Living with someone who has awful eating habits...

I just recently moved in with my bf for the first time and I absolutely am loving it. HOWEVER, his eating habits are just awful. Before I lived with him I ate really healthy most of the time and I would shop organic whenever I could afford to. He went on his own shopping trip and when he came back he had stocked the house with beer, soda, sugary cereals, chips, and ice cream. These are all things that I love. The problem is when these things are around it's really hard for me to practice self control. I have no problem avoiding these things if they aren't in the house. I have gained about 5 lbs. already. :( I know 5 lbs isn't much but at this rate it is quite a bit for me. I am going running today and I plan to go buy some more healthy snacks. Any tips on how to avoid the junk?

Living with a husband who is much the same, the advice I can offer is this:

• View these foods as "his".  They are not yours, therefore, are off limits.  You might even give him a cabinet just for his "junk", which would make it easier for you to just ignore it.
• Find yourself substitutes for when he is eating a huge bowl of ice cream or a half bag of chips.  For me, Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches are a great dessert, and fresh veggies with a bit of ranch dressing help the chip craving.  Who knows, maybe it will rub off on him!
• Allow yourself small amounts of these "junk" foods every once in a while.  Be sure to measure out your portion then put the container away - when you are done you are done.  I've actually lost my taste for a lot of them after eating healthy for a couple of months.
• Maybe suggest that you will be responsible for shopping and cooking for the two of you.  Hasn't completely worked for me in 13 years of marriage, but for the most part, I control what we have for dinner.  One healthy substitute at a time, or they will revolt.
• You might try actually talking to him, if you haven't already, and mentioning your dilemma and see if you can come up with a solution together.  (I know, I know, talking with the man is a far-fetched idea )

The big thing is, you are the only person you can control.  You can't really control what he does, but you can control what you do.

I can vouch for the Skinny Cows...even my man will eat them and he is a picky eater

Laughing Cow squares on Water Crackers is my snack at work along with Veggies and Fruit. Earth Fare has a Diet Trail Mix that is yummy but I still won't overindulge because of the nuts.

I don't know why men don't like to eat alone but you have to watch out for the "Baby try this" or "Aren't you gonna eat with me" as well.

Don't nag him or he will tune you out, or as my friend Jocelyn's fiancee did, try to sabotage your lifestyle change.

I don't know why men don't like to eat alone but you have to watch out for the "Baby try this" or "Aren't you gonna eat with me" as well.

haha this is so true... why do guys do this? he actually gets offended when I won't eat with him.

I dunno...maybe because we as a society associate food with comfort and social settings. Fortunately my man does not do that to me but I do get it from my family. Part of Southern Hospitality is offering food to visitors. At least they eat healty (my dad has a garden with tons of great veggies) but that doesn't help me when I know I have hit my daily calorie count already and they are offering me low-fat yogurt in a waffle cone LOL

There's no one easy answer for this, and different things work for different people. (I'll just get to some advice now. hah.)

1. Try separating your food from his. Sure you have to share the same fridge, but just make a clear line down the middle. The fault in this is that it requires self-control...but what doesn't. It might be somewhat of a help to see clearly the 'good' and the 'bad'.

2. Keep frozen yogurt or something crave-worthy. So if you unfortunatley are forced to watch him eat a bowl of ice-cream, you can grab your frozen yogurt. (I know this is weird, but try pretending that he is eating something healthy like you are...)

3. I know screaming at them to stop buying tempting junk is out of the question, so instead, maybe try introducing them to some of your stuff.