I used to believe Gods gift to women was chocolate and I loved it so much that a death-by-chocolate was my ideal - chocolate ice-cream, chocolate biscuits, chocolate bars, chocolate donuts, chocolate cake, chocolate drinks, chocolate tarts, chocolate manicures, chocolate face masks, chocolate you name it, oh yeah, yummo, yes I might have been a chocolate addict.
Easter was one of my favourite holidays because it was a license to eat chocolate and the good stuff goes on sale too.This year I've abstained and not touched a speck! The new and improved, health conscious, weight losing me has had to come up with strategies to beat my cravings.
It tastes good and smells great - This is my secret weapon to fight that little voice that whispers chocolate to me. It's a strawberry cocoa smoothie made from low fat yoghurt, semi-skimmed milk, Green & Black cocoa and fresh strawberries. It is my treat and I might have it as a snack or a meal if I'm too lazy to cook.It really does curb my chocolate craving.
Dairy fix - sometimes a chocolate fix is my body telling me I'm not consuming enough dairy. I try to have semi-skimmed milk or yoghurt daily or at least three times a week. Sometimes I feel that milk makes me put on weight so I do avoid it for a few days.
Sugar fix - chocolate is essentially a sugar fix for me. I'm not interested in sweets or lollies, it's all about the chocolate. My sugar fix is now fruit, if I have to I will have a piece of high sugar fruit rather than chocolate because at least I'm getting vitamins and it's all natural. One of my favourites are the prunes from Tesco which are from France - they are super juicy, sweet and soft, the best in the world!
The 10 points scale - I have a scale from one to ten which basically means when it's a ten then I desperately need chocolate and one is it would be nice to have it. When I hit ten, I make myself wait 30 - 60 minutes, trying a glass of water or the sugar or dairy fix first to curb the urge.
What if I absolutely have to have chocolate?
Some days you just need to bow to the power of the chocolate and you can't control it. When I admit defeat, then there several strategies I can adopt:
- Buy expensive chocolate - a truffle from Charbonnel & Walker or a small snack size Green and Black.
- Select the least naughty chocolate there is - usually a Kit Kat and try to give half to someone.
- Buy whatever I fancy then keep it in a corner of the fridge or cupboard which I never use.
- Buy it, have a little bit and throw the rest out - except I rarely have the heart to do this as I can't bear to waste. But if I did throw it away, it's not like I'd pick it out of the bin to eat the rest!
- If it's a ten on the scale and I've essentially had a rotten day, that means Krispy Kreme chocolate icing with custard. I'll have the damn donut and go to the gym the next day working extra hard. This one should only be used as a last resort and very rarely because it's a really really bad habit which allows yourself to comfort eat.
Read Dieting - Cheat When You Eat for more ideas on managing naughty foods or Top 5 Tips to Get Started on Weight Loss to help you take the first step to reducing your waist line. Smartshape.com.au also has some pointers on chocolate cravings.
Controlling food cravings is like war, you have to fight one battle at a time to curb that urge and defeat chocolate, which is one of the deadliest weapons in this world.
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