You wake up each morning with every intention of eating “good” today.
You’ll skip the drive thru line on your way to work. You’ll refuse to get fast food with co-workers at lunch. You’ll boycott the vending machine in the mid-afternoon. And you won’t even think about having dessert after dinner.
But then your cravings kick in…
Your friend drops by with a big fluffy muffin and a latte for breakfast. A group of co-workers invite you to that greasy spoon down the street for lunch. Cake is passed around at the mid-afternoon staff meeting. And after dinner your honey surprises you with a bowl of your favorite ice cream.
You tell yourself that tomorrow will be different.
Tomorrow you won’t give in to food cravings.
But then tomorrow comes with its own special circumstances, and cravings get the best of you once again.
Why Do Food Cravings Always Win?
Let’s face it, we live in a world where food temptations are everywhere…which leads to cravings, which leads to eating things that you shouldn’t, which leads to pounds gained. Again. And again. And again. Until you’re so fed up with your body that you don’t even know where to begin to get yourself back on track.
Stores display the most tantalizing junk food items right where you could easily reach them. TV commercials for greasy, fattening foods portray them so scrumptiously that you literally salivate. Sugary snack items have full-page, glossy pictures in your favorite magazines. And as if all of these weren’t enough, the people in your daily life are another (constant) source of food temptation.
To make matters worse, you’ve been conditioned since childhood to have a positive association with the act of indulging in your cravings. You use food as a reward. You use food as a source of emotional comfort. You use food as a way to relieve stress. And quickly these associations and uses of food become habit. A habit that’s not easily broken.
New Technique to End Food Cravings
Food cravings don’t need to have the upper hand on you anymore. Here’s how you can fight back using your most powerful asset: your brain.
Remember that your mind is an amazing thing. Once your mind is made up about something it’s nearly impossible to change it.
Try This Powerful Mind Exercise: Imagine that you are peacefully floating down a river on a raft. The sun is shining, birds are chirping, and you are having a fun, relaxing time. You feel wonderful about the river because it’s making you feel happy.
Now change perspectives for a moment. You’re now in a plane flying over the river and the raft. Instantly our eye is drawn to an enormous rocky waterfall. Then you look back to the person floating on the raft, having a wonderful time, headed straight for the treacherous falls.
With this new perspective of the river, do you think that you’d agree to get on a raft and take your chances floating toward the falls? Laughable, right? You’ve seen the hidden danger of the river. You know it leads to pain and suffering.
Now your negative association (watery death) with the river has replaced your initial positive association (relaxing fun).
This is the key to overcoming food temptations and putting an end to food cravings: building negative associations in place of existing positive ones. I’ll break this process down for you in two steps:
Step One: Create a STRONG Negative Association with Unhealthy Food
You may not have realized it, but up until this point you’ve placed unhealthy, fattening foods on a pedestal in your mind. As long as the wrong foods are on that pedestal you’ll continue to give into your cravings and will continue to gain fat.
Take the wrong food off that pedestal by listing off everything negative about them…
✓ These foods make you unhealthy.
✓ These foods cause weight gain.
✓ These foods drain your energy.
✓ These foods kill your confidence.
✓ These foods lessen your quality of life.
✓ These foods damage your love life.
Every time that you feel tempted to eat an unhealthy food, focus on your list of negatives. Kick the junk off the pedestal and put something healthy in its place.
Step Two: Create a STRONG Positive Association with Wholesome Foods
Now that your mental food pedestal has been cleared, put truly wholesome food items on it. Juicy fresh fruit, crispy vegetables and savory lean meats are the place to start.
List off the things that you love about healthy food...
✓ These foods make you healthy.
✓ These foods promote fat loss.
✓ These foods boost your energy.
✓ These foods build your confidence.
✓ These foods improve your quality of life.
✓ These foods enhance your love life.
I encourage you to immerse yourself into the world of healthy, wholesome foods. Browse the aisles of your local natural foods store. Stroll through a farmer’s market. Pack healthy snacks to bring to work. Clear your kitchen of junk.
Use the technique above consistently and you will soon find that healthy, wholesome foods are your favorite. And craving the wrong foods will be a thing of your past.
Call or email me today and I’ll get you started on a fitness program that will change your life and your body forever!
Focus on the New Additions
So you’ve decided to ditch your old eating habits and to embrace a new diet of lean proteins and lots of veggies. You know that your new eating strategy will lead to many pounds lost…but you can’t get your old favorite foods out of your mind.
Watch out!
When you spend time dwelling on the burgers and pizzas that you loved, you’re setting yourself up for a relapse.
The best way to stick with your new healthy eating habits is to focus on all the new foods that you now enjoy. Get a new cookbook or visit websites that present new and tasty ways to prepare healthy food.
Find new favorite foods to love – foods that are healthy and guilt free.
Roasted Broccoli and Cauliflower
We all know that vegetables are good for us, and that we should eat more fresh veggies in order to increase the fiber and vitamin content of our diets. But, the truth is that most veggie side dishes don’t taste good enough to entice the whole family to dive in. This recipe is the answer. Broccoli and cauliflower are roasted in an outrageously tasty way that’s simple, quick and full of nutrition.
Serve this delicious veggie side dish with a piece of lean meat for a well-balanced, fitness approved meal.
What you need
Serves 4
1 bunch broccoli
1 bunch cauliflower
1 Tablespoon olive oil
dash of sea salt
dash of pepper
4 garlic cloves, minced
juice from 1 lemon
Instructions
1. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly grease a large baking sheet with olive oil.
2. Wash the broccoli and cauliflower heads and then pat dry. It’s important to dry thoroughly so that it will roast properly. Cut into small florets.
3. In a medium bowl combine the florets, olive oil, salt, pepper and garlic cloves. Toss until well combined and then spread over the prepared baking sheet.
4. Roast for 25 minutes, stirring halfway through. Remove from oven once the florets are tender with crispy bottoms.
5. Drizzle the lemon juice over the cooked florets and serve immediately.
Nutrition
One serving equals 160 calories, 4g fat, 98mg sodium, 8g carbohydrate, 4g fiber, and 4g protein
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