Many women hold the honest to goodness belief that cravings are something to be suppressed, ignored, numbed, silenced and squashed at all costs. And that we are BAD for having them. Or that our body is somehow against us for having them. Or that we simply have no willpower and are therefore weak and worthless and destined to be unhappy with our food forever.
I could not disagree more.
I BELIEVE THAT CRAVINGS ARE A SIGN FROM DEEP WITHIN OUR BODY THAT WE NEED MORE OF THAT WHICH WE ARE CRAVING. CRAVINGS ARE SIMPLY THE BODY STATING ITS NEEDS.
Craving sugar? Maybe your body is asking you to feed it more sugar.
Craving salt? Maybe your body is asking you to feed it more salt.
Craving citrusy fruits? Maybe your body is simply asking for more vitamin C.
Craving all the dairy products? Maybe your body is asking for more calcium.
Craving weird things like fermented veggies or seaweed or bitter herbs/greens? Maybe your body is asking for more of the micronutrients found in those foods.
What if our cravings were merely WISDOM from our bodies, brilliantly and perfectly and SIMPLY communicating to us the very basic things that it needs?
This feels way more true to me.
We have been taught to silence our bodies, to suppress our symptoms, and to medicate ourselves so we don’t have to feel anything uncomfortable, be it a body ache or an emotional challenge or a headache from drinking too much the night before.
The body is ALWAYS communicating to us through its symptoms. Literally always! And in all the ways!
Something that has made a world of difference in my life, and in the lives of many of my students and clients, is actually BEING WITH my body and the messages it is giving me.
This is both the fun and the challenge of becoming truly body literate and understanding the nuances of our entire lives and everything that goes into them from :::
Our food
Our hydration
Our sleep
Our supplements
Our emotional wellbeing
To :::
Our careers
Our partners
Our sleep
Our time
Our energy allocation
What we are viewing on social media the TV the news on podcasts etc etc etc.
Back to cravings.
Take note of what you are craving. Sugar cravings hitting hard? Maybe all this means is that you need to eat more naturally sweet foods throughout the day like roasted carrots, sweet potatoes, caramelized onions, ripe fruit, a little dash of honey in your coffee.
This could also mean you aren’t nourishing as well throughout the day. Sometimes it’s as simple as eating MORE. More food at breakfast lunch and dinner. More high quality protein to sustain all the things you need to do during your day. Maybe this means you throw in an extra nutrient dense snack throughout the day.
INSTEAD OF SUPPRESSING THE CRAVING, ASK THE BODY INSTEAD WHAT IT IS TELLING YOU THAT YOU NEED MORE OF.
We are so afraid to heed the cravings. Or feed the body MORE when its (still) hungry after a meal. And this leads us down a really toxic path of body shaming, speaking badly about our gorgeous bodies, sending it the message that it (shouldn’t) still be hungry, or berating it for “not having any will power” (willpower is a farce, btw!).
Back it up, slow down, take a deep breath, and tune into your body.
What is it asking for?
Can you answer the call?
Can you give it a little more of what it needs throughout the day, WITHOUT beating yourself up about it?
I have personally witnessed literal mind and body transformations with clients who stop squashing and suppressing their cravings simply by honoring their body’s need, giving it a bit more of what its craving, and seeing their levels of health and happiness skyrocket.
Case in point:
These clients stop feeling the guilt and shame for having the craving in the first place. Instead, they look at these cravings as signs and wisdom from the body (which they are), they take inventory of their day, their nourishment, their emotional bucket and their stress levels, and instead of binging on the plate of brownies, they enjoy one or 2 – WITHOUT THE GUILT.
And NO – ONE TO TWO BROWNIES IS NOT GOING TO DERAIL YOUR HEALTH.
IT IS NOT GOING TO DESTROY YOU.
IT IS NOT GOING TO NEGATE ALL THE WORK YOU HAVE PUT INTO YOUR HEALING JOURNEY.
I can’t tell you the joy it brings me when a client comes in telling me that she is no longer beating herself up for eating the brownies.
That rather than looking at that brownie as something she must repent for later (more cardio at the gym tomorrow, restricting calories the next day, skipping a snack or a meal to “make up” for the extra calories she consumed that night, etc) …
That rather than looking at that brownie as the physical representation of all her years of guilt and shame – instead she looks at it as a piece of healing medicine that is satisfying a very real need within her body, AND its providing her with some beautiful nutrition, too!
((Yes, I believe brownies made at home with simple ingredients like pastured eggs, cacao powder, grass fed butter, some raw milk, and good mineral rich sugar can be considered beautiful nutrition 😊 😊 😊 ))
So don’t fret about the cravings.
Instead, take a moment to be present with your body, really be IN your body, and see what wisdom it is trying to speak to you. Honor its need without beating yourself up. Trust me – you will be a happier and healthier person on the long run.
Tell me below – have you ever looked at cravings this way? How do you think this different view of cravings will serve you and your healing journey?
Yours In Abundant Health & Love
Xoxo,
Emily 😊
