Post by @coach_shenelle

Rule 1: Close the kitchen after dinner. Once I’ve eaten, cleaned the counters, and put everything away, I’m done for the night. Leaving the kitchen mentally “open” is how one little snack turns into four hours of grazing Rule 2: Have three boring meals you can always fall back on. I don’t need a new Pinterest recipe every night. Eggs and vegetables, salmon and broccoli, Greek yogurt and berries. When life gets chaotic, boring meals keep me consistent Rule 3: Never grocery shop hungry. Hungry me suddenly thinks everything belongs in the cart. I eat before I go because the easiest way to avoid fighting trigger foods at home is to never bring them home in the first place Rule 4: Put protein where you can see it. Cooked chicken, eggs, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, whatever I’ve prepped goes front and center in my fridge. I want the easiest thing to grab to also be the thing I actually want myself eating Rule 5: Pack leftovers before you start eating. I portion my meal and put the rest away instead of leaving everything sitting on the table. If the food is right in front of me, it’s way too easy to keep taking another bite just because it’s there Rule 6: Brush your teeth when you’re done eating. It sounds stupidly simple, but it gives my brain another signal that food is finished for the day. Suddenly that random nighttime snack feels a lot less appealing Rule 7: Catch the small slips before they become big ones. More grazing, skipping meal prep, bigger portions, constantly thinking about snacks. I don’t wait for the scale to tell me I’ve gotten off track before I start paying attention again #bariatricsurgery