There are a variety of reasons why cravings occur, but one thing for certain is that cravings can lead to us grabbing whatever food is available, healthy or not, to silence the rumble in our stomaches. Sometimes boredom at work can also lead you to feeling hungry. Plus, there’s nothing worse than cake or biscuits being brought into your work’s office or on the job when you’re craving food just before lunch or near the end of your day.

Below we’ve listed our favourite tactics to help stop your food cravings at work!

Up your water intake

Aim for around 2.5 – 3.5 litres per day, with smaller and less active individuals aiming for the lower end and more active and larger individuals aiming for the higher end. Water not only hydrates you but will help you to stay full, feel fresh and keep you alert throughout the day!

Eat breakfast LATE!

If you wake up on a morning and you aren’t actually hungry, where possible, eat at work or during your commute. Take something filling and healthy with you and eat when you’re actually hungry, instead of forcing yourself to eat or missing breakfast.

Add your favourite foods to your diet

We don’t necessarily mean binge eating McDonald’s or a family share bag of Walkers with 3 mars bars, but enjoy your favourite foods in moderation. If you ensure most of your diet is healthy, balanced and accounted for, eating your favourite foods will help reduce overall cravings and binge-eating.

Prepare your lunch the night before

Having a delicious lunch to look forward to, knowing what the ingredients are, can help maintain your willpower to hang on until lunch. This can help you avoid snacking, but also provides flexibility and a level of consistency for your diet.

Don’t eat foods that you don’t want to;

just because they’re seen as ‘healthy’.

Salads are okay, but if they don’t fill you or leave you craving food an hour after lunch, it may be time for a change. Also, just because a celebrity or Instagram fitness model has said a particular food is unhealthy, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t eat it.

Whether its a type of food (e.g. carbs) or a particular food (a mars bar), avoid demonising foods. Enjoy a flexible diet where you consume the foods you enjoy in moderation, and gain an understanding of the importance of foods like carbs, even when you’re wanting to lose weight.

Cravings can come from being thirsty or simply boredom. However, cravings do come from actually being hungry, so be sure to fill your plates with volume. To avoid going crazy on calories, add lots of vegetables to your meals to bulk them out and keep you fuller for longer.

If you’re going to snack, try and snack on low calorie fruit or chopped veg, though rice cakes are filling too for their relatively low calories!

If you’re still uncertain about how to manage your work-day or need food ideas, don’t hesitate to drop us a message on Facebook or contact us here. We’re always happy to help!