How to manage your cravings (hint: you don't need more willpower)

In the busy-ness of everyday life managing your food cravings can be challenging. For professional women in high tempo environments, work stress or fatigue can easily trigger the temptation to snack. We often reach for sugary or high fat foods to give us that boost of energy or for comfort. And - if you’ve spent half a second reading women’s magazines - the usual advice given is to restrict, control or improve your willpower. 

But these strategies don’t work and in many cases can actually make your cravings worse. In this article we’ll share top tips for managing your food cravings (that actually work), ones you can implement straight away.

Why Do We Crave Certain Foods? The Science Behind Food Cravings

So why do we crave certain foods in the first place? There’s often a complex interplay of biological, psychological and environmental factors that impact our cravings.

Biological factors might include hormonal changes or nutrient deficiencies; psychological factors could include stress or emotion regulation; and environmental influences may be about what’s in easy access or the impact of food adverts. 

However, improving your willpower won’t work to reduce or manage your cravings and neither will hiding or restricting your binge foods. Here’s the issue: as soon as you start to restrict food, or deny your cravings, your body thinks it’s being starved. In fact, your body sees any food shortage as a famine. 

Since we are biologically programmed to stay within a certain weight range, you immediately start feeling more hungry (that’s the increase in hunger hormones) and it’s harder to feel full (that’s the decrease in fullness hormones). It’s definitely nothing to do with your lack of willpower. Your brain is also biologically programmed to notice food when it senses food restriction - your brain goes into overdrive to encourage you to eat so that you don’t starve.

Psychologically there’s also a problem with the restrict and control paradigm - when you tell yourself that you can’t have something, and the doughnuts go onto the “naughty” list, you end up wanting them more. Once something is labelled ‘bad’, it becomes more desirable simply because it’s forbidden.

So how can we manage our cravings, without resorting to old methods that don’t work (and in most cases actually make them worse).

#1 Stabilise Blood Sugar Levels

Stabilising your blood sugar levels is an important first step in managing your cravings. When blood sugar levels fluctuate significantly, this makes you feel hungry - you know, like that urgent hunger which leads to more cravings and then a tendency to overeat. This comes from your appetite hormones being out of whack and your energy levels dropping (which means of course you want a quick energy source like a sugary snack).

When blood sugar levels are stable, it’s easier to regulate your appetite and your energy levels will feel more balanced; plus foods that help to maintain your stable blood sugar levels (rich in protein, fibre and complex carbs) promote feelings of fullness and satisfaction after eating, which leads to less cravings between meals.

So, to manage cravings, a good breakfast is crucial, along with regular protein-dense and fibre-rich meals and snacks throughout the day. You may be thinking - but yeah, who has time to make and then eat these kinds of meals? So think: quick and easy. Eggs on toast with a side of spinach and asparagus; greek yoghurt with seeds and berries; hummus on crackers with carrots and cucumber; grilled chicken with quinoa and roast vegetables. 

A good hack is to start with the protein source; next add the veg/fruit (for the fibre); after that, complex carbs and then add some fat for satisfaction (including some fat in your meals can help you feel fuller quicker).

And finally, to manage your cravings effectively, consider adding the specific foods you’re craving into your daily meals. By normalising eating those foods, it actually reduces the sense of urgency you feel to eat these kinds of foods. And, by eating them alongside your protein and fibre source, they will have less of an impact on your blood sugar levels.

For instance, if you’re craving chocolate, try adding a few squares to your morning oats mixed with nuts and berries. Craving a doughnut? Consider having it as dessert after your chicken,  potatoes and vegetables. Fancy a pastry? Pair it with a salmon and a side of salad. 

By making your “naughty” list more accessible, these foods begin to feel less like an indulgence and over time reduces the intensity of cravings. 

#2 Practise Mindful Eating

When we eat quickly and mindlessly, it’s easy to overeat. Mindful eating on the other hand helps you to better tune into your hunger and fullness cues, and is something you can incorporate even on a busy day. 

Here are my 5 steps on how to practise mindful eating, even when you are busy. You can also try out this mindful eating exercise here to help you.

Avoid distractions

Yes, I know you’re busy, but take 15 minutes out of your day for your lunch (at least). Put your phone away and turn off your computer monitor. Better yet, don’t eat at your desk. Take a few mindful breaths and allow your body to relax. The more relaxed you are, the better you’ll digest your food and the more nutrients you’ll absorb.

