(tips and tricks to keep
you disciplined)
You’re sitting on the couch watching tv or surfing the web
and it hits you….you can’t stand this overwhelming feeling of wanting that
chocolate molten lava cake or that Big Mac that just appeared on your TV or in
the corner of your browser…you can’t take it anymore! You feel like at any moment you could put a
Dairy Queen out of business if you just stepped through their doors…what do you
do?
Now that’s a good question…lucky for you, I’ve been there,
craved that…now let’s ask the REAL question…are you hungry or are you craving
something? If you are hungry and you are
close enough to your next meal, then eat it a little early. If you are completely in between meals, chug ICE
cold water!!! It will fill your stomach
and fulfill that hungry feeling (at least temporarily). Also, by drinking ICE COLD water, your body
is expelling extra energy to heat it up to your body temperature which means that
you are burning extra calories in the process (which is definitely a win-win). Another trick is to take a cheat pill (found
at Complete Nutrition). This helps
relieve the hunger feeling and I can attest to it…it actually works and
relatively fast! Now if you are not
truly hungry and are just craving something specific; like that Papa John’s
Pizza that you practically smell through the TV…THAT is another story…
Cravings are mind over matter. If you are craving flavors, that is totally
fixable and can be handled with a guilt free give in. If you are craving foods, that is a little
more difficult and is more of a mind game.
Definitely try to just go with a guilt free give in, but if you must,
choose a more “competitor friendly” substitute.
Guilt Free Give In’s:
Tea: The variety alone can appease almost any craving!
Hot Cinnamon Spice Tea – Cinnamon
is a natural appetite suppressant and gives a “Dessert” or “Breakfast Pastry” effect
Almond or Vanilla Black Tea – These
are more full flavored and full bodied teas, will almost a creamy texture and definitely
helps appease a flavor craving as well as keeps you full
Ginger
Peach Green Tea (or any fruity tea)– hot or cold this is the perfect swap out
for a soda or sports drink craving; throw in a little stevia and you’re all
set!
Dandelion Root Tea – this is great
if you are craving something salty! This
flavor, by no means, resembles a salty flavor; however, the bitterness cuts
that craving right away. Dandelion Root
is also a natural diuretic, so not only will this tea help cut cravings, but it
will help you shed a little extra water weight and detox your system too!
Spice it up: Try new Mrs. Dash Spices!! – These are all
sodium free and can be added to all your food to add a variety of flavors (you’ll
soon that cutting salt out of your diet really isn’t as hard as it would seem)!
Substitutes to Appease Cravings (when you are absolutely
dying and the Guilt Free Give In’s aren’t working):
Protein PB Cups can replace a Protein Shake, HOWEVER, in
most cases the PB is not approved on your nutrition plan, so try to avoid this
is possible!
Recipe:
Mix 1 scoop of chocolate protein with 1 T cocoa powder, 3 t stevia, and 1/8 c
water. Layer chocolate mixture with 1 t
PB in a lined muffin pan and put in the freezer until frozen. One recipe will make approx. 2 PB cups. Store in freezer (will melt and get gooey in
the refrigerator). Only downfall to this
is that they need to be made in advance if you are in a craving pinch!
For a salty or spicy craving and the spices just aren’t
cutting it, use a little salsa or low sodium hot sauce on your eggs. Watch the sodium content, but sometimes if
you give in a little it will cut the craving before it gets monstrous and you
dream about salt licks (as scary as that sounds….that’s happened to me
before)! Just don’t make this a
habit! Remember, every decision you make
effects your training and only you have the power to say no to yourself!
Latte/Mocha Cravings –Again, this one is pretty easy, and
may even belong in the guilt-free category, depending on how strict you are
with your coffee/protein. Wait until
your coffee cools to almost room temperature and add a half to a full scoop of
either vanilla or chocolate protein powder and a couple packets of stevia (I
typically use this as a protein shake substitute for one of my meals). Throw in some ice to make it cold or pop it
back in the microwave to heat it up!
Other tricks to get you through day in and day out…
Cook your food a different way
Use different Sodium-free seasonings
The power of protein àSwitch
up your protein flavors and varieties! There
is pretty much a flavor out there for any sweet tooth! (Also, using less water makes it more of a
pudding or mousse consistency)
Do something to absolutely occupy your mind like clean or do
the dishes, or better yet…PRACTICE YOUR POSING!!
One trick that I do weekly is make a list of all the things
that I crave throughout the week and before my cheat meal I look at the list
and ask myself, do I still crave that food?
If I do, then I incorporate it into my cheat meal, if I don’t then that
just further proves to myself that cravings come and cravings go! Remember, you worked WAY WAY WAY too hard to
ruin it with a bite here or a lick there or worst yet, a splurge!
I hope this information, based on personal experiences and
experimentation, has helped you out or at least triggered your brain into thinking
about your cravings and what is REALLY going on in your brain!
Always remember that cravings are short lived, but when you
give in to them, the guilt is not!
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