Cravings Busters

To understand why Cravings Busters work, you need to be let in on a secret....

Einstein's Secret

NOTE: In some of these videos I talk about 'chaotic eating' which I what I get every client to rename binge eating. The idea of chaotic eating has less power over us than the idea of binge eating. A sugar spree definitely qualifies as chaotic, as I am sure you will agree!

The Cravings Busters

Here are the strategies themselves for you to try out. Think of them a bit like online dating options. I want you to go through all of them and then try out any that appeal to you when you next get a sugar craving. Just as you are not going to fall in love with every photo on a dating site*, some may not work for you.

Your aim in the next two weeks is to try out every Cravings Buster, then find one that works the best and stick to it. Then you retrain your brain to default to that one action every time you get a craving. Remember that Eugene Pauly did not have 4 or 5 routes he took for his morning walk: just one.

Trying Cravings Busters that do not work is a very valuable exercise: this process of elimination will lead you to the one that works. So trying one that ends up in you eating sugar is NOT a reason to despair - it is damn useful data.

Be sure to watch the video on The Most Powerful Cravings Buster of Them All which I have left til the end.

*My favourite ever dating profile picture is a toss up. It was either a picture of a chicken tikka pie or a square of carpet. So however difficult giving up sugar may be, just be grateful you don't have a date tonight with Mr/Ms Carpet or Mr/Ms Ready Meal 😉

No. 1: The 5 Minute Reward (2 Videos)

The 5 Minute Reward from Harriet Morris on Vimeo.

Ideas For Rewards - Including Free Ones

It may not be practical to give yourself these straight away but you can grant yourself permission to have them after 5 minutes. You can schedule them after 5 minutes. You can buy them online after 5 minutes.

I suggest you do NOT use replacements as rewards. You can eat the replacement anyway. The rewards are ways to change your automatic response to NOT use food as a reward. Or drink for that matter.

DVD off Amazon (spend some time googling "The 100 greatest movie of all time" for ideas to prime the pump)
iTunes Download
Book/magazine (although in the words of Baz Luhrman "Do not read beauty magazines. They will only make you feel ugly")
eBook
Listen to a song (do the same research exercise I suggested for the DVDs above. Create a YouTube/Spotify juke box list)
Time - you can play with this one. What seems like an extravagant amount of "me" time later on as a reward? Offer that to yourself. What do you really want to do in that time? Watch reruns of Friends or Cheers? Nap? Surf Facebook?
Get or order a holiday brochure
Give yourself a facial scrub or some other form of pampering. Buy a bottle of lotion specifically as a Cravings Buster reward
Anything that gives you a quick hit of pleasure that will not backfire into guilt