• Katie Chaplin

Supermarket Sabotage

“How did that bag of doritos end up in my bag?”

“Why did I end up eating that chocolate bar in the carpark, again?”

“Why is there now a week’s worth of biscuits in my house?!”

Because the shop was simply doing its job.

It’s important to remember how supermarkets will be placing products in such a way that it makes purchasing them as easy as possible. Areas to look out for in particular are:

1)End of the aisle- junk food is often on promotion here, and this appeals to our needs to perceive value- if a supermarket can persuade us that it’s a bargain, we are likely to buy it , regardless of whether we planned or even wanted to buy it 5 minutes ago

2)Treats by the tills- this is key for supermarkets as we cannot avoid looking at these foods- we are often in a queue afterall–and they are aware that humans generally nowadays have low attention spans, so you are likely to gravitate towards these products out of boredom!

A few tips to stop you accidentally buying that family sized bar of cadburys or tub of rocky roads:

1. Write a list- this goes back to goal setting; If you have a guide and plan of what you need , you are SO much more likely to stick to it! This creates focus and means your less likely to end up wondering down the biscuit aisle

2. Don’t go when you’re hungry OR tired - Hands up who has ended grabbing that chocolate bar at the end of a long day ?!If you are hungry, your body will want a quick fix, so you are more likely to crave junk food, so don’t make it hard for yourself, and if you’re tired, your will power will be lower, and your cravings for junk food are going to be higher, which is a recipe for disaster!So a great call if you food shop after work- go home, eat your dinner, THEN go to the shops. They are also quieter then too!!

3. Stick to the edges- the cakes, crisps and chocolate tend to be in the middle of the shop, whilst the edges contain your basic staples such as fruit , veg and meat

4. Shop online- people are much more focussed and less impulsive when food shopping online- As those that use this option know , there is a small fee – Sainsburys for example charges £20.00 for 3 months ‘Anytime Pass’ ( delivery anytime Monday – Sunday) or £10.00 for midweek pass ( Tuesday- Thursday ). The Anytime pass equates to £1.67 per month, and the Midweek to £0.83- if you compare that to that bag of crisps ( about £0.85) or tub of brownie bites (£1.60) you pick up purely because it was ‘there’ in front of you and heavily promoted, it’s easy to get your money back and lose the inches.

5. Get on your phone- if there is a queue at the till, use that time to text a friend back or scroll through Instagram- this will stop you staring at the junk

Producing quick and easy tactics relevant to YOUR busy lifestyle is an area of my Nutrition program that my clients love, and ensures they are able to get (and KEEP!) the body they want! If this is something that interests you, lets chat. I offer free no-obligation transformation sessions- so fill in the form here, and we can get started on mapping out the body of your dreams.