesn't stick to your teeth!

Fruit and veggies are the good carbs and have natural fiber. :) Cereals, crackers, etc. are the bad carbs. I low carb (normally between 80-100g a day) and most of my carbs come from fruit and veggies.

Here's a link with the carb rating scores. It's kind of interesting. :)

Glycemic Index of Foods, GI Value

Thanks for that link:)