CommunityBrowse groupsBlogEtiquetteInvite Your friendsSuccess Stories

Lounge
Community 


Better to give in once or grin and bare it?

Ok, informal poll:
When you have a craving for something, or just want an extra serving of something yummy you're having, do you give in, or grit your teeth? If you choose the latter, how long do you hold out if the craving persists?


Mon. Jun 12, 8:12am

Add comment  
OP here

I meant, grin and BEAR IT!
lol

Monday, June 12, 2006, 8:30 AM

Add comment
If you are craving sugar or anything sweet, I suggest the following experiment:
Do not eat ANYTHING sweet (no added sugar, nutrisweet, sweet'n'low, honey, etc.) - that means no fat-free treats, no fruit yogurt, etc. Try this for four weeks no matter how miserable it makes you. After four weeks, see if your cravings still makes you crazy or if you get your sweet tooth under control.

Now, if your craving is for salty or fried food, I have no great thoughts.

And if you are just really hungry, you need to eat. If you are counting calories or counting points or whatever, and you end up hungry, either (a) your daily allotment of calories or points or whatever is not enough; or (b) you are wasting your calories/points/whatever on food that is not sufficiently energy dense. If you waste your calories/points/whatever on ice cream or beer or potato chips, you might well end up hungry because these foods will not sustain you throughout your day.

As you might imagine from what I have written above, a sweet tooth is my downfall but I have had amazing success in curbing my sweet tooth (and my appetite generally) by cutting out sugar and other sweets. I used to try to have small amounts of sugar (a few chocolate kisses or a very small portion of a cake, etc.), and it was disasterous. I ALWAYS wanted more sugar. And I was hungry a lot of the time. Cutting out sugar (plus adding a little bit of fat - half and half in my coffee, for example) has done wonderous things for my food cravings.

Monday, June 12, 2006, 8:31 AM

Add comment
I agree with the 8:31 poster. I'm what you would call a sugar addict. A little bit would never do it for me and then I would end up binging. If you can stay away from the sweets for a couple weeks or more, it will help immensely. I got to the point where after a few weeks I COULD have just one of something and be sensible/reasonable without wanting the whole bag or entire pan of whatever.

Monday, June 12, 2006, 8:35 AM

Add comment
OP here

Thanks you guys. What I mean is like actual food, wanting to eat more food without having to count cals (which is what I do). I've been wanting to just EAT, but I don't want to go bananas. Suggestions?
:)

Monday, June 12, 2006, 8:58 AM

Add comment
I sometimes give in and eat what I'm craving. However, my cravings are usually for something salty or sour: salt covered pretzels, a pickle, or maybe just a slice of bread. However since joining PT, I give in less frequently. The thought that I'll have to report my binge does stop me, at least sometimes. (So far, I've lost 20 lbs. and haven't stopped yet....)

Monday, June 12, 2006, 9:00 AM

Add comment
Learn to trust yourself and have one serving at a time of a food that you are craving. It's hard... but if you do it often, it will be easier. If you keep the food around and tell yourself "Hey if I am hungry, I can have that food any time" it might actually look kind of boring to you. Make healthy choices 95 percent of the time, and the other 5 percent, treat yourself. Food is not the enemy. Let yourself eat 200 calories a day of a food you really love.

If you force yourself to say no over and over, and you keep telling yourself you can't have something and if you have just one bite, you'll end up overeating and keep thinking about how good that food must be and how you shouldn't have it... your subconcious will eventually rebel and scream "YES!" and you will end up binging.

Monday, June 12, 2006, 9:05 AM

Add comment
Better to give in once or grin and bare it?

When you give up everything sweet does that include fruit too? If so, if or when do you ever add it back in to your diet??

Monday, June 12, 2006, 9:11 AM

Add comment
If you're craving just eating, let yourself have something healthy, along the lines of raw veggies or an apple, etc. If that doesn't appeal, it means that you're not really hungry and you don't need to eat. If it does appeal, great, you've had a healthy snack!

