Okay heres my opinion on these, ive tried a few things and others ive stumbled over.
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Originally Posted by about2loseit  Avoid your triggers! "You crave what you eat, so if you switch what you're eating, you can weaken your old cravings and strengthen new ones," says Marcia Pelchat, PhD, of the Monell Center. This can happen pretty fast. For five days, her study volunteers drank bland dietary-supplement beverages. During that time, they craved fewer of their trigger foods. By the end of the study, the volunteers actually wanted the supplements instead. The first few days are always the hardest, and you probably can't completely eliminate your old cravings. But the longer you avoid your trigger foods, the less likely you may be to want them. In fact, you'll probably begin to crave the foods you eat, a real bonus if you've switched to fresh fruit. |
Absolutly, since i started this meat and veg diet only with the odd fruit for snack, ive had no cravings for anything at all, in fact ive cut breads and cakes and stuff and anything flour based and suddenly its so friggen easy its nuts!
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Originally Posted by about2loseit Destroy temptation! If you've succumbed to a craving and bought a box of cookies or some other trigger food and start to feel bad while eating it, destroy it. "Don't just throw it away; run water over it, ruin it. You'll feel a sense of accomplishment that you've licked your binge," says Caroline Apovian, MD, director, Nutrition and Weight Management Center at Boston Medical Center. Don't think about the money you're wasting. If the cookies don't go into the garbage, they're going straight to your hips. |
Probably the dieters hardest lesson to learn, but once learnt a very very empowering tool. you feel horrible about doing it both before and during, but once its done its like a ray of sunshine hitting you and you feel suddenly very fantastic. Ive been known to grab a piece of cake, take a couple bites, realize that i did wrong, and then literally ran to the bin, spat it out and thrown it away.
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Originally Posted by about2loseit Go nuts! Drink two glasses of water and eat an ounce of nuts (6 walnuts, 12 almonds or 20 peanuts). Within 20 minutes, this can extinguish your craving and dampen your appetite by changing your body chemistry, says RD's "Health IQ" columnist Michael F. Roizen, MD. |
Ooo now that explains a lot, I found a particular nutty muesli bar would cure most of my cravings, it used to have lots of nuts so i wonder if that was why?
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Originally Posted by about2loseit Jolt yourself with java! Try sipping a skim latte instead of reaching for a candy bar. The caffeine it contains won't necessarily satisfy your cravings, but it can save you the calories by quenching your appetite, says Dr. Roizen. And the warm richness and ritual can distract you. |
hah i use hot drinks a lot, great way to kill hunger cravings without loading up on calories. Trim milk and no sugar.
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Originally Posted by about2loseit Let it go! Since stress is a huge trigger for cravings, learning to deal with it could potentially save you hundreds of calories a day. This will take some practice. You can try deep breathing or visualizing a serene scene on your own.
Take a power nap! Cravings sneak up when we're tired. Focus on the fatigue: Shut the door, close your eyes, re-energize. |
Yah, being tired or having a full bowel tends to make me eat. Stress does a bit, but i just learn to go to bed or something else instead of eating now
ive been known to do a 20 min powernap during my lunch break at work, or on my desk.
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Originally Posted by about2loseit Get minty fresh! Brush your teeth; gargle with mouthwash. "When you have a fresh, clean mouth, you don't want to mess it up," says Molly Gee, RD, of Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. |
Yep that one works too. I think its more just about 'feeling good'. Sometimes a shower or being clean and looking nice helps.
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Originally Posted by about2loseit Distract yourself! If only ice cream will do, it's a craving, not hunger. "Cravings typically last ten minutes," says John Foreyt, PhD, of Baylor College of Medicine. Recognize that and divert your mind: Call someone, listen to music, run an errand, meditate or exercise.
Indulge yourself -- within limits! Once in a while, it's OK to go ahead and have that ice cream. But buy a small cone, not a pint. Try 100-calorie CocoaVia chocolate bars and 100-calorie snack packs of cookies, peanuts or pretzel sticks. The trick is to buy only one pack at a time so you won't be tempted to reach for more. And since even 100 extra calories can sabotage weight loss if you indulge daily, strike a bargain with yourself to work off the excess calories. A brisk 15-minute walk will burn 100 calories or so. |
I dont do cravings so much any more, but i often try to substitute it with something that tastes the same or has similar texture without the calories. For ice cream you can get a McDonalds soft serve which has only 100 calories. Not to sure about other countries but here i can get lite/diet yoguert that is the flavour of things like cheesecake and lemon merangue etc which covers that kinda thing.
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Originally Posted by about2loseit Plan or avoid! Vary your usual routine to avoid passing the bakery or pizzeria. If you know you'll be face-to-face with irresistible birthday cake, allocate enough calories to fit it into your diet. |
YES! thats a good one, i go out to curry every second thursday, so on that day i cut the calories in breaky and lunch so i can eat more at dinner without the guilt. Either that or i pre-emptively burn them off cycling that day and the next.
Heres one more that ive learnt. If you dont buy it you cant eat it. If you know you have a problem with ice cream, then remove it from the freezer, dont have it around. This way if you get a craving its a pain in the butt to go get it.
Find ways to make it hard to get those foods should you have a craving.
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