Craving sugar is one of the major problems you struggle with, you've told me.
Whether it's the sugar in the wine that you worry about or the sugar that you find yourself snacking on in the afternoon, or the bowl of ice cream after dinner, it's an issue.
But is sugar really the problem?
Or is it the craving that's the problem that needs to be fixed??
Cravings are a part of appetites. In fact, cravings often tell us what nutrients our bodies need. It is a normal part of appetites, even while trying to lose weight.
Instead of seeing cravings as a sign of lack of control, or lack of willpower, we need to normalize cravings. Let's take the chocolate + period scenario.
Have you ever struggled with a craving chocolate around your period?
That's actually a craving for more magnesium. Your brain pairs it with a food high in magnesium that also boosts your mood. During the luteal phase, our bodies need more magnesium than average. In fact, a magnesium supplement is as effective as popping an Advil for period related pain.
Mindset is the most important part to controlling cravings. First, we have to unlearn diet "rules" that have us living with an "all or nothing" mentality which lead to binges and regrets.
Here are 5 mindset "hacks" I help my clients with to reduce sugar cravings. Use these 5 questions to get curious about the cravings:
1) Why am I craving this food?
2) Am I just hungry? When was the last time I ate?
2) What happy memories do I have around this food?
3) What negative emotions am I feeling right now?
4) How can I practice kindness, not judgement right now?
By bringing attention to our cravings, we can learn a lot about what our bodies are trying to tell us.
Are you eating enough calories? Are you skipping meals? Is there enough fiber in your food? Are you missing key vitamins and minerals from missing enough plants? Did you get enough fat yesterday?
Attention leads to intention, so that we can honor our appetites without playing "good cop, bad cop" about food.
A curious mindset leaves room to experience a great freedom to nourish our bodies healthfully while feeling in control of our cravings.
It also helps us to shape our eating with intention. That how my clients use mindset in their meals to both gain control, lose weight but also feel great about what their eating while turning up the satiety in their meals.
Talk to you soon,
Nora
Ps. If you want to learn more about balancing your meals for maximum satiety, you might enjoy signing up for our live class on Conquering Your Cravings next Sunday
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