As far as just wanting to eat quantity, have 1 serving of whatever it is you're eating, and make yourself wait 25 minutes afterwards (really not that long!), and, then give yourself the "veggie test" from above.

As for cutting out all sweets, I don't think this includes fruit, but, that's just me. I see fruit (especially berries, etc.) as a special treat, and now they're my dessert or special snack! So healthy too!

Monday, June 12, 2006, 10:31 AM

Add comment
There are definitely days when I'm in the mood to mindlessly munch or eat large quantity of 'something'. I often find that drinking some water or having a cup of tea will help immensely because I was actually thirsty not hungry. I'll often have a cup of tea about 1/2 hour before eating a meal. If it turns out I am hungry I second the veggie recommendation above. Hard to get too many calories with a healthful chopped salad (use at least 1/2 spinach - it's more filling than you'd think) and lowfat dressing and you can really eat a fairly large one and do little to no damage to your eating plan. I sprinkle a bit of feta cheese on mine for dramatic flabvor and a bit of fat to help me stay satisfied. I try to only have fruit in small servings at beakfast and lunch because it stimulates my sweet tooth and a serving is much higher in carbs and calories that veggies.

Monday, June 12, 2006, 1:04 PM

Add comment
Sugar, fruit, etc.

8:31 poster here -

1. When I cut out sugar, I do not cut out fruits (which include sugar and a whole lot of super healthy things too). Cutting out sugar (other than sugar in fruit while eating the whole fruit) seems to help me immensely. Other people I have known who have cut out sugar have also cut out fruit.

2. When I cut out sugar, I find my cravings for just about everything go down and my appetite goes down. So . . . if I cut out sugar, I find that I am not as hungry throughout the day, no matter what it is I am eating or thinking of eating.

For me, the no sugar (except for fruit and minimal amounts in certain processed foods like bran cereal) approach has made a huge physiological difference in my appetite. It usually takes about 2 weeks to kick in. That is just my experience - have no scientific basis for it and do not know if anyone else would react in the same way. In fact, if anyone here has tried something similar, would love ot know how it worked for you.

Monday, June 12, 2006, 1:31 PM

Add comment
Lately, I've been trying to eat real food when I'm craving something sweet. That often helps. Drinking water helps sometimes, so does chewing gum for a little while. But sometimes nothing will do but the craved for food, ususally when it's PMS. So, I give in, but try not to eat too much.

Tuesday, June 13, 2006, 4:27 AM

Add comment








Related Content:

How To Lose Weight- The Basics
Weight Watchers Points System
The Fat Smash Diet
The Eat To Live Diet
The Beck Diet Solution
How To Get The Motivation To Lose Weight

 

How To Be Successful Using PEERtrainer

How To Burn Fat
Online Weight Loss Support- How It Works
Does Green Tea Help You Lose Weight?
Tips On Using PEERtrainer
Visit The PEERtrainer Community
Diet and Fitness Resources

Fitness

Weight Watchers Meetings
Learning To Inspire Others: You Already Are
Writing Down Your Daily Workouts
Spending Money On A Personal Trainer?
How I Became A Marathon Runner

 

Preventive Health

How To Prevent Injuries During Your Workout
Flu Season: Should You Take The Flu Shot?
Are You Really Ready To Start PEERtrainer?
Super Foods That Can Boost Your Energy
Reversing Disease Through Nutrition

New Diet and Fitness Articles:

Weight Watchers Points Plus
How To Adjust Your Body To Exercise
New: Weight Watchers Momentum Program
New: PEERtrainer Blog Archive
Review Of The New Weight Watchers Momentum Program
 

Weight Loss Motivation by Joshua Wayne:

Why Simple Goal Setting Is Not Enough
How To Delay Short Term Gratification
How To Stay Motivated
How To Exercise With A Busy Schedule

Real World Nutrition and Fitness Questions

Can Weight Lifting Help You Lose Weight?
Are Protein Drinks Safe?
Nutrition As Medicine?
 

Everyday Weight Loss Tips

How To Eat Healthy At A Party
How To Eat Out And Still Lose Weight
The Three Bite Rule
Tips On How To Stop A Binge