Have you ever had one of those days where you want all the fast food that you can get your hands on topped with a bowl of ice cream, a handful of candy bars, and sugary drinks? Yeah, it happens to the best of us. Believe it or not, but it turns out that it’s ok to sometimes give in to your food cravings.
Keep the balance
Of course, one of the keys to a healthy lifestyle is keeping the balance. This goes for all aspects of our lives, such as staying active and resting, working and taking time out, and eating salads and chocolate. Many professionals know that telling ourselves how something is off-limits is one way to make our minds crave it more than ever. Then, when we finally give in and enjoy some, we often try to make up for all of that lost time. Enjoying your cravings every now and then throughout the week often helps to keep things balanced overall.
Reduce your cravings
Yes, it turns out that giving in to your cravings and having some of your favorite food could actually help to reduce them in the long run. Of course, many people worry that they will be eating cake at all hours of the day, but those cravings soon wear off. Many studies have shown how our bodies get used to having access to certain foods and no longer feel as though they have to eat as much as they can before it’s gone for good. Simply, it means the more that we are exposed to a particular food, the more used to it we get and the less we need to feel satisfied.
We can’t trick our bodies
There are so many healthier alternatives out there on the market that it can often be tough to know where to begin. From cauliflower pizza to banana ice cream and everything in between – will there ever be an end to it all? While they are usually healthier than their alternatives, these foods don’t give us the same satisfaction in the long run. If our body wants one thing, it knows when it’s being tricked – and it might not be happy. In the long term, we might find that we end up eating more as we try to satisfy our bodies.
It doesn’t affect our diet
Giving in to our food cravings every now and then usually isn’t enough to affect a balanced diet. In fact, it could have more benefits in the long run than it does negatives. However, there are some exceptions. Some people find sorbet is brilliant for a cold, sweet treat instead of ice cream if they need to cut down on their cholesterol while vegetable alternatives of carb-based food, such as spaghetti or pizza bases, can be brilliant for people with a gluten allergy. It’s all about learning how to take care of your body and not work against it.
It can be tough to banish those food cravings to the back of our mind, and it turns out that we might be doing more harm than good in the process. Life is short. Should we really spend it worrying about sticking to one food group or should we learn to live with a bit more balance every now and then?