Battling cravings?

EniiTsuj

My cravings are awful. I'm also such a procrastinator. I am probably the most lazy person ever. So when I feel down or stressed I just want to go all out. I'm always looking for excuses and I end up getting mad at myself then I shrug it off knowing I shouldn't.

Any tips on battling this stuff? How and where do I start?

P.S. Feel free to add I comment and post as much as I can

michellewmarin

When you feel stressed - go for a walk. eat an apple. take a nap. don't need to give in to emotional hunger/cravings!

I've just come back from a month and a half of vacation and was very unmotivated and lazy at first and it too me several tries. What finally helped was that I planned my meals before hand- that way I know what I should eat and when I should eat it and can usually hold off the cravings.

Sabine_Stroehm

My cravings are awful. I'm also such a procrastinator. I am probably the most lazy person ever. So when I feel down or stressed I just want to go all out. I'm always looking for excuses and I end up getting mad at myself then I shrug it off knowing I shouldn't.

Any tips on battling this stuff? How and where do I start?

P.S. Feel free to add I comment and post as much as I can

Depends on the person. For me? It was easiest to just give up the stuff that caused cravings. Most people don't do that though. You can find what works for you. Just takes some experimenting.

tkillion810

I find my cravings are usually driven by some sort of emotion. Usually it's boredom. I can have a lot of work to do, but my if my mind isn't challenged, boredom sets in and I start craving foods that I normally try to limit. Also, if I have been working a lot and getting less sleep. Just some other things to consider.

Fit_Fox88

I agree w/the poster that said take a walk. I usually snack/binge out of boredom, so I try to do things to keep me occupied, especially if I've already recently eaten and I know I'm not actually hungry. I end up cleaning most of the time which works out well b/c then I accomplish 2 things: a clean house and I curbed my urged to eat. but just finding things to occupy yourself with when those cravings come on is about all you can do. Or, just give into it assuming you have the calories for it, but only have a small amount of it. Sometimes I find that if I don't partake in what I am actually craving, I end up snacking on a ton of other things. It's ok to give in every once in a while, just don't make it a consistent habit.

JayReese83

I use to give into my cravings. Especially on those days when my days where horrible! I would eat a big piece of cake, with 2 scoops of ice cream, maybe a candy bar and a huge dinner. Then I would get pissed at myself because I know the scale would betray me the next day. I finally got tired of the up and down of the scale and feeling worse than when I gave into the cravings. I am a little Debbie/candy bar junky. So I made up my mind that I’m going to stick to this weight loss thing because I want to be health and set a great example for my kids. I joined a weight loss clinic on my birthday (that was my birthday gift to myself). I have to weigh in once a month and I get prescriptions for appetite suppressant, water pill, and I take B12 Drops. I’m actively doing the HCG Diet along with the weight loss clinic to maximize my weight loss. But what I do is, when I feel a craving coming on I usually get up and do something. It could be cleaning the house, washing clothes, taking the dog for a walk, playing with the kids. And if I still can’t get over the craving, I’ll make a homemade low calorie sherbet and this seems to do the trick. It’s on the HCG food protocol. You take a fruit (for me it’s 6-9 strawberries) but must be frozen, put it in a blender (that purees food) add 2 tbsp. of 1 or 2% milk, a little water and 4-6 splenda’s and blend until it has that sherbet texture. I eat it out of a cute cup if I want to feel fancy. GOOD LUCK!

grillnchill

As soon as you have a craving, drink water and walk away from where you're at. During the day most of my cravings happen when I'm in front of the computer doing work for a prolonged period of time. So what do I do? I grab my water tumbler, get up and head to the water cooler for a fill up. Most of the time these so-called cravings mean I need to hydrate.

Changing your routine (or whatever it is you're doing at said time of craving like watching tv, sitting in front of the laptop, etc) can help curve them.

