Do you give in to cravings on a diet ( portion controlled) or ignore thsm

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  • jennybearlv
    jennybearlv Posts: 1,519 Member
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    It depends on how many calories the food is, how many I have to work with, and if the food is a good value calorie wise. A 40 calorie piece of high quality chocolate? Yeah, I would probably eat it. Grocery store cookies? Yuck, pass. 1000 calorie slice of cheesecake? That's a hard decision.

    No brainer for me, I have hubby order it and I take a couple bites:). Come to think of it he maybe packing on a couple of pounds while I'm losing hummm:).

    That is a good plan when you only have an extra hundred calories or so, like when the cheesecake is preceded by a Cheesecake factory meal. However, if I've been running all week and not eating back them calories that cheesecake better get in my mouth!
  • dragon_girl26
    dragon_girl26 Posts: 2,187 Member
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    It depends on what it is and how often I have been craving it. I love cake and want to eat it every day, so I usually try to ignore that. Tonight I was craving some pizza, so I gave in and had two slices. Much better than the 4-5 I would have had in the past.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,119 Member
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    I analyse the cravings.

    Cravings are usually my body's way of saying it needs something ... but what?

    So when I crave potato chips, I don't need potato chips ... but I usually need salt. I've discovered that taking a salt tablet, or salting my food more, or eating salted cucumber slices with cottage cheese just hits the spot and the craving for potato chips disappears.

    When I crave orange juice, one of two situations is going on. 1) I'm coming down with a cold ... and I'm probably after Vit C ... or 2) I've just finished an incredibly long bicycle ride ... and I probably need Vit C. So I drink orange juice.
  • staticsplit
    staticsplit Posts: 538 Member
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    Usually, but I try to do one biscuit instead of 4. Sometimes I can tell it's just that I want something sweet, so I have dried or fresh fruit instead. Last night I wanted ice cream, but I mixed it in with yogurt so I could have a bigger bowl without going over my calories.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
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    Depends on the calories in that food. If I'm craving sauteed spinach and mushrooms, I will definitely eat it that day. If I'm craving tahini cauliflower I ask myself if it's worth the calories today. Sometimes the answer is yes, other times it's no, and some other times it's later. I treat things that people don't usually associate with dieting exactly the same. A kitkat has 100 calories, so it can fit in almost any day. A slice of mousse cake can have 800 calories so I need to plan carefully, mentally prepare for a higher calorie day, or simply say no if I can't be bothered. A scoop of ice cream is 250 calories so it's not hard to fit, but sometimes I feel a bigger lunch is worth it to me more than a scoop of ice cream. I put all higher calorie food cravings in my "is it worth it today" scale and my decision depends on where it leans.

  • TimothyFish
    TimothyFish Posts: 4,925 Member
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    Cravings often indicate something that is missing in your diet. I figure it is good to work your cravings in, just reduce consumption of other things to do it.
  • Ming1951
    Ming1951 Posts: 514 Member
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    I have been very good since sept 2016. I have treats built into my menu so I look forward to them everyday. Since the holidays I've been having a little extra of things I don't normally treat myself too but I planned and kept them within my calories. Last weekend girl scouts cookies were delivered had a few but remained within my calories. Yesterday I broke down, then my thought process said ok take the day off from your "diet". I did I ate a box and a half of girl scout cookies and everything else I could get down my throat. This morning I realized that though I have been counting calories for 5 months I still have a problem with portion control and probably always will. So back to the counting board and writing down every morsel that goes into my mouth. My scale is up over 2 lbs but hopefully that can go before my weigh in this weekend.
  • crzycatlady1
    crzycatlady1 Posts: 1,930 Member
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    I did ADF (alternate day intermittent fasting), for my weight loss phase, so every other day I was eating at maintenance calorie levels and it was fairly easy to fit in whatever I wanted. My low calorie/fasting days were very structured/planned out, so there were no extras on those days, but if I wanted something not planned I knew I could just have it the next day.