Surviving Easter Cravings

What is it about Easter when everyone has enough chocolate bunnies and eggs coming into your house that you could open your own branch of a well-known chocolate shop!

Don’t despair though, now is not the time to ‘give into’ the cravings and eat your body weight in chocolate!

But in all seriousness, I do have a lot people ask me how to deal with cravings and how to resist with all that chocolate hanging about, so I thought this would be a great time to share some tips with you:

1. Get enough sleep!

You might be wondering why this is important, but a recent study found that sleep deprivation can make you eat on average an extra 550 calories a day, which over the course of week equals about a pound in weight gain. Switch off all tech an hour before bed and aim for a full 8 hours.

2. Stay hydrated

Thirst can often be mistaken for hunger. Keep a bottle of water with you all the time and sip throughout the day. If you are feeling hungry, then have a drink, wait 20 minutes and see if you are still hungry or if it was just thirst.

3. Keep a snack with you

If you keep a healthy snack with you all the time you are less likely to reach for a quick fix like crisps and chocolate. It will give you the much-needed energy and help you make better food choices.

Some nuts and a piece of fruit are a great option, but there are also some great cereal/snack bars on the market you can keep in your bag.

4. Don’t deprive yourself

Saying that you won’t allow yourself to eat any chocolate ever again will only make it harder when you really do feel the urge to have some. My philosophy is a little bit of what you fancy won’t do you any harm.

Stick to dark chocolate with a high cocoa content (more than 80%) and the sugar content will be lower, or you can choose pure cacao which is just as tasty and full of nutrients like magnesium, B vitamins, iron along with some antioxidants!

Have a lovely Easter everyone!