When we overindulge in too much junk food, the results leave us wanting one thing, you guessed it, more junk food! Be it a salty or sweet craving, eating food that is bad for us can affect our bodies and brains in the same way drugs and alcohol affects an addict.
A trigger goes off in the brain making us feel utterly powerless to our cravings. Much like a junkie, we are in desperate need of a fix and focused only on that bowl of pasta or ice cream. For many of us, food can become a drug of choice and we use when we are tired, sad, bored, or anxious. The happy spot in our brains can become addicted to refined foods, such as white bread and sugar and the more we eat, the more we want.
To begin breaking the vicious cycle of junk food cravings we should eliminate all things refined and avoid high fructose corn syrup that is found in food that has been highly processed. Read all of your nutrition labels to make sure you aren’t consuming added sugar and sodium, which can make junk food cravings even more powerful. Replace sugary snacks with whole grains and fiber, plenty of nuts, fruits, and raw veggies which will help you to feel full and keep you out of the pantry.
To ward off cravings in the future and take your mind off of a roller coaster of emotions, there are many strategies to consider that will train your brain to respond to needs in a more positive way.
Use Your Imagination
Like clockwork, after you make it a point to eat a healthy lunch, within thirty minutes, you start craving something sweet. Sound familiar? This happens because we associate dessert as being a reward. You ate a healthy meal, so you want to treat yourself for being good.
You know how when you keep fighting off that feeling of having to have a piece of chocolate cake and it makes you want it even more? Sometimes accepting your cravings, instead of fighting them, is one of the most satisfying methods for getting the craving to go away. Think of a craving as just a thought and not a physical need and you should get a better handle on how you control your emotional eating.
Instead of giving in to the craving and blowing the diet that your personal trainer in Chicago helped you get on track with, it is sometimes helpful to imagine that you are eating that piece of chocolate cake that you so desperately want. And imagine that you are eating a lot of it! Imagining the food being in your mouth will of course, increase your craving but when you imagine you are overeating will decrease the craving.
The best way to beat a junk food urge is to have a few bites of fruit before a meal. Fruit will give you a dose of sweetness ahead of time so you won’t crave it later.
Exercise
When you get the urge to head to the kitchen and swallow the whole half gallon of ice cream in one big bite, don’t do it. Instead of keeping your head in the freezer, go outside and jog around the block. When you get back, the fresh air and sunshine should cause your craving to subside.
Mindless eating should be replaced with an emotionally pleasurable activity. Do something you enjoy that doesn’t involve calorie consumption. Give yourself a manicure and paint your nails, you’ll be less likely to dig freshly painted nails down into a potato chip bag. Look for things to do that won’t destroy weight loss efforts or something that you can enjoy with another person that don’t relate to food. Take a nature walk, sign up for a class with a personal trainer in Chicago, or go power window shopping with a strong support system.
Exercise is calming, clears your head, and will help cure the desire for you to overindulge. If you are stuck inside, try running in place or doing some jumping jacks to burn calories rather than piling them on.
Don’t Starve Yourself
Do you find yourself starving by mid-afternoon for something salty and crunchy or sweet and decadent? By fueling yourself with a high-glucose snack ahead of your usual three o’clock craving time, you can keep the bad for you cravings at bay. A sandwich with whole wheat bread and a source of protein at lunch should keep you full and help you to resist temptation before it starts.
If afternoon snack time is unavoidable, try to keep a stash of healthy snacks within easy reach. By eating every few hours your cravings that are caused by hunger can be avoided. Choose something low in calories like an apple with a small amount of almond butter, grapes or microwaved popcorn.
Chew Gum
Keep a pack of sugarless gum in your pocket or desk drawer. When a sweet craving strikes, pop a piece in your mouth. Chewing gum may help reduce cravings for snacks and aid you in reaching your weight loss goals.
Brush Your Teeth
When your taste buds are screaming for something particularly sticky and nutrition-less, you can literally wash that taste right out of your mouth. Get up and go to the bathroom sink and brush your teeth for two minutes with a mint toothpaste. Follow your routine up with a strong mouthwash. You can even floss an extra time of day for a final touch. Then put on a mint flavored lip gloss. When your mouth feels fresh and clean, you more than likely won’t want to make it feel dirty again with loads of sugar or bad breath causing foods.
Stay Hydrated
Drinking plenty of water is probably the most important thing to consider when trying to kick your junk food habit. Dehydration causes salty food cravings and by drinking more water, it can be avoided.
Sometimes what you think are food cravings, may actually be thirst. Keep yourself from being thirsty by having a water bottle handy all throughout the day and food cravings shouldn’t creep up.
It is likely that the food we crave is just our brain playing tricks on us. It’s alright to give in a little, on occasion. Junk food cravings don’t control what we put into our mouths and by eating a proper diet we won’t feel as much like we are fighting and losing a constant food battle. The sooner we learn that we don’t have to give into our cravings, the happier we all will be.