Bust the Cravings!

Its Friday night and you’re watching your favorite Netflix show and a thought pops into your head! “Ice cream would be really good right now!” 
 
You’re at work, its midafternoon and your start to feel like you’re going to fall asleep at your desk.  “I should go to the vending machine and get a sugar coffee!”
 
Finally, a night out with friends, I need this!  I am going to eat 2 buckets of free chips and salsa with my 3 margaritas and 45 tacos! 
 
Ok maybe its 3 tacos but you get the point.  We all having cravings.  You’re not weird for having them.  Our brains get all sorts of clues that it’s time to eat!  Why is it we don’t crave green beans, broccoli, and chicken? 
 
Those healthy foods just aren’t packed with the fat, sugar, and chemicals that scream at your brain to GIVE ME MORE!  Food companies know what they are doing, how else would they stay in business?  You crave what is most desirable to your brain, NOT your body!  Your body would choose grilled chicken over breaded chicken wings drenched in sugar sauce any day.  Too bad our brains make the decisions.
 
Fortunately, there ARE ways to bust the cravings.  It just takes a little planning and mindfulness.

Substitute: The next time you get hit with a sweet craving, try eating your favorite fruit. Salt and crunchy craving? Try eating unbuttered popcorn.  Chocolate attack?
Swap out chocolate for dark chocolate.  It’s better for you and has less sugar.  When you want ice cream try a dairy free frozen fruit smoothie.  You can even freeze it so it has the ice cream taste.  The point is to try to pack the most nutrition into your cravings.  Your body will thank you.

Distract yourself: Surely you love all sorts of things besides food.  What is one thing you enjoy that has nothing to do with food?  Do you like to take long bubble baths?  Internet surfing, video games, reading, listening to your favorite jams?  This will be specific to you.  When you feel a craving hit and you know you’re not truly hungry, then force yourself to do something else you love.  If when you are done, the craving is still there, allow yourself a small portion and congratulate yourself for not eating a huge bowl of ice cream.

Eat! You might be having a craving, because you are actually hungry for a satisfying, healthy meal.  Your brain is saying eat the candy bar, your body really means give me a big chicken salad.  What time is it?  When is the last time you eat?  If you are having a craving for a treat but you really need to eat healthy substantial food, eat the meal first and then see how you feel.

Eat before you go out to eat: This seems counterproductive but it works.  When you are planning on going out to eat or attending a Holiday event eat a protein snack before you go.  The worst thing is to show up starving and have no self-control.  Try eating some hard-boiled eggs, nuts, or cottage cheese.  Whatever you like that is high in protein.  Protein is one of the most hunger satisfying nutrients and will help curb your appetite to make better choices. 

Plan Ahead: Bring healthy snacks to work and keep them in your car.  You don’t want to be left with a massive craving with no food anywhere near except the vending machine filled with candy and chips.  

Visualize your goals and mediate on your motivation:  Once you are clear on your motivation for wanting to lose weight, write it down.  Put it on your fridge or in your pantry. Make it your screen saver on your phone or computer. Look at this goal every day.  We are terribly forgetful as humans! We can feel totally ready to make a change and then a few days later we forget as the busyness of life gets to us.  Make sure you can’t forget! 

You are worth this!  You are bigger than your cravings! Your goals matter.

YOU MATTER.

Giving into cravings can sabotage all your weight loss efforts, but it doesn’t have to be this way. You can plan ahead and beat them.  Next week you won’t even remember the fast food meal, the snickers bar, or the cheese fries. What you will remember is what the scale told you earlier this morning.  It’s just not worth it.  You will look back in a few months and you will be proud of your accomplishment, your weight loss, and your better health. 
 
You got this!