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How to Avoid Food Temptation While Dieting

By Diane Hanson

Maybe you're thinking “just a tiny bite of that chocolate cake won’t hurt”, or maybe your boyfriend is always bringing home huge bags of chips, or maybe your office pantry is stuffed to the brim with snacks. Let's be honest, when temptation strikes, do you cave in or are you strong enough to fight off food temptation?

When you start eating a healthy diet to lose weight, temptations – from media, family members, co-workers, to fast food restaurants – to eat “forbbiden” foods will creep up slowly on you every now and then. So how do you resist food temptation and not scupper your best dieting efforts? The answer is surprisingly very simple.

What Can You Do to Resist Food Temptation and Stop Food Cravings?

1. Don’t do your grocery shopping when you’re hungry. If you do, chances are you’ll buy more since everything looks delicious when you crave for food. You’ll also tend to make poorer food choices and grab less wholesome food items unconsciously.

But if you eat before you go to the store, you’ll notice that junk foods just don’t have the same “grab me” appeal. This helps you to save oodles of calories on unhealthy food and unplanned snacking.

2. Don't surround yourself with food temptation at work and at home. Give your pantry a healthful makeover and toss out all unhealthy diet-wrecking foods that tempt you – cookies, chips and other junk foods you shouldn’t be eating. Once they’re out of sight, you won’t even be tempted to snack in between meals.

Always make sure you have nutritious foods that are easy to grab when you’re feeling peckish. Replace unhealthy snacks with healthier alternatives such as fresh fruits, unsalted almonds, low fat cheeses and yogurt.

Resisting junk food at the office is a huge challenge for many people, but if you start packing decent snacks – orange, apples, homemade granola bars – in your drawer, you won’t even want to dip into the cookie jar, or go to the vending machine for a quick sugar fix.

Also, keep a bottle of water at your desk at all times. More often than not, we mistake thirst for hunger. And, make sure it’s plain water you’re drinking. If you simply hate the taste of water, you may want to flavor it with lemon slices.

3. Substitute your food cravings. If you’re craving for salty foods, reach for celery juice or eat raw tomatoes instead of chips. If you’re dying to have a candy bar or want a cookie, an almond stacked on top of a dried apricot is a great substitute. Cravings for unhealthy fatty foods can be quickly satisfied with a small piece of avocado.

4. Think of the consequences before you bite. When you backslide, all your efforts go down the drain. Find a reason to stay motivated and not eat junk food. It could be a wedding, to lower bad cholesterol levels, to improve self esteem or any other reasons that will help you focus on your weight loss goals.

Positive affirmations are powerful tools for successful weight loss. They help develop a positive mental attitude which can greatly motivate you to avoid unhealthy stuff. Try telling yourself “healthy foods taste better”, “I think before eating”, or “I choose natural, unprocessed foods” when unhealthy food temptation hits you.

5. Brush your teeth after every meal. Toothpaste numbs your mouth, freshens your breath and makes you not want to eat. This works wonders when you’ve sudden cravings for unhealthy snacks.

If you’re some place where you can’t brush your teeth, chewing gum or sugarless breath mints have the similar effect.

With the simple diet tips in mind, you can stop food temptations and meet your weight loss goal in no time!

what can i do to resist food temptation and stop food cravings

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