How do you manage your cravings for food?

[danieelouu]

Hi all! How does anyone else manage their cravings for food? I'm naturally a grazer so I usaully eat little and ofter, but this tends to be mostly bad rubbish foods when I'm sat at my desk. I'm trying to make better food choices and eat 3 meals a day instead of constantly snacking. Anyone have any tips and tricks for how to go from being a grazer to someone that can no feel hungry everytime someone mentions food!

[WendyB]

Make sure you get some kind of fat and protein with each meal. Keeps you full longer

Drink water  before sitting down to eat.

I eat 3 meals a day and 2 snacks a day

[Dominique]

Another vote for protein from me. I recently described the way I’ve been eating for the past year. It’s worked well for me, both when losing and gaining weight (I do both, on purpose).

If you want to lose weight, and therefore have a limited amount of calories to play with, you’d want to make smart choices. If you intend to maintain or gain, you have more flexibility to include a little bit of junk food here and there, especially if you are active enough.

[Baltoscott]

I think it is a great idea to move from grazing to eating regular meals.  And yes on protein at each meal as it helps with satiety. 

Eat your meals as close as possible to the same time each day and eat until you are full, but not stuffed.  I usually go for 4 meals/day at mostly regular times (5:30AM, 11:30 AM, 4PM, 7:30PM).  (Timing has to do with a long daily commute).  As your body gets habituated to eating satisfying meals are regular times, you will be able to start trusting your hunger cues better as they will tend to hit you 30-60 minutes before mealtimes.  After a satisfying meal, however, you are good for several hours and that makes it much easier to say "no" to all crappy food opportunities that tend to pop up throughout the work day.  

[lavabelle]

I agree and second everything posted here!! I also would add to make sure you eat enough at each meal and notice what time of the day you are most hungry and shift your calories to those times. I have a really tough time in the afternoons @ work for some reason, so I always eat more of my calories for lunch, and less for morning and evening on weekdays. But on the weekends I tend to get hit with cravings in the evening, so I shift my calories to dinner more than morning and afternoon. I have noticed my patterns over time, so keeping some kind of journal or diary will help identify when the tough times of the day are for you.

Wishing you much success! 🙂

[MarciM]

Great advise @lavabelle Shifting calories to peek times will keep you from snacking and help you from hitting a low energy slump during the day. 

[SunsetRunner]

For me, it’s not enough to just make sure I get enough protein. I also have to stay away from the fast digesting carbs and fruit because of the sugar. They make me want to binge and I have a hard time sleeping when I eat them. I have two meals a day and a few protein drinks in between. I don’t ever feel the need to snack. I can go to the buffet and not bat an eye at the dessert table lol. That used to be extremely hard for me before I cut out fast digesting carbs.