So you are rocking along having a good week staying on your eating plan, then suddenly cravings hit. Hard.
You see a doughnut you want in the break room, or you are at the movies and the smell of popcorn is making your mouth water and you are drifting towards the concessions, or you just want a chocolate chip so much you head to the kitchen to whip some up. Sound familiar?
You have got to have it.
Haven’t you been “good” all week?
I have been there. Especially, the part about the chocolate chip cookies. Just knowing that the package of easy gluten-free mix is at my fingertips, just steps away.
What can you do to get through this without indulging your craving and desire?
I do now what my own weight coach, Brenda Lomeli, taught me. Brenda helped me lose the ten pounds I could not get rid of, no matter how hard I tried.
She calls her method for handling food cravings PAZ (not pause). PAZ is Spanish for peace.
P= Peck at your brain and pay attention. What thoughts are running through your head? Take a minute to think. Is it, “I’ve got to have this” or “It would taste so good!”, something like that? Just pay attention to your thoughts.
A= Allow the desire for the food to stay. You aren’t going to use willpower. Willpower equals restriction. Don’t act on the desire. You are not going to respond. And you won’t die if you don’t satisy these cravings. You are going to wait 30 minutes. Make the decision on purpose. See if you can shift your thoughts for 30 minutes.
Z= Zone in on your goal. Remind yourself of what you have committed to lose. The food plan you promised yourself you would stick to.
Remember – feelings (desire or craving) create actions and actions produce results. You are not going to act on the desire or craving and the results will be that you stay committed to your goal. You allowed the craving and did not act..you just let it be there, kind of like an annoying fly.
After the 30 minutes, you can make a conscious decision on what you want to do.
This process is simple – not necessarily easy. But I think you will find that you can do it. You will honor your commitment to yourself and you will feel so empowered. Yes, you can do this!!
Try this method and let me know in the Comments section how it worked.
If you would like to talk with me about your weight loss goals and explore working with me as your coach, shoot me an email at jane
Jane Springer is a certified Life, Wellness and Style Coach who assists women in taking care of themselves, in body, mind and spirit. She coaches women who want to lose weight, avoid diabetes, and feel great. She also helps them thrive after divorce. She also helps them to clear their closets of old clothes and outdated attitudes, so they can shine and feel confident.