It happens to all of us. You are out and about, or maybe you are at home, and something triggers a craving. It's not a normal craving. You don't want to eat an apple. You don't want a sandwich. You don't want pasta. You want SUGAR!
White. grainy. sweet. SUGAR.
For me, I can't even LOOK at a Reece's Peanut Butter Cup without drooling. Literally, my mouth waters. AND, it's watering now as I write this!
When the craving hits me I have to put myself in a time out. If I don't, I will end up eating way too much of the sugar. Am I always able to make the craving go away - nope - but I can usually lessen it and be happy with just a bite :)
So what do I do to calm the craving?
- Move
- Snack on something HEALTHY
- Call/email/text/message my accountability buddy
- Drink some tea
- Check my emotions
- Count down from my current weight to my goal weight while taking a sip of water after each number
- Give in
Move
I get up and move around. I find I crave foods when I sit and watch TV. I've tried to cut TV out of my life as much as possible, but I just cannot give up my Grey's, Private Practice, NCIS, or Criminal Minds. I just won't do it. If moving doesn't work, I'll make my hands busy. I'll write a blog post or crochet something or browse Facebook.
Snack on something HEALTHY
If I'm craving something sweet, I'll go grab an apple. There's nothing better than a sweet, crisp, cold apple. If it's a honeycrisp, well, that's even better!
Accountability Buddy
If you don't have one of these for yourself, GO GET ONE NOW! Heck, I'll be your buddy! Have a place you can go on Facebook (challenge group) and ask for encouragement. Call your buddy and have them talk you down from eating the entire dirt cake sitting in front of you. Text your buddy and keep those fingers busy! Whatever you do, be accountable for your actions and you are less likely to slip up!
Drink some tea
I did this tonight as I was writing this blog post! I was getting snacky, which usually leads to a sweet craving for myself. So, I made some green tea with blackberry and pomegranite and I sweetened it with 1 tablespoon of organic honey. It COMPLETELY hit the spot!
Check your emotions
Why are you craving something bad? Are you upset? Are you angry? Are you bored? Are you frustrated? Are you sad? Emotional eating is a big problem for a lot of people - and for me too! I am a horrible eater when I'm upset. So, I try to check my emotions and make sure I'm not eating just because I feel bad.
Count down
This is a great way to calm that craving. The water you sip after each number is going to slowly fill up your belly which will in turn tell your brain that it's full. If you still have a long way to go to goal (like me!) then this will be pretty effective for you. If you only have 3 or 4 pounds left to your goal weight, well, this might not work as well for you.
Give in
Sometimes it's OK to give in to your craving! I did it the other night. I needed something sweet. I don't know why, I just did. Everything I did failed so I just ate that snack sized Kit Kat that was staring at me. And you know what - I DIDN'T BEAT MYSELF UP about it! If I don't enjoy those cravings every once in a while, I'd go crazy! Everything in moderation - right?
Check out this fun graphic that I found on Tosca Reno's Eat Clean Diet website. It inspired me to write this blog post!
<3,
Kell
