Busting junk food cravings

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erinlouise55
erinlouise55 Posts: 50 Member
in Motivation and Support
I have been using MFP for a while now to try and stay ontop of my calorie intake and mostly I have been succesful with the odd cheat meal but the cravings for fast food like mcdonalds are still bad! How do you guys stop yourself from giving in to the cravings?

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  • erinlouise55
    erinlouise55 Posts: 50 Member
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    Yeah your right, my fast food intake has improved soo much which im proud of its just a weakness of mine that i need to get over!
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
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    Cravings and giving in to cravings is not the same. A cheat mentality is not generally associated with easy weight management. Are you eating enough and well? Are you telling yourself you should stay away from McDonalds completely?
  • erinlouise55
    erinlouise55 Posts: 50 Member
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    Yes I am eating well, and definitely telling myself I cant have mcdonalds haha
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
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    erinlouise55 wrote: »
    Yes I am eating well, and definitely telling myself I cant have mcdonalds haha
    Oh, there you have it. Forbidden fruit taste the sweetest. Your desire will soar when you tell yourself you can't have something that's practically on every corner.
  • erinlouise55
    erinlouise55 Posts: 50 Member
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    Im a nurse though, a shift worker, if i told myself i could have it i would be eating bad food all the time! When your starving from a night shift you got to tell yourself you cant stop for something tasty haha
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    edited September 2018
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    erinlouise55 wrote: »
    Im a nurse though, a shift worker, if i told myself i could have it i would be eating bad food all the time! When your starving from a night shift you got to tell yourself you cant stop for something tasty haha

    There are no bad foods, only bad amounts and proportions.

    Are you saying that you're aiming for a diet that is *not* tasty?

    And don't you have food at home so you can eat when you get home from work?
  • 88olds
    88olds Posts: 4,482 Member
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    I think cravings have to be indulged eventually.

    Having your car pull into a takeout line seeming on its own isn’t a craving, it’s an urge. Those donuts at work? You weren’t planning on a donut, not even thinking of a donut, but now you are. That’s an urge. Resist!

    But now it’s 3 days later and you’re still thinking of a donut, or whatever. That’s a craving. Try to come up with a plan to make it fit with your number.

    What if there’s no way to make it fit? Then you have to decide if on that day you find it worth it to go over your number by the calories needed.

    But this- it’s is all getting logged into your food diary. It’s not a “cheat”. It’s part of your plan. An experiment. See how it works out on weigh in day. See how you feel about it then.

    I used to eat a lot of McDs. Even now, when on the road, it’s a reasonably reliable stop. Egg McMuffin available all day. Oatmeal. Ice cream cones. Those all work for me. Last time I had McDs fries, I ate a few and threw them away. Tastes change.
  • countcurt
    countcurt Posts: 593 Member
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    I don't understand what being a nurse (or a shift worker) has to do with whether or not you can indulge in a splurge every now and then. That's a mental trap, as is defining certain intake as 'cheat' meals.

    People who work from home and have no structure to their work day can easily use that as their rationale for not adhering to a plan. So can office workers, homemakers and retirees attribute bad choices to their circumstances.


    Finally, I don't get what it means to crave 'fast food like McDonalds'. Is there a specific item you crave or is it just that getting anything on their menu will satisfy? It helps if you distill your craving into an exact item or order so you can figure out exactly how to accommodate that craving into an eating plan. Maybe the fries are enough and you don't really want/need the Bic Mac. Maybe you need both. Maybe half of each is enough.

    If you just somehow crave the environment, that's much easier- go in, order yourself a cup of coffee, black, and soak up the surroundings.
  • Dhawa74
    Dhawa74 Posts: 13 Member
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    I totally understand those cravings. For me ive found other fast food options that are healthier and delicious that satisfy those cravings. For example a really good grilled chicken sandwich from chik fil a or a salad from Panera. Not sure what fast food joints you have in your area but find a go to place to satisfy those cravings in a healthier way when you need to. Or just get a small burger and side salad from mcdonalds. Lol. Fries maybe once in a blue moon. Those things are addictive though, i would stay away from those.

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