If multiple candy wrappers are a nightly ritual, you’re going to want to read this.
You’re probably cringing right now….how did she know I meant to have two but 6 coffee crisp wrappers mysteriously appeared beside me?
I know because I’ve been there. And so have the 100’s of clients I’ve helped over a decade+ of Hallowe’ens. The scariest trick is the way those oh-so-little feeling treats chase away your results – energy, pounds on the scale, and sense of control.
You’re not alone – but waiting until they’re all gone to “start again” is the real crime.
You deserve to feel good now – and that includes some indulgence, and a sense of feeling in control again.
Feel like you can’t control yourself around them?
Three things are making this hard.
(The third is going to make you go oof, sorry in advance)
One is chemical – those little babies light up our reward and pleasure centres in our brain like a football stadium full of Taylor Swift fans thanks to their sugar content and taste. That means once we start, our brain chants more, More, MORE.
Second, we tend to gravitate towards them in the late afternoon or after dinner. Times when we are already TIRED mentally. Those happy hormone cups, fumes. This dials impulse control waaaaay down making it hard to
Third…said with love as someone who has been there…you declaring that you can’t control yourself is sabotaging any chance of controlling yourself.
You might feel like you can’t because you often fail, and that sucks when you have the right intention and it goes to hell anyways. But literally every skill requires failing, trying, failing, trying, failing a little less often or less hard. Conquering cravings is no different from learning anything else in that regard, so let’s remind your brain to be a little less dramatic about it.
No judgement, no guilt, but you know full well that nobody gets better at anything by committing to being bad at it. So stop hiding behind that statement, and pick one of the strategies below to start practicing this week! Embrace failing a little less each week as your brain catches on to what you’re practicing as the goal, and you’ll be amazed how much control you have with food ….even the spookiest of Halloween candy temptations…in a few months.
3 Client Tested Strategies To Summon Back Portion Control with Hallowe’en Candy
1. Fill that happy hormone cup BEFORE you’re tempted. Treat season from Oct to Dec requires us to be proactive. Consider Halloween the warmup rounds before the big game.
Pick something feel good and commit to 1-2 minutes a day. 5 deep breaths at your desk, 2 minutes of stretches between meetings, a quick lap around the building, read a few pages of a book, pop on a heart lifting and car thumping throwback playlist on your way home from work…
2. Focus on the treats you LOVE the most and savour those babies.
Don’t underestimate this one!
Acceptance and planning for treats is powerful when it comes to conquering those out-of-control cravings that leave you feeling stuffed and defeated when 10 peanut M&M wrappers lay where you planned on 0 wrappers being night after night.
Decide which ones you LOVE and which ones are just okay. Commit to only eating the ones you love, and if we’re going to eat that sugar – let’s at least allow your brain to get the boost its after and *close* the craving cyle.
How do you do that? By savouring it mindfully.
So pause the Netflix, put down your phone, and actually pay attention to any treat you’re eating this week. That’s the trade – you can have them, but you’re going to damn well enjoy them. This allows your brain to really soak up those feel good chemicals (and notice when its actually not that enjoyable anymore) so cravings become less intense over time.
(If you get stuck on *what* to do here –email me “self care ideas” and I’ll send you the list of 20+ ideas we share with clients for inspiration!)
3. Set up your environment for success.
While you may not be 100% charge of where treats live in the office, do what you can, where you can instead of accepting your fate.
At home – put any candy out of sight. Up high if you’re vertically challenged like me, down low at the back of a cupboard if you’re vertically blessed, at the back of the pantry behind the canned black beans, in an opaque treat bin or even in the freezer!
In the office – keep any out of your desk, and if you can off the eating spaces so those who want treats can grab them but not everyone has to stare them down all day.
Bonus – put healthy subs for feeling good at the end of the day *in* plain sight. Keep that book out on your coffee table you’ve been meaning to read, yoga mat handy, bubbly water stocked in the fridge or fancy relaxation teas at the front of the cupboard.
Implementation is always harder than “knowing” – so don’t be hard on yourself if any of these feels awkward and uncomfortable, that’s your brain learning a new pathway!
And if you found even one helpful tool here, you’ll feel like you hit the grown-up equivalent of full-size chocolate bars while trick-or-treating inside Conquer Your Cravings!
Peek inside my 4 week transformative online course designed to give you the tools to regain confidence and control over emotional eating, cravings, and mindless munching so you can feel peaceful, in control and consistent with food.
How good would it feel to not fight with food for another month?!
