Are you like me and most people and can honestly say: that YES you absolutely have experienced food cravings at one point or another. Have you given into the STRESS eating, BOREDOM eating, ANXIETY eating; you name it eating.

Well, I have noticed that I am less likely to experience food cravings when I have eaten a balanced, satisfying meal. What do I mean by this; if you are going to have a sandwich at lunch balance it out with some fruit or a small green salad. If you are going to have tacos at dinner, add a black bean, corn, bell pepper side salad. Also, where you can add slow absorbing foods into each meal please do. This will not only increase your feeling of satisfaction (which is where many food cravings come from) but your blood sugar will remain balanced which helps us to maintain a healthy/balanced energy level. Some examples of slow absorbing foods are beans, brown rice, most veggies.

So the challenge for the week is to try to eat a more balanced satisfying meal so you don’t grab for the salty chips or piece of chocolate after lunch and dinner. If you are still hungry or feel a craving come on try to identify is it sweet or salty or is it emotional eating. For sweet grab some fruit and if it salty have a small piece of cheese. At the end of the day though you need to be kind, grateful and accepting of your body. We are all entitled to a bad eating day every now and then; just accept it, let go of the guilt and move forward and try to do better the next day.

The journey of good health and nutrition needs to be sustainable so that is why I am not into excluding food groups out of my diet.  I believe you will be missing key nutrients if you exclude food groups out of your diet: take carbs for example (just eat whole unprocessed carbs: vegetables, rice, potatoes are all great whole food options that contain many vital vitamins and minerals vs, processed breads, chips and crackers). I enjoy chocolate but I eat it in moderation, I also eat chips but again it is balanced with lots of veggies and fruits throughout the day. For me it is all about enjoying your food, health and a balanced life.