How To Fight Off Unhealthy Cravings In 5 Steps

Eating healthier is key if you want to lose weight and get fit. So here’s how to fight off unhealthy cravings and achieve your fitness goals.

It happens even to the best of us. It doesn’t matter if you have thrown all the chocolate bars away or deleted the pizza delivery numbers, cravings will make you want to get them asap.

Of course, every once in awhile, it’s nice to indulge in our guilty pleasures as a reward.

However, you have to always remind yourself that cravings can be bad for your health if not controlled.

When you are craving for something, you might feel like it’s a necessity to get because you’re hungry.

Sad to say, but most of the time, when you’re craving those meals and snacks, you are also training yourself to choose unhealthy foods over the better options.

And before you know it, your binge-eating episodes are now a daily thing.

So let’s focus on how you can get rid of those food cravings and get back on the healthy eating wagon.

5 Tips That Help Fight Off Unhealthy Cravings

To fight off unhealthy food cravings, you need to listen to your body, exercise regularly, have great sleep sessions, and eat healthy food options.

So let’s take a closer look over these tips that can potentially help you give up food cravings once and for all:

1. Be Gentle On Yourself

Fighting off cravings is easier said than done. If it is as simple as flicking a switch off, then problems like obesity, diabetes, and heart disease are going to be easier to prevent.

Still, remind yourself that you don’t have to be so harsh and cruel to yourself when it comes to eating healthy.

When you’re putting too much pressure on yourself and expecting a quick result, you are bound to lose the motivation to start eating healthy.

Instead of saying, “I can’t have candies anymore”, limit yourself first in the number of candies you can eat in a week.

When you want to be a healthy eater, you don’t destroy the relationship and love you have for food.

The more that you make unhealthy foods like some sort of trophy, you will end up wanting them more. And in return, you’ll only see your new healthy diet as torture.

While yes, we can classify which foods are unhealthy and not, you also don’t want to view those sugary and fatty meals with lust.

Focus on why you want to start eating healthy and appreciate that you are actually making an effort.

2. Be Knowledgeable Of Foods And Familiarize Yourself With Your Body

You’ll only be able to curb your cravings if you know your foods well effectively. Don’t be afraid to consult your doctor or a nutritionist about the meals that are specifically good for you.

Dieting is only effective and safe if you are getting your complete nutrition. A complete loss of either fats, carbohydrates, or protein is also unhealthy.

It is much easier to get passionate about a healthy diet if you are aware of the benefits and negatives of the meals you eat.

For example, fruits and vegetables are great for your skin, and too much sugar can cause acne breakouts. Too much fat is bad for the heart, but good fats are also good for the heart.

At the same time, get familiar with your body. Every one of us is different, and there might be some underlying issues as to why we crave unhealthy foods. Cravings can tell us more about our health.

For example, your body is craving sugars because it lacks energy, or you might be craving salty chips because you are dehydrated.

If you know these things, it’s easier to discover solutions. Perhaps you feel unenergized, which makes you crave sweets in the afternoon because you’re skipping breakfast.

And maybe you won’t feel the need to eat chips if you just drink enough water.

Being knowledgeable with different foods will allow you to get inspired and imaginative to make healthy eating easier. You can create alternatives for the foods that you loved.

Nowadays, with the advancement of technology, finding healthy meal plans, and knowing what’s the proper nutritional requirement for everyone is within the palms of your hand.

3. Eat Healthier

You might be raising an eyebrow seeing how eating these foods can help fight off unhealthy cravings. However, they’ll help you by maintaining your overall health.

Crepes

You might want to get the best crepe pan and start fulfilling your fantasies in a healthy way. Yes, you’ve read that right.

Eating food immediately like crepes can actually help in curbing unhealthy cravings.

However, a healthier version of a snack you crave is the secret. Instead of using a high-sugar syrup, create healthy crepes that are low in sugar and carbs.

Green Vegetables

Some good meals to eat are also salads or even a green smoothie. Eating green veggies are high in fiber and can fill you up. If you feel satiated, you won’t have the need to eat unhealthy snacks.

Tea

You can also try tea to curb off sugar cravings or protein-rich foods to keep your hunger at bay.

Dark Chocolate

Just because you are eating healthy doesn’t mean that you should be quitting foods completely. Substitutions and planning healthy meals are the best trick to curb unhealthy cravings.

Dark chocolate is a healthy replacement for sweets and many nutritionists recommend it as mandatory to fight off unhealthy cravings.

Healthy Burgers And Fries

You can even make burgers out of tofu or cauliflower steaks to satisfy your cravings without the guilt. Also, baked versions of fries are healthier than their fried versions.

The possibilities are endless and an excellent way to get creative in the kitchen.

Fruits And Veggies

Fruits and vegetables can give you multiple flavor combinations. Gone are the days where they are boring and unpalatable.

Try out organic produce, healthy fats, plant-based “meats”, and sugar-free desserts.

4. Get Active

The last way to fight off cravings is to exercise regularly. It is a given to be able to achieve good health, but it’s just a bonus that this healthy habit will help you lose unhealthy cravings too.

You don’t even have to put yourself in extreme cardio workouts immediately. Just a short brisk walk daily can even help you start being active.

So how does this technique work? The secret is that you are actually putting a distance between you and the food.

At the same time, the physical activity helps you feel good thanks to the endorphins released in your brain from exercising. If you don’t feel the need to make yourself feel happy through food, cravings will be easier to combat.

Remind yourself of the good results that you’ll reap with a healthy lifestyle. Looking good is just a bonus. The fact that you feel good and have an outlet to release stress is also making you emotionally and mentally healthy.

5. Get Your Sleep

Besides eating right and exercising, sleeping well is another essential for good health. However, our fast-phased lives make sleeping a luxury that we usually neglect.

But did you know that being sleep-deprived also contributes to getting urges to eat unhealthy food?

The reason behind this is because you are suppressing the hormones that regulate your appetite if you lack a proper amount of sleep.

Therefore, you wouldn’t know if you are satiated or truly hungry as effectively.

What’s ironic is that the feeling that you are hungry makes you feel tired. This will make you want to munch on sugars as well. And you’re not even truly hungry, to begin with.

Always make sure that you have enough sleep every day. A 7-hour uninterrupted sleep is enough and attainable as long as you manage your time efficiently.

Overworking yourself just affects the quality of your work. So get some rest for a more effective performance the next day.