Cravings

erin023
erin023 Posts: 123 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Is it better to give in to a craving, fight the craving or find a healthy alternative?

Opinions, examples, and stories please :)

Replies

  • monocot
    monocot Posts: 475 Member
    I give in because if i don't, I eat a bite of everything trying to make the Craving go away and it just doesn't and i cant sleep then
  • Miss_dannii
    Miss_dannii Posts: 1,351 Member
    I usually give in to little ones like a bar of chocolate or something, and then just eat a smaller dinner
  • spoonful
    spoonful Posts: 200 Member
    I like the alternative thing. Frozen grapes rock against almost any sweet craving for me.
  • ninakir88
    ninakir88 Posts: 292 Member
    I give in but I try to eat in in a small portion, or just make sure I eat super healthy the rest of the day.
  • cygnetpro
    cygnetpro Posts: 419 Member
    Well, I tend to rationalize that my body is telling me that I need sometihng. If it is calling out for something like ice cream, or candy, I keep some high-quality dark chocolate around, and will just eat a square of that. It usually does the trick.

    If (and this is my usual), it wants bread, bread, bread, I will have an English muffin. Not a great substitution, but it satisfies the craving.

    If I'm craving meat, I have it. But I try to keep to high quality choices.
  • Goal_Line
    Goal_Line Posts: 474 Member
    I munch on raw veggies. Baby carrots, snap peas, vine sweet pepers.

    OR

    Go for a walk
  • Gabryka
    Gabryka Posts: 21 Member
    I find that if I crave something and DON'T give in, the craving gets worse and worse. Depending on what it is, I will allow myself one serving or less of what I crave to get it out of my system. I will, however, eat something healthy right before and eat that last so I feel full and the last thing I tasted was what I really wanted :)
  • love4fitnesslove4food_wechange
    love4fitnesslove4food_wechange Posts: 6,897 Member
    A bit of both--smaller portion of what I really want coupled with something else to "beef it up" so maybe it's pie of ice cream--adding some whipped cream or making a banana split will cut back on the amount of ice cream while increasing the portion size. Or addibg berries or an extra baked apple to apple or berry pie will make it last longer and you get the taste you want.
  • samhigh
    samhigh Posts: 86 Member
    I don't fight any cravings. If I want some chocolate, I eat some. Same for ice cream, pizza, etc.

    If you do cheat, try to be reasonable, a couple cookies instead of the whole bag.

    Once a week I have a reset day, where I eat anything I want in as much quantity as desired. I find this to be a huge mental tool - it is a lot easier to defer something knowing you can have it in the near future.

    Following this "moderate" and balanced approach to life I am at 9% bf. Do you want to live life, or diet? Live, the weight will work itself out.
  • jfayers3
    jfayers3 Posts: 2
    I give in, BUT, i figure out how much exercise it will take to work it off, and I do it BEFORE I give in to the craving. The bonus is, sometimes after the exercise, I no longer have the craving.
  • GnochhiGnomes
    GnochhiGnomes Posts: 348 Member
    I can quickly kill a craving now. It took a lot of cognitive training, but it really is worth it!

    Like for instance this morning my sister was eating bailey's ice-cream and fried/carb-loaded Chinese food. She only had about half of it and offered to warm up the Chinese for me. I actually said no! Normally the greedy part of my brain would of took over and said yes instantly, but instead I just thought about the calories and how it wouldn't fit my macros :)
  • m0mofw4r
    m0mofw4r Posts: 74 Member
    I tend to give in to a bite or two of whatever it is but I try and use the 15 min rule. I wait 15 minutes and if I'm still dying for it I go ahead. You'd be surprised at the percentage of cravings are really just fleeting thoughts.
  • steffcontreras
    steffcontreras Posts: 23
    I always have that problem with deciding to satisfy my craving but so far I've been doing
    good:happy: Usually i just take a bite or a piece of whatever it is i'm craving and then
    walk away and find something to do to keep myself busy:smile: Then i completely forget
    that i was craving food! haah Or if i do give in i don't feel guilty i just tell myself tomorrows
    another day and i'll try harder. And the next day i make sure i try harder..
  • shuga_shay
    shuga_shay Posts: 29 Member
    It's hard most of the time I try to find something to distract me. If that doesn't work I drink water. Most of the time my eyes are bigger than my stomach, like now it is bagels at work, and the whole office smells like it. It is tempting but I brought my own breakfast of homemade oatmeal, so I know I will be full and content. The few times I give into my cravings I feel sick, especially if its somethings I do not normally eat like fried food or super rich and sweet foods.
  • char316
    char316 Posts: 72 Member
    I try for the alternative, unless the craving is healthy. I know, not usually in my case. Problem eating the craving ends up being too many calories :(
  • Ivana331
    Ivana331 Posts: 230
    i really don't know. I feel bad, last night I was craving a bowl of coco pebbles so bad!! And after a few hours, I just gave in. Went way over my calories, but I added it to today and adding more fruits for today to balance it out.
  • cowgirlup327
    cowgirlup327 Posts: 58 Member
    I tend to give in - like some others have said, it gets worse if you try to ignore it. But I definitely don't eat the same amount I would have in the past, now that I'm paying more attention to calorie intake. So I'll eat a reasonable amount of calories of whatever the treat is, so I know that it fits into my calorie count for the day. Sometimes I'll have a glass of water or chew gum if I'm really trying to not give in but my brain keeps pestering me haha.
  • Cillygirl
    Cillygirl Posts: 13
    To help with cravings, I try to plan all my meals out the day before, that way I know exactly what I will be eating - no exceptions. I find when I know what to expect I don't really find the cravings so bad! However, I am not always successful and I do give in (ex on the weekends). When I do have a craving, I portion control - read the nutrition label to see what a serving is and only take that much, punch it into MFP and see if I go over my calories and if I do I decide if I want to work it off by exercising or just not eat it. Wow, a lot of thought goes into deciding if I should give in or not haha. Also, if I can I will try to have say crackers instead of chips for those crunchy cravings - try to make a "healthier" choice. Good luck!!
  • HauteP1nk
    HauteP1nk Posts: 2,139 Member
    I say give in - within reason! Or, find healthier (lower calorie) ways to eat what you crave.

    For example, I really love gravy, french fries and vinegar together. So, what I do now when I crave this is I eat a grilled chicken breast with gravy and vinegar. I am getting the taste I crave but a quarter of the calories and fat. :)
  • caraiselite
    caraiselite Posts: 2,631 Member
    don't allow it.
    i'm the type of person once i get a taste, i will not stop til i've eaten it all.
    cold turkey and avoiding it works best.
  • Yellerie
    Yellerie Posts: 221 Member
    always give in to my craving if I didnt I will be constantly hungry but I try to keep it around 100 cal for example if I am craving m&ms I will do a fun size pack of peanut m&ms less than 100 calories

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