What are your trigger foods? You know the ones that cause you to get even hungrier or cause cravings? Maybe they make you feel tired and sluggish?
I have a pretty good idea of what MY trigger foods are (which may be completely different than yours)…and this past week I unfortunately had to add the Cinnamon Roll Quest bar that I grabbed on the go for breakfast to my list. That bar was like a party in my mouth. Serioulsy. The consistency was a little slimy like a power bar, but I loved it. So much so that I probably could’ve eaten about 5 more.
There are certain bars that I can just break a bite off of and be fine. This was not one of them. I felt like a bottomless pit. My hunger and cravings were definitely out of control.
Typically, I have a protein shake for breakfast and not a Quest bar. And I will continue to do so because I know that my shake keeps me satiated and not searching for more. A protein shake may do the complete opposite for you, but the key is to start thinking about how your body reacts after eating certain foods or drinking certain drinks. Become a “detective” as they recommend at Metabolic Effect.
When coaching my fat loss clients, I recommend that they start to hone in on their detective skills when it comes to food. Figure out what may be causing their 4pm slump in energy or the run to the vending machine. Could it be something they ate at breakfast or lunch? Probably.
A client of mine just emailed me this last week: “I have decided that sugarless gum is a trigger for me”…That’s a huge win for her! Now she knows that if she chooses the gum, chances are really good that her cravings are going to be way out of whack. Who needs that!
So what can you do?
Start paying attention to how you feel after you eat certain foods. For example, my client switched from having sugar free gum after lunch to snacking on some baby carrots with a little ranch dressing because she figured out that the gum was causing more cravings. Ranch dressing may not be the absolute best thing in the world, but it’s better than having gum and going on a sugar binge! She started paying attention to what she was eating BEFORE the cravings hit and made some adjustments to her diet based on that.
Do you have any triggers foods (or drinks)? What do you choose instead? Leave a comment under the link on my Facebook page and let me know 🙂