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You don’t have to live with hunger cravings. They’re never fun, and if you’re honest with yourself, you know you probably don’t respond well to them. When you’re craving food, it’s hard to have the discipline to cook up some grilled chicken and broccoli. Cravings typically drive people toward unhealthier foods full of sugar and bad carbs. Essentially, your body is crying out for something you know you shouldn’t eat. It may be because you’ve built a dependency on sugar, or you are in a situation where it’s harder to make smart decisions about food.
Find out how you can crush hunger cravings and stay on track. Retrain your body to respond differently to food and eliminate cravings for sugar and other harmful snacks. You’ll feel better in the short term by finding your way out of craving cycles that make dieting so hard. Discover ways to stick to diets and change your health with these 7 tips for overcoming hunger cravings.
Schedule Your Meals
Your body responds well to routine. If you think about it, doing something like going on a run is much harder the first few times. Your body is essentially putting up resistance and saying, “Hey! Why are we doing this?” Change is hard, but training your body is one of the best ways to overcome hunger cravings. A great place to start is by sticking to strict meal routines. Sure, a cheat meal on the weekend or something like that is fine, but try to keep your meals at the same time each day. Your body is much less likely to send cravings when it knows when to expect food. You’ll probably feel hungry around mealtime and that’s it!
Drink More Water
We touch on this a lot because it’s so important. Water will help you eliminate many of your cravings. You fill your belly up and it’s usually enough to get you to that next meal. Drinking water is great for your metabolism and skin as well. One important note about water is that many people mistake dehydration for hunger cravings. Your body needs more fluids, so make drinking more water a priority.
Chew Some Gum
If you’re absolutely struggling, grab some gum to avoid eating that candy bar or similar junk foods. Sugar-free gum usually has no calories, and it will trick your mind into thinking you’re eating when you’re not adding to your daily calorie count. Carry a pack with you throughout the day, especially if you’re starting a new diet or anything like that. It’s an emergency measure that won’t work for long, but it shouldn’t do the trick in a pinch.
Get Up and Move!
When you’re craving bad foods, get up and start moving! Go for a walk outside or join a class during times when you’re prone to hunger cravings. Your body switches modes and soon you’ll stop thinking about food. You’ll also get a decent dopamine release from the exercise, which will give your body a nice positive feedback loop to keep you focused on good habits.
Explore Peptides & Hunger Cravings
The peptide Melanotan 2, or MT-2, has proven effective in animal models at reducing hunger and preference for unhealthy, fatty foods. In research studies, mice given MT-2 showed a significant reduction in total food consumption and stayed away from unhealthy foods they preferred earlier. MT-2 mimics the effects of leptin, also known as the satiety hormone. It’s used as a method to curb hunger with some very impressive results.
Eat More Protein
People who eat higher amounts of protein report feeling fuller and experiencing a feeling of fullness for longer. Protein is also great for building lean muscle mass. Finding ways to increase your protein intake is also surprisingly easy. You can buy high-quality, affordable protein powder, and you can do it the old-fashioned way by eating more meat, eggs, and other foods high in protein. Start skipping the sugars and the bread and opt for more meat.
Skip Breakfast
This may sound counterintuitive, but skipping meals is a great way to get rid of hunger cravings. You’re training your body to go without food for longer. Fasting actually can reduce hunger feelings, especially if you miss breakfast. When you eat breakfast, you’re priming your body to go. It’s like a jumpstart in the morning that gets your digestive system moving. Give intermittent fasting a try and skip breakfast. You’ll probably notice that you don’t feel as hungry throughout the day, and you’re less likely to snack
Diets die or succeed in the first few weeks. You’re building the habits you need to stick to a new nutritional plan long-term. Give some of these tips a try and see what works for you. Eventually, you’ll find ways to overcome feelings of hunger, and they’ll decline the longer you stick with things.
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