Craving food is a very normal part of being human. Unfortunately, a lot of the things we crave aren’t healthy for us and jeopardise our wellbeing. Not only do certain foods that we commonly obsess over (like sugary treats!) leave us feeling sluggish and flat, they also contribute to health challenges like anxiety, hormonal imbalances and gut issues, just to name a few.

Many of the women I support struggle with overwhelming food cravings. These preoccupy them, frustrate them and shame them. I too once struggled with very intense cravings that at times, completely overtook my daily life. In the midst of them I had trouble concentrating, was agitated, and often felt angry at myself that my cravings were popping up, yet again (it was even worse when I gave in to them - oh, the self deprecation!)

While I truly believe that no food is good or bad (it’s our relationship with food that matters the most!) I do believe in eating food that adds to our health, rather than takes away from it. Unfortunately many of the things we commonly crave, like sugar and processed foods, deplete our health, both in the short and long term.

When I learned how to release my cravings, I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. What I didn’t realise at the time was that my food habits, craving management strategies (or lack thereof) and thoughts were actually feeding my cravings and adding more fuel to their fire, rather than making them go away. Once I learned how to manage them, moving through the tough times became easier and today, I rarely have cravings for foods that deplete my health at all!

Here’s five easy strategies to help you release cravings when they arise.

Have high protein and low or no sugar snacks on hand

Protein helps you stay fuller for longer and keeps your blood sugar levels stable. Talk about an awesome double whammy! Making a simple shift in the foods you pack in your lunch (or buy out) each day can have a huge impact on whether or not you experience cravings.

My go-to’s are Arbonne’s protein bars; nuts paired with a piece of fruit (which is a great mix of fats, fibre, vitamins, minerals and a bit of natural sweetness from the fruit); hummus and vegetable sticks, and rice cakes and nut butter.

Easy, craving deterring and de-lic-ious!

Distance yourself from the craving

Have you ever noticed that the more you focus on a craving, the more it sticks around? If you interrupt your thoughts, you’ll find that your cravings naturally go away (this is also great for OCD behaviour!)

When a craving arises, I suggest that you replace any negative thoughts (aka, ‘I want a chocolate so bad. Why can’t I have more willpower?!”) with positive thoughts (such as, ‘I’ve noticed that I’m really craving chocolate this afternoon. I’m going to shift my attention elsewhere and be thankful for this opportunity to practice choosing differently.”)

Alternatively, you can move your focus by doing something you love, like reading a few pages of a book or listening to a song that makes you feel good. Even just a five minute pleasant distraction can make the world of difference when cravings pop up!

Change up your environment

It never ceases to amaze me just how powerful changing up your environment can be when cravings strike. If you’re in the midst of a craving, stop what you’re doing and move. If you’re at work, step outside and enjoy some fresh air or, if you’re at home, take a quick walk around the block. Sometimes our environment can contribute heavily to a craving persisting and a new physical space can help to create distance, gift us perspective and distract us. It’s simple, but it works!

Eat regularly

Eating every four hours (or so) helps you stay full which, in turn, helps keep cravings at bay. It’s MUCH harder to resist a craving when you haven’t eaten for six hours and are ravenous! The more mindful you are about how often you’re eating and what you’re choosing to eat (see my first point about protein rich and low sugar foods!) the less likely it is that cravings will show up!

Take five deep breaths in and out

When we’re in the midst of cravings, we tend to breathe more rapidly. This puts our central nervous system under strain and fuels our cravings even more. Stopping and taking five deep and mindful breaths is a powerful tool that helps you relax, reduce your blood pressure, and see clearly through the ‘craving haze’.

Listen to a meditation

Meditating when you’re in the midst of a craving is a great way to redirect your thoughts, soothe your central nervous system and create distance between you and the food you are preoccupied with in that moment.

To help you with this, I’ve created a short but powerful 3 minute audio that will help you tame your cravings when they’re at an all time high. You can download your free meditation below!

What I want you to know, above all else, is this - even if you experience a craving, try to redirect it and still ‘give in’ to it, that’s okay! You’re not a bad person, you’re not hopeless and you’re not pathetic (or whatever negative label you’re placing on yourself).

You’re human.

The only job you have when it comes to your health is to make the most loving choice for yourself at the time. Sometimes that means that you’ll move through your cravings successfully, and other times it means that you’ll succumb to them. The more you practice, the easier it will become and one day, you’ll notice that quite naturally, you crave less of the foods you once did. Be patient with and kind to yourself. All that matters is that you try.