I come home and what do I want to do?

Eat.

Ugh. My one and only downfall. I'm very good at saying no, up until I get home around 6. Then I pick, at everything. Ok, so it isn't that bad. Its usually only 100 calories worth of stuff.  Still though I feel so guilty. The calories are still within my limit but just not quality calories.

So, I pick at things before I get done getting dinner together. Is there anyone else that has this problem? What do you do about it?

Tell me what your downfalls are! I love to know I'm not the only one.

my downfall is when baking cookies.

its awful. i end up eating 3 cookies worth of cookie dough.

honestly though, having 100 discretionary calories a day wont hurt you one bit, if you stay in your calorie limit.

:]]

I am the same way, I get home from work and all I want to do is munch.  I try to cut up some celery and throw some peanut butter in a bowl while I am cooking.  Doing the dishes while I make dinner helps keep my mind off of it.  If none of that is working I try to get some "exercise" in with my wife, that always keeps my mind off of it and has a bonus.

I used to have the same problem until I re-jigged my food day a little.  Instead of 'saying no' all day & ending up famished by 6pm I began eating a much bigger breakfast and lunch and also having a small snack just before leaving the office.

Another tip.... when preparing supper peel a carrot (courgette, cherry tomatoes, celery, cucumber) and cut it into sticks.  As you're cooking, if you feel the need to nibble you can crunch on the raw veggies rather than something less kind on the waist.

If I am feeling stressed then I do fight the temptation to gorge myself with chocolate. I think most days I do have 100-200 calories of chocolate, but all within my limit :)

If I feel the need to stuff my face I quickly pop some chewing gum in my mouth which seems to lessen the urge.

plan ahead.

if you know that everyday you come home and pick on things that aren't healthy, prepare some healthy snacks that you can grab right out of the fridge or cabinet. the idea here is to make the healthy snacks quick and easy. 

Yup, a lot of people do this.  It doesn't matter how much I ate during the day, but when I get home I want to snack on anything and  everything and usually chocolate or ice cream.  In addition to all the other great ideas here, I've started doing exercise or yoga/stretching immediately when I get home or just start in on my nightly chores. 

I also made a little rule that I only eat sitting at the table.  Much more mindful.

Yes, I do the same thing. It's usually more than 100 calories. I actually pondered this in my journal today.

I don't know what to do--after a long day, munching on something--anything is in some ways relaxing. Sigh.

I'm just going to get rid of the few things I bought thinking I will *just* have the serving size every couple days. Yeah right. My two main culprits: pretzels and goldfish.

I had a nice raw spinach salad with yummy homemade dressing (sherry shallott vinaigrette) for dinner  but I really wish I hadn't had the snacks before!

ahhh yes! i always get the munchies at this time! it happens when im at home mostly, because my dinner schedule is with my family so sometimes ill come home from somewhere around 4-6 and dinner won't be ready yet. i just can't help but go in that pantry and pick, a couple peanuts, maybe a tortilla chip, a little handful of cereal, all just like stupid little things that add up. im a picker. i always do this. as long as you manage it in your day i think its fine though, don't they say its kinda good b/c you won't be famished when you go to eat dinner and overeat? i agree with you though, i don't really feel like its that good for me haha. oh well. its better when im at school b/c i just get dinner when i'm ready and don't have to wait, which gets rid of the pickage time. i still find other times to pick though haha

If you can afford the cals then yeah, just plan ahead, and have something you can look forward to! If not, or if you just don't like the idea of a pre-dinner snack, why not try having a rule that as soon as you're in you take your shoes off, loosen anything tight, and go lie down on your bed or sofa for 10 minutes (time it even) and try to clear your mind, or visualise something positive and relaxing, like that you're lying on a warm sunny beach... works for me, I even got a CD with beach sounds and I get off that packed train feeling like a bundle of hungry tension, after my lie down I'm all blissed out and ready for a healthy dinner!

it could be worse, i work at a coffee shop filled with pastrys and all kinds of nasty goodies ALL DAY for like 6 hours... and we're super slow.... going home is a big sigh for me, i get to escape the bake case