Originally Published June 2025

Hello Jupiter Farms family!

As I sat down to write this month’s article, I thought about all the things that make our community special, like watching sandhill cranes confidently stop traffic, hearing peacocks screech like tiny dinosaurs, and debating (again) whether dirt roads are charming or just a really effective way to test your car’s suspension. I thought about the friendly faces I see zipping in and out of Publix for the next great BOGO deal, waving at the Riverbend trails, or curiously eyeing the gator in the pond.

It’s a busy life we’ve got here, one foot in nature, one foot in the hustle. There is just a lot going on. And to top it all off, here we are trying to figure out how to get just a bit healthier, have more energy, and sleep better so we can enjoy and appreciate all of it.

The other day, I was talking to a client, and she said, “I just can’t stop bingeing on broccoli! I make it all day, and then I fall face-first into the broccoli! What do I do?” Just kidding, no client, friend, or fellow human has ever said that. So, why is that? Why does the Rocky Road always win over poor, misunderstood broccoli? I started thinking about that and decided to answer the question. Here is my crack at answering this complex (and infuriating for many) problem:

1. Whole foods are packed with fiber, water, and nutrients: These foods fill us up, take longer to chew, and give our bodies time to signal the brain that we’re full. Ever tried eating a whole head of broccoli? It’s a slow process and quite a commitment.
2. Whole foods don’t trigger the brain’s reward centers: Broccoli just can’t out-excite a donut (even on its best day dressed up all fancy with butter and salt). Ultra-processed foods are engineered to create a dopamine hit, a little burst of excitement that keeps us returning for more. Whole foods don’t have the same brain chemistry hack.
3. Whole foods require more effort to eat: No one has ever absentmindedly eaten an entire bag of apples or four chicken breasts. Whole foods tend to be naturally ‘self-limiting.’

But let’s get real, avoiding the late-night binge cycle isn’t as simple as just ‘eat healthy.’ Life is stressful, emotions run high, and food can become a coping tool. So, how do we stop the cycle?

I will save the discussion on the mindset of eating for another article (although this is a critical, and deeper, topic as well), but here are a few concrete tips that might help:

1. Start with a solid breakfast: Eating a protein-rich breakfast can help you avoid the nightly tumble into that jar of butter cream icing. Aim for 0.6–1 gram of protein per desired pound of body weight, divided across 3-4 meals. Think of it as fortifying your willpower before the candy aisle ambushes you (this is especially true for my intermittent fasting friends).
2. Snack Smart (and make it fun!): Don’t settle for boring. One of my clients loved raspberries but thought they were too expensive. I asked her, "Are they really more expensive than the candy bar you keep buying?" She laughed because, while the candy was cheaper in dollars, it was way more costly in how it made her feel (low energy and high guilt). Once she gave herself permission to treat herself to raspberries, she swapped the candy for a healthier snack that still felt like a treat. What is the equivalent of your “raspberries?” Figure out what those snacks are and get them.
3. Acknowledge Stress, Don’t Just Eat It: What are you reaching “for” to avoid reaching inward? Late-night snacking is often a way to avoid stress or uncomfortable feelings. But here’s a hard truth: those feelings don’t actually go away; they just get swallowed down. Start by asking yourself, "What do I really need right now?"
4. Stay Hydrated: Sometimes thirst disguises itself as hunger. Keep water nearby and sip throughout the day to avoid mistaking dehydration for hunger. And hey, if you need to pretend it’s fancy, put it in a wine glass, add lemon, ginger, or even some of those raspberries. Find what works for you and do that, over and over.
5. Get Moving: Research shows that people who exercise regularly tend to choose healthier foods and better manage their overall intake naturally. So even a walk around the block counts, bonus points if you make it a peacock-spotting mission, and double bonus if you walk when the sun is at a low angle in the evening to let your brain know it is about time to start settling down.
6. Keep the Kitchen Boring at Night: Make your evening space a ‘rest zone’ rather than a ‘snack zone.’ Clear the counter of tempting junk food and stock your fridge with easy, satisfying options. Midnight fridge raids are a lot less exciting (but more satisfying) when all you find is cottage cheese, honey (from local honey, of course), and blueberries.

7. Embrace the Power of Experimentation: Let go of perfectionism or the "all-or-nothing" mindset (where one cookie turns into a cookie parade). The trick is to approach this with an experimental mindset rather than forcing a sudden change. You’re not just trying to “get it right,” you’re learning about yourself, your habits, your patterns, and maybe even uncovering why you sometimes fall into those pitfalls.

Give yourself permission to experiment. Choose just one idea and see what happens. For example, you could see what happens when you:

· Experiment with having prepped and ready protein or cut vegetables in the fridge for 2 weeks and see what happens.

· Challenge yourself to drinking 8- 8 ounce glasses of water a day (we could use a bit more than that, but let’s start there). Start the day with 16 ounces and go from there. Keep track of hunger and energy.

· Run an experiment that changes your eating cadence for the day and see what happens.

· Create your own experiments and run them for fun, one at a time. See which ones feel right or move the needle on your mood, sleep, energy, and cravings.

Remember, if all of this feels overwhelming, start with one small change, just one degree of difference. If a ship changes its course by just one degree, it might not seem like much at first, but that one degree leads to an entirely different destination over miles. One degree of change can mean the difference between drifting toward old habits or sailing toward lasting health.

If any of this hits home, know that you’re not alone and that you don’t have to figure it out by yourself. I’m here to help. Have a question or an idea for a future article? You can reach me at [email protected], and I invite you to visit my website, www.christinacundiff.com, where you’ll find more wellness tips and articles.