Top 7 Proven Ways to Beat Your Junk Food Cravings and Lose Weight

Jul 2

ABSTRACT

Are you struggling with junk food cravings on your weight loss journey? Discover the top 7 proven ways to curb your cravings and stay on track. From protein-rich breakfasts to pantry purges, these tips will help you achieve your weight loss goals and maintain a healthy lifestyle.

KEYWORDS

Weight loss
Beat junk food cravings
Curb junk food cravings
Stop junk food cravings
Reduce cravings
Healthy eating tips
Protein-rich breakfast
Avoid junk food
Pantry purge tips
Pre-portion snacks
Artificial sweeteners effects

**Junk Food Cravings / Photo:** **Valeria Boltneva**

Introduction

Are you on a weight loss regimen but can't stop craving junk food? I stripped the top 7 ways to halt the temptation from the nutrition article "42 Ways to Beat Your Junk Food Cravings". Take a look!

List of Ways to Beat Your Junk Food Cravings

1. EAT A PROTEIN-RICH BREAKFAST

Start your day on the right foot and keep those junk food cravings at bay by loading your breakfast with protein. Not only will doing so keep you full for longer than a carb-heavy meal, it can also help slim you down. Research published in the International Journal of Obesity reveals that individuals who ate eggs for breakfast lost 65 percent more weight and reduced their waist measurement by 34 percent more than those who ate bagels instead.

Personal Trainer Wisdom: My Atkins fans are probably jumping in excitement! #ProteinForever #AnimalsAreMyBestFriendWhenICanEatOne Slow down for a moment and dissect what this suggestion means. Up to this point, most people favor the quick and easy carb breakfast of cereal and fruit (a carb overload intending to spike your blood sugar levels and disrupt your ability to lose weight). We can reasonably state that this meal is lacking serious nutrition. Where is the healthy protein? Where is the healthy fat? While I encourage you to add protein to your breakfast, it should still be a plant-based focus with a close eye on a ratio of protein, fiber, fat, and vitamins/phytonutrients.

2. TAKE A BITE AND TOSS IT

They say the first taste is the sweetest, and that’s certainly true when it comes to junk food. Sometimes, all you really want is the comfort or flavor of a certain food, but not the whole thing. If your craving is too hard to pass up, make a habit of allowing yourself a single bite and tossing the rest (or giving it to a friend). Some people even go as far as dumping salt or cleaning fluid on their trigger food to break the temptation to go back for more.

Personal Trainer Wisdom: Do you need to dump cleaning fluid on that irresistible cake? Probably not. Simply putting it away or disposing of it should be good enough. Know yourself, though. If you think you might sneak back into the fridge, throw it away or give it to your neighbor.

3. DO A PANTRY PURGE

Your home may be your castle but it may also be a contributor to your poor eating habits. Cleaning out your kitchen and getting rid of any snacks you’re likely to binge on can make it a whole lot easier to make good choices when hunger strikes.

Personal Trainer Wisdom: "If it's there, I'll probably eat it" most likely applies to most of us. Do yourself a favor and remove the temptation while creating new healthy habits (yes, your health is worth wasting $15 on unhealthy food).

4. CHANGE YOUR ROUTE HOME

Passing by a million fast food joints on the way to school or home from work can make it all too easy to give into temptation. Whenever possible, try taking routes that avoid fast food chains or places you’d usually stop — out of sight, out of mind.

Personal Trainer Wisdom: An incredible amount of money is spent learning about consumer psychology. No one blames you if you can't resist the colorful sign and mouth-watering window pictures. The restaurants are appealing to your unconscious. Limit this persuasion by taking the other scenic ride home.

5. PRE-PORTION YOUR SNACKS

Instead of buying a whole bag of something and telling yourself you’ll just have a little, portion out your snacks the second you get them home. Doing so can help you start to enjoy those foods you crave in moderation instead of binging.

Personal Trainer Wisdom: Planning and prepping your meals will always increase your chances of weight loss success.

6. CONSIDER WHAT YOU'RE CRAVING

Sometimes, our cravings are telling us something, and it’s not always such a bad idea to listen. If you’re craving orange juice, you may need to up your intake of vitamin C. Craving pizza? It could be a calcium deficiency you’re trying to fix. Once you’ve figured out what’s at the root of your craving, you can help crush it by adapting your diet. If you still feel a serious urge to snack on junk foods you don't even want on an intellectual level, it might be time to have your doctor test you for a vitamin deficiency.

Personal Trainer Wisdom: What you crave isn't likely to be specifically linked to a deficiency in related nutrition. If your diet is nutrient-deficient, your body may tell you to seek more fuel until you find it.

7. SKIP THE ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS

You may think you’re saving yourself calories by eating a sugar-free version of your favorite sweet, but those artificial sweeteners you’re chowing down on could be compounding the problem. Artificial sweeteners activate the same part of your brain as regular sugar, and can actually make cravings for the real stuff worse.

Personal Trainer Wisdom: An artificial sweetener is a foreign substance that leads to inflammation and will trigger a similar insulin response as sugar. Despite our best efforts, we can't trick our brains on this one.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: MICHAEL MOODY, PERSONAL TRAINER

As an author, a personal trainer in Denver, and podcast host, Michael Moody has helped personal training clients achieve new fitness heights and incredible weight loss transformations since 2005. He also produces the wellness podcast "The Elements of Being" and has been featured on NBC, WGN Radio, and PBS.

Michael offers personal training to Denver residents who want to meet at the 2460 W 26th Ave studio….or in their homes throughout LoHi (80206), LoDo (80202), RiNo (80216), Washington Park (80209), Cherry Creek (80206, 80209, 80243, 80246, 80231), and Highlands (80202, 80211, 80212). Michael also offers experiences with a personal trainer in Jefferson Park (80211) and Sloan's Lake (80204, 80212).

If you’re looking for a personal trainer who can curate a sustainable (and adaptable) routine based on your needs and wants, Michael is the experienced practitioner you’ve been looking for. Try personal training for a month…your body will thank you!