IIN Chat: Deconstructing Food Cravings

Hi friends!

Want to hear something wild? I’m already halfway through my health coaching certification course at IIN! Time flies when you’re learning about topics that you’re super interested in and really passionate about, huh?!

If you aren’t familiar with IIN, here are previous posts I’ve done about the school and its teachings:

IIN Chat: What’s a Health Coach?

IIN American Health Facts

IIN: Month 1 Recap

Taking the Plunge: Why I Went Back to School

Pretty soon I’ll be looking for clients to work with as a health coach, and I am really looking forward to it! An aspect of being an IIN student that I’ve really enjoyed is connecting with likeminded people who share my passion for healthy living. I met some great people when I was living in Northern Cali, and now that I’m in the San Diego area, am definitely hoping to connect with people around here.

At IIN we choose a peer coach, which is another student that we can discuss school and throw around ideas with, and ask questions to. Mine is Hillary at Nutrition Nut on the Run. I found out that we’re classmates through reading her blog, and it’s fun having her as a fellow blogger peer coach to have phone chats with every few weeks!

Since I have a test to take soon, I was skimming through my IIN notes tonight (which I’ve got A LOT of at this point!) and found an interesting page that I wanted to share with you all, because I think it’s a topic that most people can relate to: food cravings. Understanding what causes your cravings is key to overcoming them or to satisfy them in a healthy, balanced way.

Think about the food cravings you may get. Are they usually for broccoli or oranges? Chances are, you’re more likely to be thinking about something sweet like ice cream or a donut, or something salty like chips or French fries. You may not have thought too deeply about it, but there are real reasons for your cravings besides just thinking that the food tastes good.

In a nutshell, things like sugar and processed foods cause an opiate release, which are known as the feel-good chemicals. Opiates increase dopamine in the brain, aka the pleasure chemical. This is important in understanding why we crave sweets and junk foods. It’s not just that we like sugary foods; we’re craving those chemical highs from food.

Over the years I’ve learned moderation and have also come up with a lot of healthier substitutes to satisfy not-so-healthy cravings, which I’ll do another post on sometime. Coincidentally, tonight is a good example. My sister was telling me yesterday that she had eaten waffles & ice cream and it was amazing. Naturally, I started craving waffles & ice cream, so I made my own healthier version of them at home: whole wheat banana oatmeal waffles topped with dark chocolate chips, PB2 powdered peanut butter, and Arctic Zero chocolate peanut butter “ice cream.”

Yes, I had this for dinner tonight and it was fabulous…craving satisfied, no stomachache involved from too big of a portion or too heavy of a dish!

Anywho, besides being opiate junkies who want that high from the foods we’re eating/beverages we’re drinking, IIN has identified there to be 8 primary causes of cravings. Here they are:

1.) Dehydration, which can occur as mild hunger.

2.) Lifestyle. You may be using food to fill a void or to cope with dissatisfaction and stress with the primary food in your life (your relationships, career, spirituality, etc.).

3.) Yin/Yang Imbalance. Eating a lot of foods that are thought to have yin qualities (words used in describing yin include expansive and feminine) or yang qualities (word used to describe yang are contractive and masculine) can cause cravings. It’s your body’s way of trying to reestablish balance. For example, eating a diet too rich in meat (yang) can cause cravings for sugar (yin).

4.) “Inside Coming Out.” You may be craving foods that you ate in your childhood or that were eaten by your ancestors.

5.) Seasonal. Cravings may be an attempt of the body to balance out elements of the season. An example of this is craving watermelon or ice cream in the summertime.

6.) Lack of Nutrients. If you diet is lacking nutrients, it may cause odd cravings.

7.) Hormones. This includes things like menstruation, pregnancy, menopause and fluctuating testosterone levels.

8.) De-evolution. This one is really interesting to me, but they refer to as the “self sabotage syndrome,” in that we crave foods that throw us off of our balance when things are going well.

What types of foods do you typically crave? What do you think of the above causes? Do any of them resonate with you? 

*Interested in finding out more about becoming a health coach OR becoming my health coaching client?? Feel free to shoot me an email @ nicole[at]foodielovesfitness.com. You can also check out the IIN website, preferably via one of the IIN banners on my right sidebar. I appreciate it! 🙂 *