Be present with what you are eating

Bring awareness to the eating experience. Take a pause to appreciate the sensations, take a moment to really look at your food and notice any colours or textures; smell it so you can fully savour your first bite; and then savour the taste as you chew. 

Choose foods that are satisfying

Not only does eating slowly help you better engage with your fullness sensations, but so does eating satisfying foods. The more you find your meals satisfying, the fuller you will feel and then the less likely you’ll reach for high sugar, high fat snacks. 

We often have cravings because we aren’t allowing ourselves to enjoy our meals. If we feel dissatisfied at the end of a meal, our cravings intensify whilst we go on the hunt to find something that fulfils the desire.

Chew your food

And chew it well! The vast majority of us don’t spend enough time chewing each bite. But since digestion starts in the mouth, not only does chewing make it easier on the digestive system, it also means that you’re better able to sense fullness signals from your stomach. Aim for 20 chews - at least.

Check in

And finally, check in with yourself. It’s very easy, when we are eating mindlessly to keep going beyond the point of both satisfaction and fullness. But if you check in and ask yourself - am I still enjoying this meal? Do I still want to keep eating? Am I satisfied yet? Then you might find you are better able to stop eating at the first signs of fullness.

#3 Understand and Address Emotional Hunger

It might be that you are eating because of emotional hunger rather than physical hunger. Emotional eating is officially viewed as “eating in response to negative feelings” and something that we are often told to avoid.

I offer a slightly different explanation. Eating is emotionally laden. We eat when we are celebrating significant life events, we share intimacy with loved ones, we bake to show love. Food can be both comforting and rewarding. There is so much emotion tied up with food that it’s no wonder that sometimes people feel emotionally attached to food and declare themselves emotional eaters.

So, if you are occasionally using food to respond to emotions like anger, loneliness or boredom. That’s OK. It really is! Understanding and accepting this can help you manage your cravings. 

However, if you are regularly using food as a way to cope with your emotions, and you have no other coping mechanisms, then it’s important for you to learn how to recognise the difference between emotional hunger and physical hunger. That’s because regularly responding to life’s stressors by eating food is related to overeating, depression and anxiety.

The Mayo Clinic outlines some key differences to help you understand the difference between the two. Physical hunger is something that develops slowly, you’re likely to feel hungry for a variety of foods, and, once you start eating, you start to feel fullness develop. On the other hand, emotional hunger comes on very quickly. It feels urgent, you often crave just one food, and can often lead to a binge.

#4 Use Practical Tips for Managing Emotional Hunger

And finally - when you realise that you have emotional hunger, and you’d rather cope with life’s ups and downs without turning to food, what can you do? There are two key questions to ask yourself.

What am I feeling right now?

Quite often when we are reaching for food, but not actually hungry, it’s a sign that you are trying to regulate your emotions or cope with some stress, by using food. So when you notice this pattern, try and tune into what you are feeling.

Are you sad, lonely, annoyed, stressed or tired? If you’ve spent years ignoring or denying your feelings, this process may take some time. You may want to reach for a journal, write down your feelings, share them with a loved one, or just use a voice note to verbalise how annoyed you are.

What do I need right now?

Over time you will learn how to manage emotions without food. So asking yourself, what you need can help. For example, if you realise that you are lonely, perhaps you can do something that will help you feel less alone - phone or text a friend, watch something funny on youTube to lift your spirits. If you are feeling stressed or angry about your day at work, perhaps a walk round the block, some stretching or even a dance around the living room can help. If you find yourself mindlessly eating chocolate on the sofa because you’re bored, then find something else to do instead.

If your body needs to rest, then reading a book, listening to calming music or taking a nap could be the best things to do; or if your body wants to move, then a walk around the book, some gentle yoga, a run or just getting into nature could be your tonic. 

It can take time to work out the best strategies for you, but I encourage you to experiment. The more you take the time to understand your needs, the more you’ll be able to manage your cravings.

Conclusion

In our fast-paced lives, food cravings can easily overwhelm us. This article outlines four important ways to better manage your cravings that support a healthy relationship with food. By implementing our strategies to balance your blood sugar levels, eating mindfully, understanding and then addressing emotional eating, you’ll feel more balanced around food, which ultimately enhances wellbeing. Looking for support? Check out my Binges to Balance Academy here.