It doesn't matter what type of diet you're following, there will be times when you feel that you would do just about anything for some of your favorite off-limit foods. Even with the best willpower in the world, it's easy to give in to cravings, and before you know it, you're back at stage one. However, with a few simple dietary tweaks, it is actually easy to curb these cravings.
Water
Quite often when hunger strikes, it can be cured simply by drinking a glass of water. When your body is dehydrated, you can mistake thirst for hunger. Drinking water can also make you feel temporarily full, thus reducing hunger pangs and cravings. Water is calorie free, so you can drink as much as you like without it affecting your diet.
Protein
Protein takes longer to break down during digestion than fat and carbohydrates, and therefore more calories burns as it is broken down. Because of this increased digestion time, protein helps keep you feeling fuller longer. To help prevent cravings, have a source of protein at every meal. This could come in the form of eggs, fish, white meat, red meat, dairy or a protein supplement. The USDA recommends that a person with a 2,000-calorie daily diet consume at least 0.8 g of protein per 2 lbs. of body weight per day. However, those exercising intensely may want to consider increasing this to at least 1.2 g per 2 lbs. of body weight.
Snacks
You don't have to stick to the conventional meals of breakfast, lunch and dinner. If you find that you often get hunger cravings between meals, and drinking water and eating more protein don't suppress them, have a healthy snack. Choose nutritious whole foods, and limit your snacks to between 100 and 200 calories. Snack choices include fruit, cottage cheese, low-sugar yogurt, cold cuts of meat and all varieties of nuts. Keeping a supply of these close by will stop you from diving into junk food when cravings strike.
Cheat
You don't have to be 100 percent strict on your diet all the time. Having a cheat meal once a week, when you eat whatever you fancy, will give you a psychological break and help beat cravings. According to Joel Marion, author of "Cheat Your Way Thin," these meals will help raise your levels of leptin, hormone that helps regulate appetite and metabolism. When you diet, leptin levels are reduced, your hunger levels go up, and your metabolism slows down. Having a cheat meal boosts levels of leptin, raises your metabolism, and makes you less susceptible to cravings. Keep your cheat meals to one per week, and use them as a reward for sticking to your diet the rest of the time.
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