To ask how often you have treats?

[Purditnin]

I have always considered myself a reasonably healthy eater. Balanced diet, not overdoing the treats, etc.

I’m currently staying with a friend’s family (DF, her DH and 15 yo DD). They’re all gorgeous and slim and sporty - and the way they eat has been pretty eye opening. Everything cooked from scratch, whole foods, lots of fish and seafood, lots of vegetables in interesting preparations, herbs and spices I’ve never even heard of.

And they don’t snack. Possibly the occasional piece of fruit and she’s baked a cake once this week, which we had after dinner a couple of times. But, that’s it. No little treats. Just three (admittedly large and delicious) meals a day.

I commented on this and DF shrugged and said “I don’t think things are treats if I have them every day. An occasional treat, for me, is once a week or something.”

I feel a bit stupid, but this blew my mind. I have ALWAYS had a little daily treat (sometimes several) and have always just assumed this was the case for everyone. A bar of chocolate or a packet of crisps or something. AIBU? If you consider yourself reasonably healthy, how often do you snack/have a little treat?

Only allow myself to buy chocolate when I'm on my period.

Don't ever buy crisps.
Sometimes will make a banana loaf or something sweet. I do eat desserts at restaurants though - I've such a sweet tooth.

Sugar is the devil.

I have a small treat after dinner, but not at other times of the day. Since I've cut the other snacks out I've managed to go back to my pre-pregnancy, pre-peri weight.

I find it quite strange OP that you mentally categorise all the "bad stuff" as a treat, whilst simultaneously waxing lyrical about your DFs amazing, home-cooked food. Surely that's the treat?

I don't buy crisps or biscuits or chocolate ever as a rule but I bake every Saturday morning, and if I want to go to the bakery for a cake on my period then I do.

I'm carrying a little spare but when I tried WW they were apoplectic about the amount of nuts, seeds, beans, olives and avocados I eat, and tried to steer me towards ultra processed things like aspartame yoghurt which I would never touch.

(I didn't actually mind the extra weight when it was boobs and bum but when my waist started thickening that was less fun. )

Staying with a family who cook and eat so well sounds like a wonderful treat to me!

This is me too. My meals are healthy. Mainly salads and veg. But my snacking is appalling dh is worse and recently he has gone from mindless snacking to pure greed, so we now need a family overhaul of the snack mindset

“I don’t think things are treats if I have them every day. An occasional treat, for me, is once a week or something.”

That’s my view too.

I don't have treats. I do eat a few squares of dark organic chocolate twice a week but that is for health reasons.

I hate the word “treats” (no idea why)

I used to love crisps but one day just stopped eating them. Don’t eat cake or other sweet things either and I’m slim and post menopause. I just don’t think about eating stuff like that - my weakness is cheese. Bloody love cheese! But I can still go days without eating it.

For the past 3 years I’ve had multiple treats. It was a bad habit I got into when I found out I was pregnant with my first because of cravings. And I’ve been pregnant or breastfeeding ever since so I’m always hungry. Growing up there was a kitkat or similar everyday and pudding at the weekend. As an adult I would probably have a treat once a week but alcohol was my biggest vice before children. So always 😆

Every day. Sometimes every hour.

Its food. Food isn’t a treat.

This is how we eat, I don't like chocolate etc every day. On holiday I'll have wine every night but only with my meal. I feel really shit if I eat processed foods and/or snack. I think lots of people are like this. I've been 'skinny shamed' for it in the past - I'm a normal weight but the rest of my siblings all struggle with weight.

On Friday, Saturday, Sunday I eat whatever I want, takeaway, alcohol, ice-cream, chocolate, a whole package of Mr Kipling in one sitting if I feel like it.

Monday to Thursday I eat healthily. I'm slim.

I think the secret is that I never feel deprived. If I fancy something I know I can have it on the weekend.

I spent a lot of time with Rastafarians in my early 20s and they had this expression 'that's not food' which I took to heart. Food nourishes you. Processed junk is not food- not a treat. I have a mango or pineapple if I want a sugar hit

I eat like your friend. Lots of fish and lean white meat. Vegetables every day for lunch and supper. If I want something sweet, I’ll have fresh fruit (berries, mango etc) and yoghurt. I’m not really a fan of cake, biscuits or chocolate - they taste ‘claggy’ to me.

I was at a party at the weekend and had crisps and a brownie for the first time since May. The crisps were dull and the brownie too sweet - as others have said, I just don’t think of eating UPF as a ‘treat’.

I also only drink alcohol once a week as I go to the gym everyday bar Sunday and booze robs me of the motivation to do that.

It’s all ‘a treat’. However, in this context, I’m using the term as a catch all to refer to all snack foods, sweets and chocolates. I thought that was fairly clear, it’s common parlance and - judging from most of the responses - other posters understood what I meant.

As such, I find it quite strange that you find it strange.

Probably most days by your definition but I don’t call or consider any food a ‘treat’. Food is food, some more healthy than others.

Maybe once a week, sometimes less. If I have it in the house I’ll eat it so I don’t have it in the house (we live miles away from any shops so can’t just pop to the shop if we fancy chocolate).

If I eat shit I feel shit.

My ‘treat’ yesterday was a chopped red pepper. Much nicer than crisps imo.

It’s fantastic! Eating amazing food and going in lots of hikes. I’ve never felt better! 😊

We don’t buy anything like that or have anything like that in our house. I never had it as a kid and I’ve never believed in snacks between meals as necessary. It’s all ultra processed food and once you stop eating it you just don’t get hungry between meals or crave it. We eat it at parties basically and as soon as I have eaten or one of the kids has, we are hungry again fairly soon and wanting more of it. So I don’t keep ultra processed food in the house because I know our eating habits would change quickly!

With the fantastic levels of awareness from MNers, I'm now aware of the insidious Ultra Processed Food peddled as 'treats', which we don't buy and actively avoid in the supermarkets.

M&S even offered me a free packet of chocolate chip cookies as a Sparks 'treat' - nope thanks all the same I don't need your sugary crap!