“I’m just so hungry, after work so I binge…”
“My cravings are just too hard to ignore…”
“At 4pm, I just eat everything left in my fridge!”
These are just some of the things I hear on a regular basis when women come to us looking for help with weight-loss and nutrition.
Cravings can crush your will power and seriously slow down your ability to burn fat.
If you don’t have strategies in place to help overcome these afternoon cravings then like thousands of women, you might just be stuck in this negative cycle for years.
By the end of this blog, you will learn:
– How to control exactly what you eat when the afternoon cravings hit
– What to eat to help keep you full without the hefty calorie intake
– How to eat to get more enjoyment out of food and use it to help burn fat
– And much more.
You see, in our TONE28 Challenge, we emphasise how important it is for all of the women starting out understand exactly what to eat and how to eat to achieve their goals.
By giving all of our clients access to our easy to follow meal plans and nutrition guide, that’s one way we really help to simplify the nutrition process when it comes to burning body fat and toning up.
Now, here are the meat and potatoes to crushing cravings and breaking the afternoon binge:
- Plan your whole day of eating before you eat it
Having no plan as to what you’re going to eat throughout the day is like buying food for a party you’re hosting where you have no idea how many guests are coming.
If you had no idea how many people were coming to a party at your place, you’d have no idea how much food to buy or even what kinds of foods you’d need. You’d be left guessing about a hundred different things because you didn’t and couldn’t prepare properly.
When you plan your food ahead of time, you’re giving yourself freedom within a structure that YOU get to design.
If you’re tracking calories or macros this becomes even more valuable so you don’t get left needed to eat 10 egg white and 100g of boiled broccoli at the end of the day all because you at a slice of cake at the work party for Sarah.
Planning ahead will help you to conquer your afternoon binges because you already know what you’re going to eat when you get home from work.
- Eat more protein to fill you up for longer
When it comes to crushing cravings, protein is your friend.
Protein understands that you get hungry again only minutes after finishing that chocolate bar. Protein knows that bag of chips won’t fill you up for very long.
Protein wants to help you.
Due to the complexities of breaking down protein, it helps keep you fuller for longer and burns more calories converting the protein into energy. Yay science!
Foods high in protein are also usually lower calorie options too. When it comes to satiety and slow releasing energy, protein mixed with complex carbs are the way to go.
A great example of a high protein, low calorie meal that’s sure to satisfy those hunger cravings would be a Tuscan seasoned, chicken tenderloin and salad wrap.
- Stay Well Hydrated
“Make sure you drink enough water.”
You probably heard your parents say it 1000 times when you were growing up… well at least I sure did!
But hey, maybe Mum was onto something.
Water is vital for pretty well every process within our body from brain function to utilising fat for energy. Even a mild level of dehydration can lead to a decrease in performance in the gym AND a decrease in metabolism.
Not only that, but when we’re eating meals, adding in water with our meals will help with satiety.
Sipping water throughout the day is a great way to keep your body running smoothly and your stomach constantly filled with something.
I like to carry a non-disposable bottle with me everywhere I go, to ensure I drink at least 3L per day.
- Throw Out Your Trigger Foods
You know that food that once you start eating it, you have to finish the whole packet?
That one that you tell yourself “Oh, I’ll just have a little bit and then put it away”, but then in the blink of an eye the whole thing is gone. Then, once that’s gone you proceed to devour everything in sight.
That is your trigger food.
If you can’t relate to the above scenario then you can consider yourself lucky. Triggers foods can be detrimental to your fat-loss goals.
They’re even more troublesome around that afternoon slump just when you get home from work.
The best and most effective course of action to dealing with trigger foods is to remove them from your kitchen – throw them out. It should be understood that once there is food in the fridge or cupboard, eventually it will be eaten. It doesn’t matter if you show self-restraint one day and pass on the ice cream in the freezer after dinner one night, because eventually, it will be eaten.
Sorry to make it sound so vanilla…
BUT, if you want to make life easier, throw out the stuff you know you tend to binge on and don’t buy it until you know your eating habits have improved.
So there you have it, it’s really as simple as:
- Planning ahead when it comes to what you’re going to be eating
- Eating more protein throughout the day
- Drinking more water
- Throwing out the foods you commonly binge on
Crushing your cravings can be simple once you’ve made a plan and stick to it.
If you’re having trouble working out where to start when it comes to nutrition, or maybe you just lack the motivation to push yourself in the gym – we have the solution for you.
Our 4 Week TONE28 Challenge is exactly the kick-start you need to get yourself back on track when it comes to your nutrition, training and accountability.
Apply here — http://bit.ly/2pF56XV
That’s it for now,
Happy Toning!