This month I decided I was going to stop buying junk food for a while.  I’m defining junk food as any “food or food-like substance, typically high in salt and sugary goodness, that comes directly out of a box or a bag and then goes directly into my mouth.”

I want to start eating fewer snacks. That stuff, while delicious, is not good for me for so many reasons — tons of calories, bad for my grocery budget, feel physically ill after eating too much, weird flavor dust gets stuck to my fingers, zaps my energy,  over consumption leaves less room in my belly for beer and other things, the list goes on and on.

The trouble is that once I buy it and it is in my house it is impossible for me to resist. Any idea of sensible portion control goes right out the window once that bag of Snyder’s Hot Buffalo Wing Pretzels gets opened (nom nom nom). Simply by buying snack foods I am setting myself up for failure.

The only realistic way for me to not eat so much junk food is to not buy it in the first place. I’m usually pretty good about not buying stuff that I “shouldn’t buy”.  This new “no buying junk food” rule is working out well so far. I’ve gone to the grocery store a few times this month and I haven’t purchased a single salty snack.

I am leaving myself some room to eat snacks. Like if I go out to eat (which I don’t often), or if I’m a guest at a friend’s backyard party, I’ll allow myself to eat whatever I want and not feel bad about it.

I’m planning to stick with this “no buying junk food” policy for the entire summer. I may scale it back some and allow for snack food buying on the weekends.

That is all. This blog post will not self-destruct in ten seconds.