I've
made a decision. I've decided to not eat the ten pack of French Crueller
timbits that I'm craving.
Now,
I just have to stop thinking about those mmmm soft, smothered in icing,
melts-in-your-mouth timbits.
After
all, what is the point of continuing to think about these damn timbits if I've
already decided to not eat them? Am I a glutton for punishment?
Looking
back, I'm baffled that I thought that the relentless, internal debate triggered
by a food craving was normal:
"I
want to eat this timbit. No, actually, I want to eat twenty of them."
"I
can't. I shouldn't. I don't need it."
"But,
it tastes so good!"
"Timbits
are fattening."
"I don't care. I'll eat it anyways. Nothing else will satisfy me."
My
original resolve to not eat, to not give into the craving was continuously
tested until I gave into the craving. This could take an hour, or two or could
last for a few days or more. It was inevitable that a craving eventually lead
to giving in and eating. It was just a matter of time.
Continuing
to think about the food that you are craving only serves to extend the life of
a craving. Therefore, if you want to
stop a craving, you have to stop thinking about it!
Therefore, once you've made a decision to not eat, the next step is to physically move
away from the food you are craving. Physically separating yourself from the
food you are craving helps to mentally banish the thought of it too.
If
you are unable to physically move away from the food, move the food so you can
no longer see it. I place frozen food in the downstairs freezer, place cookies
for the kids in the absolutely useless corner kitchen cabinet or behind the
extra ziploc baggies in the hard-to-reach shelf of the pantry.
Once
you've eliminated the visual reminder, turn your attention to something other
than food. Anything to distract your thoughts will work. Prepare a list of ways
to distract your thoughts so you aren't scrambling when a craving hits.
Here
is a list of some of the ways I distract my thoughts:
- Refocus on the task at hand when the craving hit. If I'm in the mall running errands, I reconsider my list to determine if I missed any additional errands that need to be done.
- Google random questions. What happened to the actor who portrayed Jake from Sixteen Candles? What happened in the Lost finale?
- Go for a walk with a colleague to discuss non-food related topics.
Step
2 is simple, distract your thoughts. But, in order for this to work you need to
allow your brain to think about something else and forget about the food you
are craving.
Don't
over think it! Don't hold onto your craving – just let it go!
How
do you distract your thoughts away from food?
I think, ultimately, the answer is NOT to think "kid food" and simply to buy/promote/condone those junk/non-food items. It is a big step not to think of ourselves living buy one set of rules and our families living by another set. We do have things in our house, from time to time, but I have gotten very good at pickings things where there is one serving each and then they are gone. My oldest is 23 and in grad school on east coast (2nd of 5year doc program). He cooks his own food and eats mostly whole foods. He eats slightly more carbs than I do. He also runs several miles a day year round. My middle is sophomore in undergrad and also has to REALLY watch it. It is important these kids know preventive actions/habits so they do not have to unlearn self sabotage behaviors. And so they do not gain weight they then have to lose.
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