Need help with cravings

jenniefaith

I need a little guidance when it comes to food! My cravings just take over. Looking for new food ideas and some motivation.

Thanks- Jen

Pearsquared

What are you craving? That would help to know, so we can find healthier alternatives to them.

I find that drinking lots of water helps, just because sometimes, my cravings are actually dehydration, but my brain is a little haywire and confuses it with cravings.

fuffyfluffy

For me...and it's still a struggle....it helps to eat every 3-4 hours. I eat small (healthy) meals and/or snacks.

katy84o

I've recently been using tea as an alternative to just snacking. Usually green or black tea plain, with no milk or honey. In the evenings instead of dessert i'll have a tea made with fresh spearmint leaves, 1/4 of a lemon juiced, and 1tbsp honey in about 24 oz of water. I drink that for about an hour or two after dinner. It helps me because the sweetness of the spearmint and honey satisfy my craving some something sweet and desserty like ice cream, cookies or granola. The warmth of the tea helps me relax and wind down.

I guess though, it depends on what you are craving. For me, tea helps with most any cravings I have.

SkinnyMsFitness

I also drink a lot of water...about 11 glasses a day...at least! It does help! But if you still need food, improvise.

If you want chocolate, maybe eat a Fiber One bar that has chocolate. If you want something salty, try eating some nuts instead of chips. Buy fruit. Buy healthier versions of food...instead of white bread, buy whole grain, instead of white noodles, buy whole grain noodles, buy some yogurt instead of ice cream or pudding...

The options are endless. Google can help with some ideas.

cfriend71

I use all natural supplements & vitamins to curb my cravings and it's working so well! I do not feel hungry at ALL and I have lost 28 lbs since April 27th...

healthytanya1

I buy fiber plus bars they are 90-130 calories. You can also get 100 calorie chips and cookies.

RachelHoffman0709

For me...and it's still a struggle....it helps to eat every 3-4 hours. I eat small (healthy) meals and/or snacks.

^^This. I notice when I eat small, healthy, snacks throughout the day I tend to eat lighter meals and don't notice strong cravings as much as I used to. I usually eat breakfast around 8:30, then have a snack (apple slices and yogurt) around 10:30, a light lunch @ 12:30, an afternoon snack (carrots and ranch) around 2:30, and then a light dinner around 5. It seems to work for me, but everbody is different. It's kinda trial and error.

Vness813

What are you craving? That would help to know, so we can find healthier alternatives to them.

I find that drinking lots of water helps, just because sometimes, my cravings are actually dehydration, but my brain is a little haywire and confuses it with cravings.

I also mistake dehydration for hunger or cravings.....often a factor

If I'm craving sweets...I eat a dill pickle...works every time! Who wants a cookie with a pickle? lol

xiamjackie

Depends what you are craving! I am a HUGE sweets person. I have found these things to help with my sweet tooth:


Half cup of Dannon light and fit greek vanilla yogurt with .5tbsp of PB2 or cocoa powder
Sweet potato protein pancakes topped with PB2 and almond milk mixed together- this one especially since breakfast foods are my weakness.
"Zoats"- half of a zucchini (shredded), 1/4 cup oats, egg whites, cocoa powder, and splenda brown sugar blend


These have been my saviors for sweet foods that are filling. I am actually 100% full after the pancakes and zoats, the yogurt is just a snack. All of them have helped tremendously in my sweet tooth. You can find the recipes online I'm sure.

JesterMFP

Are you intentionally restricting certain foods that you love? That can certainly cause cravings to "take over". The really cool thing about calorie counting is that you don't have to give up any foods, just fit them into your goals.

ninerbuff

Cravings usually mean that you've cut them out. If you plan to cut them out for life, then buck up. If not, then find a way to include them with your eating on a restricted basis.

A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

mazdauk

either buy "single serving" portions of your favourites (like individually wrapped biscuits and cakes) or pre-package a bigger pack into snack bags (weighed AND MARKED WITH THE CALORIES) so you don't "accidentally" have too much. Log each bag BEFORE you eat it, and make a cup of tea to go with it. DO NOT eat until half-way down your drink - you may find actually you don't want it after all (or not enough to eat it now), so you can delete it and save those calories for later.

KANGOOJUMPS

give up food and turn to the drink.

yanniejannie

I use something with a "sharp" taste...........like a T. of Parmesan followed by 3 large jalapeno stuffed olives.........50cals and it does the trick for me!!! A little filling and definately takes any craving away.

bulbadoof

Indulge in moderation. Setting something as completely off-limits is usually just asking to cave in and binge on it.

Some good advice I was given was to try to adhere to an 80/20 eating ratio - 80% of your food choices are 'healthy' ones vested in the interest of hitting your macros, fueling your body, and achieving your weight loss goals, and the other 20% are for whatever you want them to be for.

On a 1400-calorie diet, that gives you 280 calories a day to eat however you please. That's a candy bar, an ice cream cone, a small bag of McDonald's fries, two cans of soda, a couple of gourmet cookies, a serving of potato chips, a popsicle or three, a slice of cake... every single day. Enjoy it, portion it, log it, and make sure you are feeding your body properly with the other calories.

2013sk

Indulge in moderation. Setting something as completely off-limits is usually just asking to cave in and binge on it.

Some good advice I was given was to try to adhere to an 80/20 eating ratio - 80% of your food choices are 'healthy' ones vested in the interest of hitting your macros, fueling your body, and achieving your weight loss goals, and the other 20% are for whatever you want them to be for.

On a 1400-calorie diet, that gives you 280 calories a day to eat however you please. That's a candy bar, an ice cream cone, a small bag of McDonald's fries, two cans of soda, a couple of gourmet cookies, a serving of potato chips, a popsicle or three, a slice of cake... every single day. Enjoy it, portion it, log it, and make sure you are feeding your body properly with the other calories.

What a good bit of advice...........I like it!!!

Thank you : )

unFATuated

I am/was a sweet tooth. Anything sweet, chocolatey, sugary etc I was on it, along with copious amounts of diet cola (yerch!). I have been on weight loss kicks before, but I'm doing something new now, which has focused on adding a lot of protein to my diet. I used to just focus on calories (and not eat a lot of protein), now I'm more mindful of the macros as well and I've found the more I hit my protein goal, the less I crave the junk food. I don't know if that's just me, but I thought I'd mention it.

My favourite snack at the moment is a green apple, cup of herbal tea and an under-100 cal protein bar (usually chocolatey).

terlyn20

chew on fresh parsley or mint.
make parsley and mint tea ( water ).
both clean the palate and parsley has some protein and fiber as well as nutrients.
i sip on a 2 qt jug and it helps with cravings.
after i get home from work i will chew on a few leaves of one
or the other and this keeps hunger at bay until i can get supper
cooked, another reason i chew on Parsley is because it is
excellent for gum health.