We tend to want what we can't have. But when it comes to cravings, not getting what you want can dampen your desire. We crave what we eat. So if you eat good-for-you foods, you'll start wanting them instead of cookies and cake. The key is getting your mind on board until your body can take over. Depriving yourself is about resisting, and resistance is difficult. Choosing whether to eat something, on the other hand, is empowering.
Satisfying a craving can give you a quick hit of the pleasure hormone dopamine (and if you're doing it with carbs, a rush of calming serotonin too). But research shows that chocolate's comforting effect lasts only three minutes. And once the high passes, you're left with the same frustrations as before -- plus regret.
While hunger is your body telling you that you need to eat, cravings are a suggestion. Start by determining whether you're actually hungry. Aside from the obvious symptoms like fatigue and irritability, pickiness is also a good indicator of appetite. The less you care about eating a specific food and the more you just want to eat something, the likelier it is that you don't have just a hankering. If it is only a craving you would kill for a cookie but could easily pass on an apple.
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When you use food as a prize, you risk sabotaging your motivation by signaling to yourself that you've reached an end point; you got the medal, so the race is over. This can be an open invitation to revert to unhealthy behaviors. Rather than rewarding yourself for a job well done, focus on how eating healthfully has already paid off. Do you have more energy? Do your clothes fit better? In the same way you can get addicted to the endorphins your body releases when you work up a sweat, you can get hooked on the feeling of pride or progress, which makes you want to continue down a healthy path.
