Sane Meals Part III – Silencing the Siren
I talked about the how’s and why’s of sane meals but I think it’s important to discuss the meal/day after. For some of you this won’t apply. You can have your sane meal or day and the happily return to your healthy plan no problem. For people like me, the song of the siren gets turned up like an obnoxious thumping car stereo after a sane meal. I try to prentend like I don’t hear it but it’s there thumping in my ear. In other words, CRAVINGS hit HARD and it’s annoying to say the least.
Portion control is hard for me even when I’m eating things like Simple Mediterranean Chicken let alone pizza parties or potlucks. There is something in me when I eat that says, “This feels good. So more must feel better.” I don’t think there is a hard and fast answer to this struggle. Ultimately it comes down to that elusive slippery little thing called “will-power”. Reminding myself that food is meant to fuel and nourish my body for my daily activities helps. Reminding myself how wonderful it feels to be lean helps too. But food is good and it feels good to eat it so it’s easy to go a little insane with it and “forget” all your good intentions.
Here are some tips I follow to silence the siren, i.e., reduce the cravings that will follow.
1. Eat protein and fat with each meal. Especially protein. I find my cravings are worse when I sit down and eat a bowl of chips and salsa than if I had eaten some nachos with chicken.
2. Don’t sit down to a sane meal hungry. When I do this, WITHOUT FAIL, I will eat 10 times what I’d normally eat. The more I overeat the more cravings I have the next day. It’s the mental battle again. If some taste good more must taste better.
3. Write down your cravings through the week. This helps me tremendously. If I want King Hawaiian bread I write it down. If I want an oversized stuffed burrito I write it down. I can have those things but not until my scheduled sane meal/day. This works especially well if you do sane days but it can work for meals too. Often I find that my sane meals rolls around and I no longer want that Mexican pizza from Taco Bell.
4. Have healthy foods on hand that you really enjoy that feel more like a treat. I make this dip a lot because it tastes more decadent than it really is. Granted I would prefer it with crackers but my waist line prefers it with bell peppers. Funny thing is I’ve learned that I really do like the healthy alternatives. They (the alternatives) are out there but it takes a little experimenting and research to find things that suit your taste.
5. Gum. This works for me time and time again. Sometimes I chew 3 or 4 pieces at a time just to keep my mouth busy. Seriously. Usually by the time the flavor runs out the craving is gone or my jaw is so sore that I don’t want anything in my mouth.
6. And finally, sometimes I just have to sit on my hands and chew through my lip. I’m one of those people who get intense cravings. Seriously I break out into a sweat and start foaming at the mouth at the thought of eating a pizza with extra cheese. There is this “I want it so I must have it” mentality in our culture, hence, the housing crisis. (No judgements, believe me, I’m just as guilty as the next person.) There is really nothing wrong with being uncomfortable when it comes to resisting urges and wants including cravings for food. Sometimes I choose to experience some “discomfort” as I deny my urge to eat a bag of bagels. I know this is not what most people want to hear but the truth of the matter is there is not an easy fix. If there was we wouldn’t be facing the health crisis we are facing today in America.
But despite my best effort sometimes I fail. I have days I just “blow it”. I go out to eat fully intending to order the seared ahi and unsweetened ice tea but instead order the fish-n-chips with extra tarter sauce and a beer. One of the things I subscribed to is a NO GUILT policy. I didn’t say no consquence policy but I don’t allow myself to wallow in guilt. At least not for long. It doesn’t do me or anyone around me any good. If I blow it. I blow it. Time to pick up and learn. If this happens I try to chalk it off as an unplanned sane meal. Often but not always I will exchange this unplanned sane meal with a planned sane meal. This means that I may be just having chicken and salad at the bbq later in the week instead of the my friend’s amazing potato salad and deviled eggs. It comes down to choices and goals. What are your goals and what choices are you going to make to reach those goals???
I’m working on some cool little sane meal charts/planners that may be helpful for those of you who like to see things on paper and check things off. As soon as I switch the site over to the new name I’ll post them for all to use.
xoxo
j
This is my (almost) sane quest for insane health. Let's 
These posts are super helpful!!! Thank you
Great info! Thank you! I especially like the idea of writing down what you want to eat, and then giving yourself the option to have it for your sane meal… And yes, not beating yourself up over an “unplanned sane meal” is key!
Gum and fizzy water have been my saviors lately. I know I say this *every* post but what a GREAT one (I learn so much from each and every post. really. truly.) Can’t wait to see the new site and use the goodies on it
Oh my goodness. I was just going to talk about this in my blog. I went on vacation and slowly ate worse and worse and then I had more cravings and began the ugly cycle of I’ll start tomorrow mentality. I totally eat better and more food actually when I am eating well then when I am eating junk. Thanks for your inspiration and motivation