Thursday, June 17, 2010

Deconstructing Cravings

Is a craving good, or bad? Can a craving really tell you what your body needs? I've seen many articles attempting to address this exact question, and I always feel like they leave much to be desired. There is much more to a craving than many of you may know.

As with anything, there is no clear cut or easy answer for this one. But what I can tell you is this: as nice as it would be to think that a craving can tell you exactly what your body is deficient in, is exactly that; a nice thought. Unfortunately, most all of us are living in an environment that has made it difficult to decipher true cravings vs. false cravings. We've learned to tune out our own body's intuition by attempting to follow the guidelines of the Government's Food Guide Pyramid, or the latest trend in nutrition. All the while, leaving out what's most important; individuality! I will repeat this over and over again, each of us are as unique as our fingerprints, inside and out. We can't each do what our neighbor down the road is doing and expect to have the same results. We need to wipe the slate clean, and start afresh, with a new perspective and new awareness for who we are and what our body needs.
So, let's talk more about cravings. A true craving would be something similar to thirst. A false craving would be something similar to only being able to think about ice cream (we've all been there).

A true craving is something which is controlled. For example, if you feel like your body needs something more salty, you add a pinch or two more of Himalayan sea salt to your meal, and the craving goes away, that's an indication of a true craving. You listen to your body's signals, you respond in a controlled way, the craving goes away, and you feel more centered and alert.
A false craving involves less control and virtually no will-power. A false craving would be wanting a piece of cake (or any food) so bad that you can't concentrate, you will do anything, even cancel appointments, to get it. And once you do succumb to the craving, you scarf it down as fast a humanly possible, and you feel like you have no control and could easily eat copious amounts. After the indulgence is through, you feel fatigued, bloated, foggy headed, and irritable. False cravings are usually related to food sensitivities, or feeding of a bodily weakness. In this instance, a craving is definitely not something we want to give into, but usually do, due to the overwhelming power false cravings have over us. See the difference? We must be clear on what type of craving we're talking about in order for it to be deciphered.

An important contributor to these true or false cravings is the gut-mind connection. Many diets revolve around will-power and not giving in to cravings. This so-called "will-power" is highly related to the gut-mind connection and most of the time, has quite less to do with the mind itself. Rather than focusing on "will-power", we need to be focusing on what is causing the craving. There are more nerve cells in your digestive system than anywhere else in your body. This gut-mind connection must be working optimally, and your hormones and digestive system must be in balance in order to know what true will-power feels like; rather than having it be a battle of fending off cravings. At the point when the body is in true metabolic balance, cravings are no longer a struggling battle. You simply won't desire things that are inherently bad for you, and you won't have to struggle to make good choices over "bad" choices. And when you do have a desire for ice cream, you are able to have a few spoonfuls, feel satisfied, and continue on. This is the power of the gut-mind link. If it is not working properly, you will struggle with cravings.
Hormones, digestive function, bacterial levels, etc. are all prime players in the craving game. In order to rid yourself of cravings permanently, you need to assure all of these pieces are in place. Otherwise, you'll be fighting an uphill battle with no likely end in sight.

It is only once you have rebalanced your gut function and body chemistry that you will be able to experience a true craving. And when you do, you will be amazed at the difference, and proud of your body for being so in-tune with its needs. This true craving will appear as a subtle hint, or a gentle nudge; not so much of an uncontrolable pull, and really, not even a craving at all.
So take note of what your body is telling you, and how you are responding. A craving is not just a craving. Every signal your body gives you is an important one.

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