When in doubt brush your teeth and see if that craving is still there.

abbyoncloud9

Look at the times you binge and try to identify how you were feeling. Mine usually happened when I was bored, depressed, or overwhelmed (all emotional triggers). I am about 20 days binge-free right now and the only things I have changed are: 1) planning activities on my days off of work. When I have things scheduled to do, I don't sit around and think about what I want to eat. 2) acknowledging that I am an emotional eater and really being honest with myself about why 3) Keeping healthy meals/snacks in the house and not keeping ANY trigger foods around (I know this is easier when you live alone)

SLLRunner

A craving is telling you that you want to eat something you like. I mean, most people don't crave things they don't like.

Nothing is forbidden, and if it fits into your calorie count, why not just have a little piece.

Every time I go to aunts and uncle's house, I start craving her homemade brownies. I know she will make them (because she always does), so I allow myself to have one small brownie, and I log it in. No guilt involved.

If you are thinking of bingeing on your cravings, then getting away from the food is good. Fill your water bottle and go for a good walk or something. Or, just fill your water bottle and go to another room and occupy yourself until it passes.

I have the worst time at events where there are a lot of sweets because I want it all! So, what I did at the last party is had a very small piece of about three sweets-chocolate chip cookie, brownie, and apple pie. It took care of the need to anymore sweets.

WorkingMomGetsFit

I believe it's ok to give into your cravings. I find that if I try to ignore them, I just end up binging (I too am a boredom eater). I have tried substituting with "healthier versions" but it's not the same. A little treat won't ruin your progress. It's about moderation and preparation. I allow myself room for a daily treat. My weakness is chocolate but I do not keep it at home or in my office at work. If I want it bad enough, I have to go out and get it.

liloldDee

I'm an emotional eater too but I have found that going lower carb has reduced the intensity of my cravings and they are easily ignored.

Personally a little of what you fancy never did it for me, it never satisfied me it made me want more, more more.

eims_

I'm an emotional eater and go through binge periods. I think so much of it is dependent on your own inner monologue, like if you tell yourself you're giving in, next thing is you're telling yourself you've failed, that you've ruined everything and may as well just give up. So you feel horrid and then sabotage yourself all over again. If you can be kinder to yourself when you do slip up there's less chance of it continuing or taking over. All WAY easier said than done obvs! Maybe keep a stock of 'safe' foods that you enjoy and have them instead when the cravings kick in and change the nature of the habit as opposed to overwhelming yourself by trying to go cold turkey? I'm a fan of sugar free jello when I need something sweet and it's practically no calories.

Sabine_Stroehm

I'm an emotional eater too but I have found that going lower carb has reduced the intensity of my cravings and they are easily ignored.

Personally a little of what you fancy never did it for me, it never satisfied me it made me want more, more more.

I wouldn't say that I'm "lower carb", but I am "slower carb" and yes, it's the starchy snacks that get my cravings going (tortilla chips for example). The more I just DON'T eat them the easier everything is. For me. With that sort of snack "moderation" doesn't really work for me. Avoidance does. :-)

liloldDee

I'm an emotional eater too but I have found that going lower carb has reduced the intensity of my cravings and they are easily ignored.

Personally a little of what you fancy never did it for me, it never satisfied me it made me want more, more more.

I wouldn't say that I'm "lower carb", but I am "slower carb" and yes, it's the starchy snacks that get my cravings going (tortilla chips for example). The more I just DON'T eat them the easier everything is. For me. With that sort of snack "moderation" doesn't really work for me. Avoidance does. :-)

I'm so glad you posted that, I often felt I was the only one as I always hear " a little of what you fancy will satisfy the cravings".
If I eat healthy carbs I'm ok is all the unrefined carbs I need to stay away from, tortillas are top of the list lol.

I've decided to avoid them too, I will however have a refeed day every few weeks and stay within my maintainance calories that day.

Sabine_Stroehm

I'm an emotional eater too but I have found that going lower carb has reduced the intensity of my cravings and they are easily ignored.

Personally a little of what you fancy never did it for me, it never satisfied me it made me want more, more more.

