True Confessions: Food, Cravings, and Other Bad Habits

I thought I was over food cravings for good – until they reared their ugly heads and I had to once again meet them face-to-face.

I used to get cravings a lot – and I mean like all the time.  As a teenager, I would go through cycles of binging followed by severe food restriction.  My weight would yo-yo up and down, yet it never occurred to me that this was abnormal.

The cravings went away when I started to truly nourish myself, not just my  body, but my mind and spirit as well. I ate when I was hungry, and stopped when I was full.  All was well, I thought.

But every now and then, the cravings come back.

The good news is the cravings are NOT for processed junk food, so it could be worse.  But there is still the need to fill myself with something sweet when something else in my life is amiss.

This time around I know exactly what that ‘something’ is.

I have been on a long ‘stay-up-late’ kick, and it’s creating an imbalance. Not getting enough sleep creates disharmony with your hormones, especially leptin.  This hormone sends a signal to your brain when you are full.

The day after a poor night’s sleep, your appetite tends to soar!

I also haven’t been exercising as regularly as I usually do because of a tight schedule.  I’ve been spending a lot of time putting many more new programs and events together, and have sacrificed my exercise more times than I care to admit.   That lack of an important component of a balanced life is throwing things off for me.

Exercise releases endorphins, the feel good chemicals responsible for what’s known as ‘the runner’s high.’

As a result of not getting my ‘feel good’ hit as regularly as I’m used to, I think my body is looking for pleasure elsewhere.

And food can be an instant source of pleasure and gratification.

On my recent blog posts and on my VITAL Healing Kitchen shows I have made wonderfully delicious energy balls.  They can be made with coconut butter, hemp seeds, and cordyceps or other medicinal mushroom powders, sweetened with stevia, and rolled into something that resembles a fudge ball.  These snacks that fulfill my cravings and indulgences might be considered innocent and even healthy by most.  Still, it’s the emotional state with which the cravings and indulgences express themselves that’s out of sorts.

So I am making a public commitment to nourish myself, to do a mini cleanse, and to get to bed 30 minutes earlier each night until I am in bed by 11.

I will also blog about my experiences.  As I go through this process to hold myself accountable, I invite you to follow along and share your journey.  That’s why I created my programs.  It’s through the support we offer each other that we can often find the strength to follow through on our intentions and desires.

In my upcoming posts,  I’ll discuss that what really causes food cravings is a deficiency of one of your basic needs. When nutrients are out of balance, your body craves food to rebuild its stores. When you respond to the cravings with sugar, starches, and nutritionally depleted and harmful foods, you add stress to your body.  This stress burdens your adrenal glands.  Giving in to food cravings can contribute to adrenal exhaustion.