5 Practical Tips for Fighting Cravings

Wrong eating habits and lifestyle have led many people to become unable to distinguish between cravings and hunger. Well, you already know that hunger is what you feel about 5 – 6 hours after your last meal (or a little less if your meals are small), but what about craving? I think I could define it as the ability to eat certain foods no matter how full you are, which is dangerous to your waistline. This is why we need to know how to fight cravings.

1- Eat the types of food that have high fiber content. Vegetables, grains, rye bread and legumes are among such foods. They will make you feel full quickly without extra calories. Eating such foods will prevent you from succumbing to cravings even if you usually indulge them.

2- Keep yourself hydrated. Try drinking a glass of water before your meals, and a glass whenever you feel hungry. Sometimes your body registers the feeling of thirst as hunger to get all the water it needs from food, so if you drink water often, you will find that you don’t need to eat as much nor as often.

3- Choose certain dishes instead of open buffets. What I mean is, do not have many choices before you when you are hungry, because you will eat more than what you need.

4- Remove temptations. It is easy to succumb to cravings when you know that the source is at hand. If you do not want to indulge your chocolate craving do not fill the chocolate chip cookie jar in your kitchen. Treat yourself to a small craving snack occasionally but do not keep a box of it close by.

5- Look for healthy snacks. Instead of snacking on candy bars and potato chips, try snacking on fresh fruits, nuts and vegetables. These healthy snacks will make you more full for a longer time.