I wouldn't say that I'm "lower carb", but I am "slower carb" and yes, it's the starchy snacks that get my cravings going (tortilla chips for example). The more I just DON'T eat them the easier everything is. For me. With that sort of snack "moderation" doesn't really work for me. Avoidance does. :-)

I'm so glad you posted that, I often felt I was the only one as I always hear " a little of what you fancy will satisfy the cravings".
If I eat healthy carbs I'm ok is all the unrefined carbs I need to stay away from, tortillas are top of the list lol.

I've decided to avoid them too, I will however have a refeed day every few weeks and stay within my maintainance calories that day.

Tortilla chips (refined) are pretty fast burning carbs (for a grain). You may find that looking at something like the south beach diet "foods to enjoy" lists helps. Corn, and corn tortillas are on his list of foods that may cause cravings (which is primarily why they are on his foods to avoid list). One slice of white bread pizza gets me going too, so I avoid that too.
I know the dogma here is that the GI and GL are bogus and no they aren't "needed" for weight loss, but if cravings are an issue, eating on the lower end of the GI or GL may be something that works for you. I have been in maintenance for about 12 yeas now by avoiding a handful of foods. And I did do a two week "no whites" (for me it was no white bread, no table sugar). From there I was able to quickly and easily lose weight by eating whole foods as long as I avoided that handful of foods.

For the naysayers: yes, I eat pizza. No, my eating is not "ascetic" as it's been called before. It's quite yummy and includes plenty of tasty and fun foods. Last night we had Panda Express.

ninerbuff

My cravings are awful. I'm also such a procrastinator. I am probably the most lazy person ever. So when I feel down or stressed I just want to go all out. I'm always looking for excuses and I end up getting mad at myself then I shrug it off knowing I shouldn't.

Any tips on battling this stuff? How and where do I start?

P.S. Feel free to add I comment and post as much as I can

Cravings are normal when one goes on a weight loss program. What will determine success usually boils down to a couple of things:

Consistency
Sustainability

Personally I don't let my clients diet. People know what got them overweight and too much eating of certain foods put them there. If one really wants this, they will make the decision on how to control it. Your first step is to actually make sure you're committed to it. If you're not committed to it, then it ain't going to happen.

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

RawCarrots

I'm an emotional eater too but I have found that going lower carb has reduced the intensity of my cravings and they are easily ignored.

Personally a little of what you fancy never did it for me, it never satisfied me it made me want more, more more.

I wouldn't say that I'm "lower carb", but I am "slower carb" and yes, it's the starchy snacks that get my cravings going (tortilla chips for example). The more I just DON'T eat them the easier everything is. For me. With that sort of snack "moderation" doesn't really work for me. Avoidance does. :-)

I'm so glad you posted that, I often felt I was the only one as I always hear " a little of what you fancy will satisfy the cravings".
If I eat healthy carbs I'm ok is all the unrefined carbs I need to stay away from, tortillas are top of the list lol.

I've decided to avoid them too, I will however have a refeed day every few weeks and stay within my maintainance calories that day.

I'm the same with toast, can't control myself around it, can easily have 6 slices without even noticing! Now just avoid it

comenovember

After a meal I always want to eat sweets. I love dessert in any form - if I could get away with eating only cakes and pies forever, I would do so. I especially love to eat them when I am feeling down, lonely, etc. Now that I'm trying to lose weight, after meals I sometimes have a nice hot tea with Splenda and a little milk.

If I'm really craving I have coffee with a non-fat creamer and Splenda. Works most of the time. There are also plenty of sugar-free candy bars and stuff out there that help curb cravings but I'd recommend having only one every now and then because they can be fattening if you eat too many of them.

When I tried to lose weight before, I got rid of everything junky and sweet in my house and then I did this: Find relatively medium calorie snack recipes on the internet. Make a batch of whatever you choose and freeze individual servings. When you have a craving, you'd have to make the effort to unfreeze the damn low-fat cheesecake before eating it. Oh! And keep busy! Usually the thought of having to get up from whatever I'm doing, go to the fridge, grab a plate and thaw a snack keeps me from snacking. It just comforts me that it's there if I really want it. Lol!

Hope that helps.