OMG...I fell of the diet wagon about 2 months ago. I have yet to be able to get back on. It seems like I only have 1 foot on and 1 off. I'm kinda watching what I eat but, these cravings are killing me. Its like everyday I crave something else. I'm just a little disappointed that I was doing so well and now it seems I cant get back on it. I'm hoping coming on here can give me the strength to get my butt in gear suck it up and lose some more weight. Does anyone have any suggesting about the cravings im having. I'm craving things like SWEETS major.
Is it the flavor you are craving, or the texture, smell or some other characteristic of food?
I have found that many times, I am craving a texture rather than an actual taste, so I try to substitute with something I know is better for me, like a handful of almonds or some low-fat popcorn.
Another thing I try to do is distract myself. If I'm craving something, I got hop on the dreadmill for 10 minutes, or drink a bottle of water, take my dogs on a walk, come here to the forums and browse. My body is so used to the mindless eating that sometimes, it just needs to be distracted by something a little more productive.
I was wondering why that wagon was parked outside my house...LOL..well I have yet to get on the wagon....I don't know why we have such a hard time staying on the wagon..or in my case...getting on in the first place. Sounds weird but maybe..for me...I dont want the wagon..too slow...its like I want a corvette..lol...I am trying to realize that I I cant take a corvette and get out of fatville..I have to take the wagon...slow and steady..mind if I get on the wagon with you?
I agree the wagon is aweful hard to get on. I just started and i'm still half on half off but i am trying that i can say. I started exercising too. Now it's just the eating that i have to get under control.
For sweets try some fruit or there are hundred cal. packs. Chex has out little one serving packs choc. and carmel flavored those are pretty sweet and if i remember correctly they were pretty good for you too. I am using them as snacks for school.
I agree, it can be tough to jump back on. For that reason, I do worry about small lapses, as they can lead to large lapses, and then collapses.
As for the sweet craving, I like drinking tea in the evening to curb mine. I have a licorice flavored tea I love. Another trick I use is fruit! It's amazing how sweet grapes and pineapples are! Finally, it's getting cool, some low-cal hot cocoa maybe???
I hope it's ok that I post here. I lurk quite a bit, and wanted to chime in on this thread.
Shyest,
I find that if I'm craving and bingeing on sweets the only way to curb that is to go cold turkey for a little while. It's sheer torture for a few days but it gets better. The thing about sweets is that the more you eat, the more your body craves them. It's much like a drug, you get an insulin spike and it takes more and more to reach that same "high." It's too bad veggies don't have the same physiological effect, huh?
I know you can do it, even though things are tough right now. Keep your head up and keep going even when you don't want to. The rewards are worth it! At least, that's what I keep telling myself.
It sure is!! I find that when I give in to cravings, it sets off a binge...and that is not going to help me get to my goal. That being said, I have veered OP lately, but try to get right back on track and not beat myself up over it.
I also come on here and read when I am feeling like I might go that way. I find it really helps. Planning helps me ALOT and as long as I stick to my plan for the day I am fine. You can do this!
You know what I do for a craving? Eat it! Say I am craving a Hershey's Special Dark Bar. I will buy one regular sized one, and slowly nibble away at, enjoying each taste as if it were the last one (I do this at work, some people think I am nuts, but others are very understanding of my situation). I'm not giving anyone permission to buy a King Size or multi-pack, just treat yourself to 1. If you don't treat yourself once in awhile you are doomed to fail at the dieting. I cannot phantom living the rest of my life if I got hungry for a treat, to grab a celery stalk.
Thant candy bar I will still add in to my daily totals. I may remove an apple at lunch, or the fat free Ranch dressing on my salad afterwards, but I will budget it in.
Lat bit of advice, learn your weaknesses early. Mine happen to be potato chips, peanut butter, "flavored" Cheerios. If I have this stuff lying around I will eat it. If I don't include it in my shopping cart, I have nothing to reach for.
xtrisaratops: On some its the texture but, most of the time its the taste. Like for the past few days I have been wanting a hot fudge brownie sundae. Its really driving me crazy. However I think I know why im craving this so much. Miss witch showed up today so hopefully the craving will leave with her.
azcyn: Hop on chick. I would love for a corvette to pick my butt up also but, all I have yet to find is this darn wagon. I guess its better then not moving at all.
midnight92887: Ya, know I have been thinking about getting those as well. I might just have to look into that. Thanks for the advise hun!
Heather: I just went out and bought some fruit today. Woohoo I hope this works.
Gale02, Torister Thanks for the advise girls!
FresnoBeeDude: Thats what my husband suggest as well. Im trying to behave but, I know if I cave I will get what I want so the craving will go away. ( I HOPE anyway)
Im waiting for my nutrisystem to get here and I am back on my it 150%. Thanks girls all the kind words and advise really helps.
As I read through the thread it seems a lot of the advice is contradictory. But I think that's because different approaches work for different people.
Some seem to really react negatively to sugar and other refined carbs. They find that eating 1 piece of something really sets them off and they then can't stop.
Other people don't have that reaction, and they are more likely to give into cravings from time to time...
I think you will need to figure out over time what works and what doesn't work for you. And that may take some experimentation... We can certainly give a lot of infor, strategies and ideas!
I more of a lurker and don’t post frequently, but this thread caught my eye. Boy have I had a relapse! I agree with everything thing that was posted earlier. Once I fell off the wagon, it got harder and harder to get back on. I think for a while I was in the Corvette, but in my case it was a Firebird. For about 3 weeks, I’ve snitched a cookie here or there and ate a bigger bowl of ice cream than I should. It all counts up.
My biggest issue is mindless or emotional eating. When I count calories, I have to face what I’m doing and make the choice. Either I’m going to treat myself kindly for the long run by eating healthy food or I’m going to give in to the need for instance gratification and eat the junk that’s going to set me back
For a while I seemed to lose my motivation. I’m not sure what happened but I working on getting back on track.
Best wishes to all who are going through the same thing!
I have to agree with FresnoBeeDude. His method works for me as well. Even though I have been through WLSurgery, I still get cravings for certain things, not always sweets. The way I tend to gauge if it is an actual craving or just something that I want on the fly is if it lasts longer than a week, then I will go and indulge, just a wee bit. Like right now, I have the worst craving for a plain doughnut drowned in some skim milk. Just one doughnut. Weird huh? Who ever wants one doughnut? I hope that some of the advice folks have given here works for ya.
Boy is it hard to get back on once you fall off!
I have yet to be able to get back on. It seems like I only have 1 foot on and 1 off. I'm kinda watching what I eat but, these cravings are killing me. Its like everyday I crave something else. I'm just a little disappointed that I was doing so well and now it seems I cant get back on it. I'm hoping coming on here can give me the strength to get my butt in gear suck it up and lose some more weight. Does anyone have any suggesting about the cravings im having. I'm craving things like SWEETS major.
Its really driving me crazy. However I think I know why im craving this so much. Miss witch showed up today so hopefully the craving will leave with her. 
I hope that some of the advice folks have given here works for ya. 
